The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-06-25
WORK OF CONGRESS.
AN EIGHT MONTHS SESSION ANas
NOTHING hone
How Randall Has gsed Wis Position az
Speaker to DTfeag southern MenNw
aFes-COnklinE and FentOn.


Especial Correspondence OF the Derneorss-Y
| RIGGS Housx.
Washington, d. c.. June 19, Is7s.
One OF the longest, and In many respects
least useful sessions of
CONGRESS
ever held, has Just closed. 1t had lasted con-
| tinuously more than eight months, and yet
| the material part of it's work, shat part which
direetly reflects the policy of the representa-
tives Of the people In providing for the ex-
| penditure OF the peoples money, was practi-
eally crowded into the last eight days. I do
not by any means underrate the preliminary
labors Of the committees in examining estf-
mates, investigating past expenditures and
reducing the vast mass of needs anddemands
to the form Of a general appropriation biIT
ready for report and consideration On the
floor. Nor do fail to estimate the time and
labor required In discussing measures in
committee OF the whole; all of which func-
| lions are Important and which, as the Record
will show, were exhaHstively discharged.
But for all that l say the material part OF
| the work OF the session In point of f1st ac-
coUp6 Was crowded into the last few iays.
don't know that this evil, II 1t be one, can fye
reTnedied. Congressman are like all ether
men and are indisposed to take time by the
forelOck SO long as they can maintain q safe
and easy grip on Times eoat-taiIs. 1T Id easy
enough to show how, by mere systematic an
portionment of time and labor to measures
one by one, and by establishing, If yon please.
q chronological order In which to consider the
various classes of the matter of legislation
the session could be carried on smoothly and
reach it's end; as an ordinary planter win
reach the end of his seasons work: without 4
crash and rush at the close, winding up In
confusion, chaos, yells, whoops, curses,
drunken statesmen, hell generally, and half
the public business left undone at lasti
But these criticisms have been made q hrn-
dred times, and when you present them tothe
average statesman he will smilingIy say.
"Yes that's SO; it ought to be done the way
you suggest"
And then he will go back to his old tricks.
and Legislation will be carried on at hap~haas-
ard, as 1t has been since tho foundation
of the government
need hardly remind you that the gloornv
f0reDodings l have been sending you for the
last fortnight, by mail AMI telegraph. touch
ing the probable fate of those measures wfajel,
were dfSbinctiveIy OF local interest and ff1@
portanoe to your section, have been realized.
As long ago as last January wrote letter
y" VAAO DAAAhCOA1h15 DotbluB 4OI Lfl
SPEAKER RANDALL
in response 10 the votes of Southern MEM
bers which chose him Speaker, would do aI
ne could t0 bar the progress and defeat the
passage Of the levee measures, suppose
the people along the lower river will hold
their immediate Representatives In the House
and Senate -Eustis, Gibson, Ellis and Rob
eTtSon, OF Louisiana, and LaElar Chalmers
and Money, Of Mississippi directly RESPONSE
PIE Tor the failure OF these measures, which
"a VTryuIf Il.yA
the responsibility should be SO placed. ans
even that part should be laid solely up6r tTs
shoulders Of those who voted to elect Ran1alI
speaker; for That was the great first cause of
our failure and the iDsurmouutabIe obstacle
to our sueeess.
The trouble with Randall as Speaker Ii
that he tries to represent in the chair. the
same as g on the floor. the district that elects
him to Congress. Now, while it is perfectly
natural and right that member on the floor
or IN COMMITTEES should stick to the interests
OF his constituents and fight all interests that
are opposed TO theirs, his status should be-
entlrely changed the moment he ascends tha
Speakers dais. 1t needs no arS ument to
SHOW that devotion to local interests. which
Is praiseWOrthy in q mere member is repre-
nens0le IL not In fact criminally wrong Ia b
Speaker.
THE POWER or A SPEAKER
OF the House is so imperfectly understood INV
the people at large that they do NOT, At fIrst,
thought, charge him with the respOnsibiIItv
that Is really his due. Even men who have
Deen members OF State legislatures and have
witnessed or felt the power enjoyed by pre-
sidirg officers In those bodies, can form no
adequate idea OF what Is involved In the pre-
TogatiVe OF the Speaker Of the National
House. To be sure, his power is mainly mega
tive, but power Of absolute neQation-
which Is really the position occupied bv the
Speaker-is terrific power to lodge ia the
hands OF one man In country where all law
and all public .benefiee flows from the
a II
representatives. Again, the most dangerous
quality OF the Speakers power is the covert
ness amounting to secrecy with which it can
De ana invariably is applied. mere nod Of
Ine Speakers head. the recognition OF q nen1-
Der, the wave OF his hand or the glance of his
eye, at a critical moment of the session. NAV
Kill, defeat or smother legislation involving
millions worth OF material interests to hum
dTeds OF thousands Of people. In short there
10 not a department of the Speakers power.
from the makeup Of committees down to the
choice he has Of recognizing the right Of
members to the floor but is frsuohf to kha
DrIm with the veal or woe OF the land.
Ihls power has happened to be exer6ed for
our woe; not alone with respect to the levees.
but touching
THE BRAZILIAN MAIL LINE BILL,
and all our Pacific railroad schems as well.
we nave IN fact nothing to show for this ses-
sio1 OF a. local character, except begearly
plttance for the repair Of our old mint and
trIfilng extension upon the generosity Of d
iOrmer-and by the way, Radical Congress
IN the matter Of the jetties, This, to say the
least, Is poor and huuiIiating sequel to the
hopes Of those who at the beginning Of the
session fondly imagined that the preDOnder-
ant majority OF Southern men in the party
caucus of the predominant majority m fhe
House would be ableto accomplish Something
OF moment for the welfare of the section and
the people represented by them.
They dozed and slept on a bed Of roses of
hope and fancy all through the eight months
session, and did not discover The rnigtaSe
until thorns Of palpable disappointment be-
gan 70 prick through their obtuse skins Id the
last hours: Then they rallied for once btit
what rally u was, and what a poor victory
they wont After Randall had killed ell the
Southern and Southwestern measures, hss
PennSy ylvaHia friends brought in bin grant
ing additional privileges and innrnuniffes tn.
the Northern Pacific Railroad. This was de-
feated oy the Southern men, and RandalPs
own tactics for once turned back upon him
lt was indeed victory such a victory AZ Ma
pOIeOn won at MOntiHirafI when fhA allies