National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1880-04-12
A Trying Day for the Bourbon
Orators.
silence Imposed by Party Dlsoipliuc-Mr.
Sparks Ashamed of His Bantiing-
CONFEDERATION for the Sufferers
MIR. Tryo's Picture OF Demo-
cratic Lnbors-Apoio=y
from Mr.. Conger.
snturdny,s pehnte In the nnu.e.

An exception was made IN favor Of Mr..
Sparks, who introduced tho measure. He con.
fessed that the measure did not meet his Views,
This tame, cowirdly amendment did not come
mp to that standard Of legislation on the sub.
jcct that he would have wished, and If lie had
the power lie would insist on something much
stronger. In his speech lie was interrupted
with II question by Mr.. Congcr, but declined n
reply with tho remark that he was not answer.
ing questions, TO which Mr.. COnger rctortcd
that he would venture to say that the gen tic
man might answer without being in danger Of
being "shot on the spot"
The Democrats then abandoned the discus
sion to the Republicans and endeavored to put
on an air Of indifference, but 1t was observa-
BILE that there were moro Democrats in their
seats than Is usual when only debate is in
progress.
Mr.. IIawley thon proceeded to criticise the
sudden desire OF the Democrats to economic
time by cutting or debate, reminding them
that thcy had spent two days in discussing II
private bill involving but 5000 without man
iIestiug such desire. lIo commiseratcd
Messrs. Cox. Blackburn and others upon their
enforced silence. lie then proceeded to OK.
anime the measure on its merits
Mr.. RobcsOn followed in an able speech,
showing that on election days above all
others the laws should be enforced.
Messrs. Keiler McCOid aud Haskell fol.
lowed.
Mr.. Frye took for his text tho expire ,sion of
Mr.. Sparks, This tame, cowurdly amend
uient," and addressed the House as follows
How Is that for the Military Committee? How
Is that for the courageous gentleman from
lllinois-he father at any rate the putatlyc father
Of a vain, cOwardly nmundnent? What shall
We say Of Military Committee that spends It's
time and finally brings forth vain, cowardly
amendment
l agree with the gentleman fully and completely
Tho amendment Is coward aud sneak beyond
any question. have nothing TO say of It's origin
except this: II was born a long while ago. and has
not grown q particle since 1t was born. 1t was
born In tho eventiul extra session. whom The Demo
cratic party met in solemn caucus IN this Hall and
determined that no officer OF the Army or the Navy
aud no civil officer OF the United States should
keep the peace at the polls with armed men. That
was bold-bad, admit. but bold-worthy OF bold
but u bad party,
Now gentlemen, ir you could have compelled
this Congress to recognize and enact into law that
proposition Of your cnucus, 1t wnud have been
most magnificent victory for the Democratic party
How New York would have gone next fall with
Samuel j. Tlldeu or lIorHtO Seymour or any other
gentleman you might name as candidate, no
man could have the slightest doubt 1t would
have been no loss to your party whatever that
those two distinguished Democratic patriots.
Judge McCunn and Judge Barnard, had been
impeached and driven from tho bench;
no loss that they could not once more
| naturalizc citizens and send them to the voting
precincts at the rate Of one thousand TO fifteen hun
dred day, II would have boon no loss that they
could not summon men into their court and adnlln.
lister the oath of fCtiztnshp to one hundred and my
In batch. II would have been no loss that the De-
mOcTacy could not havo had assisting them the
twenty-five rum shops that were discovered In the
city of New York peddllngou blank naturalization
certificates TO the extent Of over eleven thousand IN
some twenty days.
Oh, gentlemen, If you could have enacted into
law this bold bad amendment that no military or
ciyil officer should keep the peace at the polls you
might well forego William NJ Tweed aud Samuel
j. Tildcm and Judge McCunn and Judge Barnard
and all the rest Of the great lights In tnat mGgrih
cent CumDligD of in lSiS. Tor Under this
amendment as Il law all Oh earth that you would
hayo needed would have been simply to let your
Democratic hummer and ru!ians, lnobOiSts and
thieves IN the city OF New York arm themselves
with budGeons, go to the voting precincts, drive
away every respectable maa who sought 70 cast
his vote, and completely, with a reign of terror,
control the city OF New York on election day.
