The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1879-03-15
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE.

The Coming Congress-An Entirely Neio
Programme RiraiTy Among Office Seek
ers-71s Course to be Pursued By the Pres
ident-The Pensioners Claims and Ho,0
they are Treated.
wAsHiNeToN, DC, March 8, 1879
The excitement and tumult attending the
scenes Of dying Congress will have hardly
entirely subslded, before another contest
equally as exciting will have set in. The
early day (the 18th inst.) at which the Presi.
dent has convened Congress in extra session
has precipltated lively and exciting contest
for Offices, not only of the House, but Of the
Senate as we'll. The Senate has passed out
Of Republican control, and for the first time
almost within q quarter Of century, been
turned over to the Democrats. Applicants for
every Office within its gift are swarmlng here
with every train, and will bring such poll.
tlcal pressure upon Democratic Senators that
II is almost safe TO predict that the personnel
Of the Senate employees will undergo COM
plete change The candidates for the numer.
Gus Senate Offices are as thick as huckleberries
in Jersey. The choice place Deing the Secre.
taryshlp, some of the greatest Democratic |
lights aspire to fill 1t. OF the candidates al
ready known there arc DR.. Dennis, who yes. |
terday retired as Maryland's Senator; Col. |
John q. Birch, editor of the Nashville Ameri- |
can, who has many warm friends A. q. Buell.,
a well-known journalist ex-Congressman
Franklin, of Missouri; Prof. MacMahOn, of
West Virginia; ex.Representatlve Stenger,
Of Pennsylvania; ex-Congressman Waddell,
Of North Carolina, and many others whu have
not yet made any formal announcement Of
their canvass, but who are makirS n still
hunt. For the Office of sergean..at.a arms but
few candidates hnTe us yet come to the front.
The moSt prominent is L. @. Washington, q
well.kno%n Washington correspondent; Isaac
EatH.l, Of Kansas, who has Greenback pro-
cllvltles, is also an aspirant, also Duncan S.
Walker, of this District. and ex.Congressman
Glover, Of Missouri.
The real battle, however, will be for the
control of the Offices Of the House. Within
few days the canvass for the Speakership will
wax warm and exciting. Speaker Randall
is, of course, q candidate for reelection. His
most prominent competitor is Representative
Blackburn, of Kentucky, and there are seve-
raj Lrk horses in the stable, already blank
eted and groomed, to be trotted out in the
| House in case Blackburn is not strong enough
| 10 get away with the prize. For the position
of Clerk oi the House the present incumbent,
Col. George NJ. Adams, wants to be reelected.
His rival is ex-Congressman Caldwell OF
| Alabama, who has been here some days sur
veyng the field. Of course Col. John G.
Thompson, Of Ohio, is again willing to serve
the party as Sergeant-at Arms, and is antag-
onzed by Col. Dick Bright, of Indiana. 1t
will be observed, in parenthess, that nearly
all the candidates for the subordinate places
are ColOnels
The three bones of contention at the extra
session OF Congress will be, of course, the re-
peal OF the Supervisor Of Election law, the
repeal Of the Jurors Test Oath law, and the
the repeal Of the Section Of the Revised Stat
ues authorizing the use of Troops at The Polls
| In the consideration Of at least one of these
measures the Democratic Forty-sixth Con-
gress and the President will be in direct con-
fict. The President has made no secret to
some gentlemen Of his opinions in regard to
these three measures. The Jurors Test oath
law and the law Authorizing the use of Troops
at the Polls, he regards as remnants of"w
cgislation." The first is now almost a dead
letter lie would not, there is good authori-
ty for saying, place himsolfin conflict with
Congress by a refusal to sanction their repeal.
His course since he has been the Chief Magis-
trate of the country in regard to the use Of
troops in elections can be taken as an indica-
tiOn of how he will act in the future on that
subject. 1t is well-known that he has always
been opposed to the army being used in eec-
tions. He would not oppose Congress in a bill
repeating the Statute that authorizes the
presence Of troops at the polls. Of the pro
posed repeal of the Supervisors law he takes
IL different view. He looks upon that law as
II safeguard 10 the purity of the ballot in elec
tions. He does not consider the presence VI
supervisors Of Elections necessary only in the
South, but as equally necessary in every
State in the Union. Thinking as he does, II
is evident that direct conflict between hin
and Congress is inevitable. One of the lead
ers of the Republican party stated to me thii
evening that the Democrats will never wipe
J the Supervisors statutes of the book while
there is a Republican President. That The
Democrats intend to make an effort in tina
direction is well known. AS at present un
derstood they will first pass separate bill
repeating the Supervisors law. They can
not pass this over veto. Thcy,will then tacl
! 1t on the Legislative bill. Then will com,
the real fight, and one side or the other will
I have to recede, or there will be no money L
carry on the executive, judicial and legislativ,
, branches OF the government, which means
among other things, that members of Con
gress will have TO go without their salaries.
few claims under the act making an ap
= nrOnriatiOn ha 81
} have been presented at the Treasury, but nom
1 as yet have passed the auditing officers. NJ
claims of this character will be passed unit
IL is known what construction the department
Will place upon the provisions Of the act au
thorizing tue Iayment Of arrearages. 1t will
he remembered that Congress, after consider
able discussion, passed the bill without max
ing any provision as to how the money rcquir
, cd by the appropriation should be rai sed, ex
cept the general provision OF "money in tn
Treasury not otherwise appropriated" Wha
the Treasury authorities may understand tha
TO be, is question Just now of considerable
: interest. In letter, dated February nth, L
Fernando Wood Secretary Sherman, in aus
wer tO question as to the amount of coin re
serve, states that the entire amount Of the as
sets in the treasury available for resumption
on tn, 10Th Of February, after deducting tn
amount OF the current liabilities, wat $l36,
E 4S7,76I o.. lie then adds, "nor has 1t ye
E been determined whether the resumption fun,
I can be considered as moneys in the Treasur,
not otherwise appropriated" The amour
above stated is the coin reserve for rcsump
tion purposes, and that covers the entire a
mount Of cash in the Treasury, which, accord
ing to the probable construction placed upoi
: The act at the Treasury, will be declared no
available for the payment of the arrearages
= Owing to the reduction In the tobacco tax AM
q other causes, the surplus revenue will, It (
estimated, be very slight, and. in consequence
the payment Of these claims will progres
slowly. It is decided that the reserve fun,
is lawfully available for the payment Of thes
claims; II is thought that Secretary Sherman
will avail himself Of the right conferred oi
. him by tho Resumption act aud sell bonds L
replCuisl the drain uuOn the resarva tupH