The daily gazette., 1878-03-13
Our Washington Letter.
Dull Times I'm COngress-G ust 9
of Excitement--The Wit of
COngOr and Cox.
BANNINo's BILL, WHY 1T Is NOT LIKELY
TO PASS s-lNvEsIGATIoN OF DOOR
KEEPER FOLK CONCLUDED
GREEDY sCRAMBLERs FOR

| TO PASS S-lNfEbiGAIlOk OF DOOR
| KEEPER FOLK CONCLUDED--
GREEDY sCRAMBLERs FOR
PETTY sPoILs, &c.
From our regular correspondent.
WASHINGTON, March IL, 1s78-These
! are called dull times in Washington.
There are occasional gusts of excitement
| in the Senate and House, when beliger.
ent Democrat and Republican pitches
into the opposite, or, what is almost az
J frequent now, into some member of his
own party; or when some question bear.
ing upon the late civil war, the recon.
struction laws, or the Electoral Commits
| sion is brought up. But this excitement
is galvanic and momentary, and the
apathy of the majority, of the galleries,
and, it is believed, of the country, says
plainly in the slang of the day, "give us
! a rest" Occasionally when Mr.. Congor
and Mr.. Cox, the funny men of their
| respective parties, try to be amusin g,
the House laughs from force of custom,
| while the galleries wonder if that is the
standard of wit and humor in the next
to the highest legislative body in the land.
Mr.. Cox has reputation for wit, and he
labors heavily under the consciousness
of the reputation. He has written some
flat essays in Harper's Magazine on
American Humor and Humorists, or
some such title, but If he ever said q
really suggestive and witty thing, the
record is no where pres erved. An essen
tial of wit is spontaneity and sudden
ness one of the elements of the absurd
is surprise. No one can be amused if he
Is made to anticipate and inspect criti-
cally the laborious mining that precedes
the explosion. Wit is climax with the
intermediate steps knocked from under.
All of Mr.. COx's efforts are elaborate,
1t Is known beforehand that he is to
make set, so called funny speech and
as he proceeds with the grace of wood
EN- legged jig dancer, the groundlings
may laugh, but the judicious must grieve
both on account OF the poorness of the
performance, and the execrable taste that
selects a legislative body for such dis
plays.
From the large amount of business be-
fore Congress much of it Is of character
that ought not to be hurried over, it is
probable that the session viii be con-
tinued far into the summer. Some ap-
preparation bills, especially those of the
Army and Navy, will not be passed with
out long and aggravated discussion.
Many thoughtful Representatives of both
political parties are of opinion that the
expenses of both these divisions of the
public service can and ought to be ma
terially reduced but ii is doubtful if a
reduction can be effected for there is
always such an insinuation of personal
and selfish interests into what should be
questions of purely public policy, that
the ideal of independent Ijudicious legis-
lation il never attained. The Republi-
cans will not as body vote for the Ban
ming bill, because they know that the
Democrats will appropriate all the glory
of economical legislation, and will be
able to 60 before the people and boast in
coming campaigns. On the other hand
some Democrats will decline to vote for
the bill, because they have relatives and
friends in the army whose salaries viii be
reduced by the proposed law.
A close Inspection of the secret springs
and motives of legislation and Legislators
here, is calculated to chill enthusiasm
and suggest reflection, In those who have
been taught from school histories, and by
4th of July orations, that the sun,n,un
bonum of human government has been
reached in the United States, and that
the will of the people is accomplished
through popular suffrage. The greed
and meanness of men find expression
here just as in monarchical forms, and
there Is the trouble that responsibility is
not so easily fixed, and many a petty
lawyer that is sent to Congress has no
other aim than to so "fix things" by the
distribution of patronage, that he may
be elected again, or, If he has no hope
of that, to make the most money possible
during the brief harvest that he is
here.
There is now in progresss a most dis
gusting scramble for few petty offices
that are under the control of the House
of Representatives. The scramblers as
rule are 80 vicious that men of charac- |
ter are forced through self respect out of
competition. 1t is known that there are |
in waiting no less than twelve candidates |
for the office of door keeper of the House, |
which, they hope, will be made vacant |
through the Investigation of the present |
incumbent. The committee has conclud- |
ed the work of examination, and will |
soon make report upon the conduct of
Colonel Polk; il is not known what that |
report will be, but famished gang of |
political beats are already preparing for /
rough and tumble race for the place |
and its spoiis. There is nothing more /
contemplate than the savage greed ex-
hibited by Democrats for the pittance of |
patronage that the House has at its dis
posal. 1t is fact that will be patent to
any one who will take the trouble to in
vestigate, that, out of the thousands of |
applicants for the fifty-four places at the
disposal of the door keeper, not more
than a score are men who would be elig-
ible to place with salary Of thirty dol
lars month in any locality where they
are known, or would be hired on their
merits for legitimate work. They are
mostly ex-gin-slingers, bankrupt gam
blers, confidence men, and every variety |
of beat and hummer that happens to
have the endorsement of some member |
of Congress, whom he has helped, it is
needles to say how, to elect.