New-York tribune., 1879-01-03
TILE pLLGHT or VIZ, rOITER.

THE PLIGHT OF NR: FO1TER
The friends of the Hon. CidIk>On y. Potter
congratulated him. Only few days ago, on
his escape from di.agrocable prcdlcamcnt.
Ever since the opening Of Congress the country
had been looking to his Committee for IN in
vestiga,ion of the cipher scandal. Mr. Potter
could not take mp a newspaper without ind-
ing m il some allusion to the general public
expectation. He could not look at a constItu-
cnt without reading, in his inQuirng face,
the uuspOkcn question, "Whcn are you gong
40 begin ?" But there are reasons, both pO-
litical and personal, why the business should
be peculiarly dlStastcful TO Mr.. Potter lie Is
not the sort of person to enjoy grubhing
IN the mud under any circumstances; least OF
al would he relish an investigation which
must result either in the iSgrace OF his party
or the disgrace of his neXt-door neighbOr and
acquaintance. a gentleman of honest life and
finc feelings, he was probably satisfied that,
whatever the duty of lis Committee, it was
not hi, individual part to investigate the con-
duct OF Mr.. lidcn.
And so Mr. Potter went to Ncw-Orltans, to
take up again the hopeless tangir of Louisiana
lies. That famous puzzle had been so mud
died by the inventive genius of Anderson, and
the statements of scores Of contradictory
witnesses, that it promised to occupy
the attention Of any number of commit
teemen for any desired period, and to
weld anv result, or no result, as the cxigcn-
cies of the time might suggest. Far from the
clamors of the National Capital and the cease
less chatter about cIphers, Mr. Potter and his
asSociates might labor industriOusly and harm
lcssly over the problem of how to discover
what does not exist and in due season they
might come back with huge mass OF useless
testimony. to find the great Democratic trouble
disposed Of. in one way or another ana Mr.
Tilden either yindicatcd without Their con-
nlvance or buried without their help. Ii was
an ingenious arrangement we have no doubt
that Mr.. Potter set of with light heart, and
almost forgot the misfortune Of missing New
Years Day at home in the anticipation of
comfort, repose and forgetlulmcss on the banks
of the Mississippi.
Alas, Mr. Potter forgot Agnes jerks. That
viyacious stateswoman, who tasted for few
delicious days the intoxicating cup OF news
paper Dotorety. will never. of her own ac-
cord, sink back into domestic Obscurity. Any
committee of Congress which may hereafter
deal with the lady who, to quote the language
of her respected husband, "was kind of
"promincnt in politics down there What
ever the issue to be tried, she Will be ready
with a bundle of documents, a budget of
disclosures and illimitable "sauce." There
is no mystery of which she will not declare
that she knows the secret. There are not
many damaging letters of which she
will not confess herself the author,
and there is not rascal III the
Gulf States with whom she will not hint that
She has been III confidential correspondence.
Wheneyer there is Il political inquiry afoot in
Iouisiana. Mistress Agnes ID. jerks means to
stcp right up and give the Committee hand.
IN. Grst meeting of the subcommittee IN
NeN-O, leans was held on Tuesday, and the
very frst'ihmg which met the appalled, eyes
Of Mcssrs Potter and Cox when they took their
seats was a new bundle of " documents con-
tul,,tcd to the proceedings by Mrs. jerks.
These papers appear to have been produced
with even melodramatir mystery. They
were deposited by Mistress Agnes III
carpct-Shop. They were found" III that
strange receptacle by three vlrtuOuS sales
men. They were conveyed To the committee
by these honest patriots. And perhaps it is
unnecessary 10 say that they included
,uotber " "originaln Of the Sherman letter.
This celebrated paper has probably under
zone more transformations than any other
historical document known to man. 1t has
becn proved by Mr.. Pottcr's witnesses, first,
that It never was written; secondly, that it
was destroyed thirdly, that 1t was wholly
forced by Mrs. jerks tourthly, that 1t was
genuine. but that Anderson made II false
cony filthy, that the original was lying in a
shoe along with the blachiug-brushcs
Of the late Mr.. Webbcr a"I. ~xthly,
that the original was safe in the hTrasl-I Ockct
Of one of the Committee, IelCy 20 he
produced az the appropriate time. " need
not be surprised if, at the prompt rcappear
ancc of Mrs. jerks, with an entIrclv original
original, and "a brand-new means of account
ing for it, the subcommittee broke up in
dismay. Ii was on Tuesday that the mem
bers held their first meeting and bcheld the
unwclcOme apparition. Before they slept
that night they bought tickets for Washing
ton, and on Wednesday they were on their
way North by the fast train. They will be
welcomed back by their friends and col
| leagues. But alas for Mr. POttcT He fees
| from jerks only To be confronted by Moses,
and Max, and Fox, and Denmark. He turns
! from the documents found IN the carpet store,
! only to find his table at Washington covered