Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1880-04-28
From our regular correspondent.
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WAsuINoroN. d, Q. Aprll "a. lesl

WASHINGTON, d. &. April "a, 1880,
All OF the proceedings Of Congress
during the past week that would be
of interest to the general reader can
be summed up il one short paragraph,
though much earnest work has been
done. The debate in the Senate over
the Geneva Award bill, long drawn
ont ami tedious, has finally ended in
an Indefinite posponcment-"wmch is
a mild but positive form Of defeat.
The case as it now stands certainly
presents some peculiar aspects. The
arbitration at Geneva awarded heavy
damages in favor Of the United States,
against Great Britain Tor the destrnc.
ton of American property on the
seas during the late war, by vessels
fitted out in English ports. The
claims were due to private owners OF
the property destroyed, but after set
ting with all whose claims are clear,
the government still has ten million
dollars of the amount awarded. In
surance companies and others havo
endeavored to establish right TO this
balance, but Congress does not seem
disposed to allow their claims. 1t
would hardly seem that the money be-.
longs to the Treasury, because the
government does not pretend to have
sustained any Of the damages, yet the
result is that we pocket ten million
dollars obtained from Great Britain
Tor specific but illuslonary purpose.
Notwithstanding the ability and in.
senui,y of their advocates, do not
think the money really belongs to
those who now claim it,a the e2n-
clnslon naturally is that the award
was excessive. But upon all these
points there is a wide difference OF
opinion among the ahest members of
the Senate. Matt. Carpenter who
formerly resisted the claims of the In
surance companies has this session
been one Of their most eloquent adj
vOcatcs.
The emocratic members OF the
Senate Committee on Rules and Of
the Senate subcommittee on the SUBJ
ject of counting the electoral votes
have decided to recommend that the
two houses Of Congress shall adopt
new joint rule providing TIM! in cases
where only one certificate of the cleo
toral vote OF u State be presented to
Congress it shall not be rejected ex.
cept by the affirmative vote Of the two
houses, and that in case of dual re-
turns neither shall be counted unless
the two houses agree that one Of them
IL the valid and true return. This
proposition is substantially the same
that was offered by Senator Morton in
the Forty.fourth Congress, and then
adopted by the Senate in the form of
a bill, which, however, tailed to re-
ceive final action in that body, in con-
sequence of Mr.. Thomas having en-
tered motion to reconsider its pas
sage. The former twenty,second joint
rule on this subject required every
electoral vote to be rejected 10 which
any objection was sustained by either
house.
Senator Kirkwood, who generally
wears a suit Of clothes which could
be bought new tor twenty dollars, and
would not fetch ut a secondhand
store more than one-fourth that sum,
gave expression to some advanced
sumptuary views in the Senate day
or two since. In answer to the oh
jections of other Senators that the
revenue was not sufficient to justify
the addition to the pension list of
scouts and other army attaches, he
urged that If necessary the tax scbed-
ule could easily be extended sufficient
ly to Justify it. Whiskey, tobacco,
and beer Re said now more than paid
the interest on the National debt, and
for his part he was willing in order to
obtain the means TO reward faithful