The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-11-30
Dick Thompson Again in the Lobby.

The Hon. RICHARD W. THoMPsoN's mclan-
choly experience with the Kansas Pacific
Railroad ought to have warned him out Of
the lobby, inasmuch az Il taught him the
ingrattudc Of corporations and the untrust-
worthincss Of subsidy jobbers in general.
II will bc remembered that the guilclcss sea
lawyer OF the Wabash was hired by the Kan
sas Pacific to procure certain legislation
favorable to that company, that he was
promised $1,000 for his services, besides a
liberal allotment Of stock and that he has
been trying in vain for nearly sixteen years
tn collect his fee as n lobbyist first by per-
sonal appeals to the officers of the company,
and then 10y assigning his claim and bring
ing suit in the courts Of this State. NJ.
THoMPsoNs unqualified denial Of the whole
matter TO n correspondent of THE Sun, and
his prompt conviction from the records OF
| the Supreme Court Of New York, are still
fresh in the public's memory.
In no way discouraged by his past expe-
rencc in the lobby the venerable marine
now appears as an Industrious auxiliary OF
Mr.. JOHNNY Roach in the patriotic work OF
fostering American commerce with Brazil.
Roach tried at the last session, and will try
again al the coming session OF Congress, TO
get through both Houses n subsidy bill for
the benefit Of his Brazilian line Of steam
ships. Roach, as he himself once confessed.
makes practice Of buying men whenever
they are worth buying and at the same time
purchasable, What the mild assistance Of
DICK THOMPSON is worth, we are not pre-
pared to estimate. The Kansas Pacific
thought that IL was not worth one cent.
But JOIN Roach has the reputation among
venal statesmen Of paying hard cash down
on the nail, without putting his auXiliarics
TO the trouble Of sixteen years law suits.
II may be this reputation that has lured the
ancient marine back TO the profession Of his
youth.
Mr.. THOMPSON devotcs a generous portion
Of his annual report 10 the interests OF Mr.
! ROACH. Taking for his text the thirty three
rotten or rotting ships which SEcoR ROBE
son kept ailoat till the end Of his term OF
Office at m expense to the nation Of nearly
four hundred million dollars, the ingenious
sea lawyer glides impcrccptibly into a dis
cussion Of the breadth and depth of the Am
azon, the liberal policy Of Dom PEDRO, and
the urgent necessity OF this Government s
doing something 10 build up trade with
South America.
This essay on Brazil although prepared
by Mr.. THOMPSON with great care and
illuminated with all the candles Of his Pc
culiar rhetoric, is not worth reproducing
| here. The facts and statistical Information
which it contains appear almost every day
| in the columns Of the newspapers chartered
| by Roach, and in the pamphlets put forth
| by RoACH's pamphleteers. One passage,
| however, deserves to be quoted. II is this
1.-THE Government shall adopt such measures a shah
put the country In position to the full benefit Of
rcal enterprise and the prohts Of
carrying trade which properly belongs TO US By
such fostering as the national Government alone
has power to give navy should have such strength
AMI character given ol that will bc able to furnish
| protection 10 commerce wh,rcsoyer 1t may be
| needed
The duplex action Of this argument will
| be noticed In order to foster American com
merce the people ought 10 be taxed to sub
sidizc JOIN ROACHs steamers. American
commerce having been extended by subsi.
dies TO john Roach and others, the navy
ought to be enlarged in order to protect it
which is Thompsonian for saying that
JONI Roach ought to have contracts &c
build more ships Of war This passage, Sc
ingenious in its back-actlng, self-reversblt
effect, may have been prepared by the as
tute Mr.. Roach himself II THOMPSON de-
viscd il all alone, the services Of that guile
less mariner are certainly worth more thar
$1,000 to the Friend Of the Flag.