Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1879-05-03
THE NATIONAL CAPITAL.
THE DEMOCRATS IN SECRET CAUCUS.
No Definite information as to the Result !;
Rumor that the Caucus Declined to
Accept the Report Of the JOint
Committee-0ther Items.
Democratic Caucus.

WASHINGTON, May 2.-The Demo
cratic members of the House assembled
in caucus in the hall of the House
shortly after II o'clock. Before any
business was transacted, owing to the
full reports of speeches which have been
published, and which were made in
caucus sessions, a select committee,
consisting of Messrs. Evins, Talbot
King, Mcmillan and Wise, was appoint.
ed for the purpose Of making tour OF
the upper lobbies and galleries, with q
view to ascertaining whether there were
any parties allowed access to the rooms
or halls adjoining the House gallery
during the progress of the caucus. 1t
appeared to be the idea that members
of the press in some way secreted them
selves iu this portion OF the building to
obtain reports of the proceedings. The
committee, however, failed TO discover
the presence Of any one in the upper
lObbles, excepting the attendant upon
the ladies' retiring room. All the doors
leading TO the galleries of the House
were found to be securely fastened, and
not a sound could be heard from the in
side. During this investigation, a prom
inent member of the Democratic party
appeared ut one of the back corridor
doors, which are carefully guarded by
two reliable dOOrkeepers, who never
permit any one except the members to
enter the corridors during a secret ses
siOu, and upon taking his stand between
the two doorkeepers, with the door a
little ajar, dispatched a messenger to a
colleague inside, telling him TO speak
now, that he was ~ the door listening
After waiting few minutes without
hearing a syllable, he remarked, al told
them nothing could be heard out here, I"
and re-entered the hall.
At half-past the caucus took recess,
Messrs. Chalmers and Carlisle, men,
bers of the House Caucus Committee,
being dispatched to confer with the Sem
ate committee of like character. Re
turning at 2:45, the caucus resumed
business.
WASHINGTON, May 2.--It is said that
no little time was to-day devoted in the
Democratic caucus to discussing the i'm
propriety Of members making public the
utterances of their colleagues. One men,
Der expressed his surprise and Chagrln
that the proceedings of a caucus, taking
place under a pledge OF secrecy, should
be "retailed out to penny-a-liners.' He
cited a case in point. "At recent eau
Gus he had made a speech, and
had never lisped a word OF it to
any human being outside the caucus.
What was the result? A nearly YER
batim report had been telegraphed to
the four corners of the earth. He had
been hurt in the House. His friends
and he regarded it as an outrage" Rep
resentatives were never more eagerly
sought than they have been tonight,
and they were never more reticent. An
old member shook his head
when questioned, and only
said: "The most | can do is to assure
YOU that to days action contemplated
the safety of the country Another
member, after positively declining to
saw ANYTHING, blurted out: "Well, no
conclusion was reached" All sorts OF
rumOrs are rife; one is to the effect that
there was a split in the caucus and that
an adjournment was taken until tO-mOr-
row; that there was great deal OF talk
TO no purpose, and that every MEM
Der was then sworn to secrecy. This
latter statement is plausible IN
view of the fact that at late hour to-
night callers were informed that "Mr.
- is i'll, and will see no one. Mr.. -
has retired for the night, etc, etc. AT
all events, definite information is not to
be obtained. Another story, and 1t is
probably the correct one, runs that the
caucus absolutely declined to accept the
the report of the joint committee, as
outlined in these dispatches yesterday,
and recommitted it to them to
put in other form, hopeful that it
might be so amended as TO be
favOrably passed on at some future
caucus. The Democratic Senators, at
three o'clock this afternoon, also went
into caucus for the purpose OF receiving
and acting upon the report OF the joint
committee concerning the army appro-
priation bill, but it is understood the
session was prematurely terminated
upon the receipt of information,
brought them by the members OF the
House branch of the committee, that
the caucus at that end of the capt.
tol had failed To accept the
report. The debate had not
proceeded sufficiently to indicate
what degree Of favor the report would
have met with had it been brought to a
vote. The caucus adjourned shortly
after 4 O'Clock. In accordance with the
understanding entered into at the meet
ing "Wednesday, all those present to-day
maintain remarkably strict reticence as
to the proceedings, but tits evident that
nothing of importance occurred beyond
what is ?bOve indicated.
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Telegraph
Company.
WAsI -GToN, May 1T is reported
that Il Baltimore 4 Ohio Railroad
Telegrari, Company have nearly COM
pleted ,-eir arrangements to open offices
in all Il !, principal cities connected by ITS
system nd are arranging to cooperate
with Other lines TO reach other lines east
and wek Of them. 1t will connect with
the neR Union Company just formed in
New Work, and now constructing its
lines lstween Boston and Baltimore,
and wSich are contracted to be done
within 200 days.
Arrears of Pay and Bounty.
WASHINGTON, May 2.-The bill intro
duced by Senator Wallace to authorize
the payment of ceatain claims for ar
rears Of pay and bounty, was referred
TO the Military Committee, and provides
that widows and minor heirs OF de-
ceased Union soldiers, who have been
defrauded of the bounty and arrears OF
paw due them by law, by means of for
geries perpetrated by their attorneys,
shall. when such forgeries have been
the result of no fault or negli-
gence on the part OF the claimants,
be paid the amounts equitably due
them.
Invasion of Indian Territory.
The principal matter of cOnsid-
Grafton at the cabinet session was the
threatened invasion of the Indian terri