Morning journal and courier., 1880-12-22

seventh Conpress. Referring to his visit tt l Alabama, Mir. Weaver said he went there tt help the Greenback party and not the Re publican He advocated the election oi Pickens the Greenback candidate for Gov.
 ernor. He charged fraud in the Alabama | election. He said there were not 92, 900 Dem ocratic votes in the State.
 Referring to the allegation that the Demo. crats sympathized with the Greenback party
 he said the only Democratic sympathy he 1 got was letter which was published in the New York St0r, which was a barefaced for l gerry and looked very much as if it was in the I same handwriting as the Mercy letter. (Ap- plause on the Republican side) The state
 ment that he had gone to the Republican | committee insNew York was falsehood. i MT. Bland interrupted and asked whether Mr. Lunr did not make statement to that effect.
 Mir. Weaver, in response, said the Demo- cratic party had paid Lum to do it. (Ap- plause on the Republican side.) He then
 went on to rehearse some of the circum-
 stances of the last campaign and charged that Yeatley, of the Indianapolis San, was bought of from the Greenback ticket in h. diana. He had always urged Greenbackers to vote their ticket and had opposed fusion. While he was urging this the letter of Lum and other slanderers were hurled into the campaign. These charges were unqualified falsehoods, and he defed any one to show that he said word in favor of the Republi- eans
 Mir. Sparks said he understood that the Lum letter was genuine
 MT. Weaver-It was a genuine case of Dem- ocratic bribery
 Mir. Bland-Did you not have confer-
 ence with Hubbell at the Riggs House in this city.
 Mir. Weaver denied that he did. A number
 of Republicans suggested that MT. Hubbell
 be placed on the stand as5a witness. Mir.
 Weaver, continuing, said Lum went to Maine with Republican money to prevent fusion, and then he sold out to the Democratic party
 MT. Wood again tried to stop the discus sion but the gentlemen on both sides seemed anxious to have it go on. The Republi- cans in particular urged Weaver to proceed, and he continued and said he was connected with the Republican party, but left in 1877 He denied that he was a chronic office seeker or had been repeatedly defeated for office. He asserted that he had stood faithfully by the Greenback party. After some further de- bate, in which the incidents of the-campaign were talked over and Weaver reiterated that he had not espoused the Republican cause, MT. Sparks asked him whether he was not a Republican when the vicious financial legis- lation was enacted, and whether he did not then support the party. MT. Weaver re- piled that the gentleman had said he was. He understood while ago that the gentle man from Illinois had accused him of false hood. AS that gentleman had had to apollo giZe to the House on another occasion (refer- ring to his controversy with MT. Clymer) he should be more careful of his language. He would tell the gentleman from Illinois that if he applied the epithet to him and he was within the reach of his arm he would let him feel the weight of it. But he did not care much for the gentleman on the occasion.
 This remark created decided sensation and members focked down to the area in front of the clerks desk MT. Weaver was standing on the Democratic side and was within few seats of Sparks. The latter rose to say something, but Mir. Weaver claimed the floor. MT. Sparks determined that he would be heard, and gesticulating good deal said, ''Ihis man won't permit me to answer" He then went on to say he wanted to make a-statement with regard to what the gentleman had said about ''the reach of his arm.'' He wanted to say his arm could have no effect upon him. It would have no more effect than the gentleman had in the last presidential election. He spurned ''the reach of the gentleman's arn.''
 Mir. Weaver replied that the gentleman should be more careful and not get excited in debate. He would assa1 any man who gave him the lie, and he wanted to remind the gentleman from Illinois that his fighting weight was 1SO pounds
 Mir. Sparks arose again somewhat excitedly and said MT. Weaver had not the instinct of gentleman sufficient to accept an apology He charged also that in the last presidential campaign Weaver was denounced for his u1- gentlemanly conduct.
 Weaver-I denounce you on the floor of this House as a liar
 The chairman of the Committee of the Whole rapped loudly with his gavel, while the Republicans and Greenbackers gathered about Weaver and the Democrats approached Sparks desk amid great deal of excitement.
 Sparks said-You liar and 8 scoun- drel. Then the excitement became intense. Weaver left his place and walked toward Sparks in menacing manner. On the one side members caught hold of Weaver and Sparks friends grasped him by the arm. There were members on both sides, however, who suggested that the men be left to fight 1t out if they wanted to. Meantime the Speaker had taken his place and rapped lasti- ly with his gavel, at the same time calling up- on Sergeant-at-Arms Thompson to preserve order. The pages and other employees ran to and fro and added to the confusion. Mir. Jones, of Texas, Greenbacker, was partic- ularly noisy on behalf of Weaver, and run ming up towards Mir. Sparks made motion as if to remove his coat. It was asserted by some of the employees that two or three members drew their pistols After 8 strug- gle Sparks friends got him into his seat, and MT. Weaver was forced back into his place. Mir. Sparks shouted ssIf you come within reach of my arm I will let you feel it's weight just as MT. Weaver left his place in the first instance, and it was manifest that both men meant business. But for the prompt interference of the more peacefully disposed, there would have been conflict, which in the excited bemper of the members would have degenerated into a mob fight. Sergeant-at-Arms Thompson, carrying his mace, went from Sparks to Weaver and con- manded them to keep the peace. Mr. Sparks was asked why he did not deal a blow, and replied that he could not do SO on account of the interference of those about him. After order had been partially restored, the Speak CT said he had felt justified in taking the chair without the formality of having the Committee of the Whole rise and he again called MT. Covert to the chair MT. Weaver, apparently cool and collected, at once de- manded to be recognized, as he was entitled to the floor, but the committee rose and the House adjourned.
 The scene on the floor caused intense ex- citement in the galleries, which were well filled. It was by all odds the iveliest scene that has occurred for years. The subject will come up in some shape in the House to-