With such law, gentlemen, you could have car
ricd New York city. as you did before in 1868. by
sixty thousand majority without the slightest din
Guilty.
You fought for 1t like men. You stood here and
for three months fought like horocs-no! like
Democrats tlaughterl--and then you passed 1t
through this House Then Il passed the Senate,
went to the President and he, Republican,
vetoed II and you mad not power enough to pass
II aud make II Il law over his veto. You met once
more in caucus; you mot III this magnificent Hall,
in the nighttime; you locked the doors, double
granny of this whole broad Chamber to see whcth-
er there WAS listening car or pecring eye. Then
you stationed sgntinels, who stAlked through tho
darkened corridors, to keep away every ranssress'
ing news paper man. Then something took place.
Why, Mr. Chairman, dld the gentleman from
New York Mr.. Cox read that wonderful descrip
ton of the birth OF the buny elephant tho other
day2 LLaughterI Oh, Il was magnificent rs
mailer o. aS1cLpton was i,sInG; y mere mere
in the centre of II, was this mother elephant
chained Around her wore a score of huge cle-
phant forms swpylng TO and fro In chains. There
were sleeping lions there, snarlng hyenNs there,
and crOuGhuS tigers, Then the Glcph ants lllted
their trunks and tlumpeted, the lions r9Hrel, the
tigers shrcEcd, the hyenls yelled, Oh, 1t was
magnificent; 1t was fitting, II was proper, II was
perfect scene In all ia paris tho baby born was an
elephant
hut here, at your caucus whom your Democratic
party was IL travail and tho doors were locked and
the lights were dim and the sentinels were placed
on duty. there too was birth; and the doors were
opened and the lights were let in upon II. What
was IL? Oh. there never was u mountain IN all the
wide world that labured aud brought forth such
little. contemplate mouse as your Democratic
party brought forth In that caucus. Laughter
mouse SdIB teeth, Sgits eyes sans everything but
tail and little soft fur. lLaughteTl Here was no
such eternal fitness of things Rs Ut the elephnntine
These gray-headcd mon, those bOld-hoaded men,
these great Democratic statesmen, those men fight
ing for the right N vote early aud oiton it wus not
htliug ~ sec them clnpclled 10 rejoice and seem
glad over this litto bit Of u mouse. Laughter
But YOU took II, mounted II on your appropriation
bill, and tho rider was so niinitesnal that II
could hardly bo seen, We Republicans tried to
steal the little fellow, but You fought like tigers
mounted II on your appropriation bill
II rode through the House, rode through
the senate, lheu up 70 inc fIesluent, ana
he with microscope, could not sec II, and so II
became the law. We thought the little mouse
would die then Of starvation. We tLought II was
W small It could not possibly survive, But 10 and
behold the mouse was put out to nurse he was
put IN charge of the chairman Of tho Military
Committee, tho fighting committee of the House
[ Laughter lie was 70 be made the child of the
regiment lRenewed laughter The chairman of
the Military Committee, after nursing him now for
six months, tenderly brings him into this House
and passes him over no larger than whom he took
him. IIo is still sans teeth, sane eyes, and sans
everything but tail, Even this father who brought
him IN says he Is "a vain, cowardly little shrimp"
Ldreat lOughtcrl
After sarcastic apology by Mr., Conger
for h is Democratic friends, who had become
so cowarlly. SO pardly2,d, 81 utterly unit and
unwilling to defend what they defended SO
strenuously six months ago, and an expression
Of his sympathy 10 SEQ the great giant Dcmoc.
racy of the House lay doYn utterly prostrated,
and blief speech by Mr., Caawell, who re.
minded the Democracy that tboy had opposed
the election laws at tho extra session on nc.
count OF their uncons,iutonaity, which bad
been settled 10y tho supreme Court, some
time was spent IN an Intellectual effort to nxa
time for closing general debate, and soon after
5 o'clock The liyUs. glj lIgol.