The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-24
TIE DEBATE IN CONGRESS-.
HOW THE SPEECHES. ON THE ARMY
BILL WILL COMPARE WITH
FORMER DEBATES.


The Advantages Of the Extra Session
the Encroachments Of RadIcalism
Called to the Attention Of the People.
Especial Correspondence of The Democrat
WASHINGTON, April H. 1879.
The agreement which has been reached In
both Houses of Congress to debate the pend
| inp propositions until the close OF next week
naturally resolves public interest mainly over
| to the result and for that reason 1t ID not
probable that
| THE ENSUING JousT OF oRATORY
viii receive the attention 1t deserves This
| il misfortune, SINCE in point OF fact. the
debates now In progress here are among the
most important, II not the very weightiest,
that have transpired In this country since the
deliberations OF the Federal Convention Of
1888 80. OF course, In SO large body as
the American Congress, and among men
selected as our constituencies too frequently
select representatives rather for lack OF
opnions than for their possession-it ID to
be expected that many will be found incapa-
BILE OF grasping such issues as are at stake In
the pending controversy. And as this class
enjoy the same privileges that their more
gifted brethren do there seems to be no
means OF keeping them from making noise.
Accordingly the record OF the prevailing
debate, when viewed In the cold light Of his
tory. will be found to contain an immense
amount OF rubbish many specimens OF Great
Columbian speechifying, better suited to the
Fourth of-July rostrum or the floor Of q col
! lege debating club than to the halls Of the
Legislature Of the greatest nation on earth /;
and perhaps this slop will appear to be dis
proportioned to the amount Of solid, enduring
sense.
| But In the main believe that this debate
will compare favorably with the average Of
great historical discussions.
i Leaving aside the rubbish and selecting
| the best efforts as they appear In the official
Record on the principle of the survival Of
the tittest, and / am sure 1t will take rank as
one OF the very ablest and most exhaustive
discussions ever held upon the broad ques-
tions OF sovereignty An accomplished COM
piler might easily make up standard volume
for study and reference by arranging, digest
! ing and assimilating the speeches that have
been made by Blackburn, Randall Gibson,
/ Frank Hurd Randolph Tucker, Gen. Weaver,
Of Iowa-the Greenback leader-and some
others on the Democratic SIDE Such vol
lime would form really valuable addition
| to our stock OF constitutional lore, and have
| no doubt that, when time shall have set Its
seal upon the events that are passing now,
some of the speeches that l have referred
to will be held up as models Of patriotic elo
quence and learning.
/ On the other hand selection could be made
from
THE REPUBLICAN SPEECHES
that would 60 far to supplant the works Of
| Machiave as standard exposition of oil that
is possible to human ingenuity In the appliea-
tion OF sophistry, fraud, cant. misrepresenta-
tion, treachery and falsehod to the conduct Of
public affairs.
Going over to
| THE SENATE
substantially the same might be said Of the
Democratic speeches Of Hereford Wallace
bury, though It would be straining the point
a little to apply the comparison further: in
asmueh as the efforts thus far OF the Senate
Radicals have not come up to the mark Of
ability and acumen established by their con-
Be this as 1t may, the point to which !
desire to call particular attention Is the fact
that for the first time In many years great
debate, fairly sustained, has proceeded 10
Congress upon questions the most vital to the
security Of our Institutions and the welfare Of
our common country, and that this has been
done without the slightest let or hindrance
, of those mechanical appliances Of legislau =
which the Radical party brought with 1t
into power, and which it has used unsparing-
Iy for the promotion OF it's designs ever since
It Is peculiarly fitting that the Democracy
should thus signaize its advent to power by
opening up, with the widest possible latitude
and on the broadcast ground of liberality OF
thought. speech and opinion, q discussion OF
constitutional theories and methods Of gov
, eminent.
The fashion OF eneering at the extra SEES.
sion q la Halstead, on the ground that It costs
> the country $4,000 day, may safely be left
, as monopoly to the Radicals. Ii such
! men are sincere and earnest In that sort Of
criticism it shows simply that they are fools
too eKriReOus to comprehend the plain, 81
: signs of the times in which they live. Ii they
people who read after them for tools and that
: they themselves are knaves. In fact this ex
i ira session, under all the circumstances, Ia an
j occasion Of almost incalculable value tt
8 the American people; because, being
Of necessity thd to the business aanss
: to be repealed and to the exclusion Of all the
Heterogeneous mass Of matter that encum
bers the record OF any regular session, the
result of this session will be to call public at
tention to and fix it upon subjects that have
: been already too long kept away from the
popular mind, to wit:
TILE ENoRoACHMENTs OF RADICAL1sM
upon the sovereignty Of the citizen and the
progress that has been made In the direction
OF an aristOcratc or oligarchical system dur
! ing the last seventeen or eighteen years.
THE EFFECT OF THE PENDING DEBATES UPON
THE PUBLIC MIND
will be slow but sure. 1t will take the doc
, trines that have been uttered and expOundet
here during the last fortnight q long time tt
permeate the masses, because Radicalisn
controls vast preponderance Of the ordinary
, channels through which the public intelli
gence NAV be reached, and the natural ten
dency OF Radical influences Is to pervert, dis