Arizona weekly citizen., 1880-12-25
TEL E t R AP HIC. A Disgraceful and Serious Al tercation in the House of
 Representatives. Sparks, of Illinois, and General Weaver Call One Another
 Pet Names, And Strip of Their Coats for a Stand-Up-and Knock
 Down Fight. Both Participants to Be Com pelled to Make Public
 Apology and Be
 Reprlmanded.
DeIIcate Compliments.


 disgraceful scene in the House this afternoon is the absorbing topic of the town talk tonight, and conjecture is rife as to what will be its consequence tomorrow. It is agreed on all hands that the principals III this most un- seemly affair must be subjected to the severe disipline of public reprimand by the Speaker of the House, and compelled to apologize for theIr gross ly unparliamentary language and con duct, on penalty Of expulsion in case of refusal. The excitement in the Hall during the progress of the alter cation, and for some minutes after it's termination, was Intense-almOst be- yond description. When Sparks roared out You are a ScOundrel and villainl" in response to Weaver s epithel of Liari" Weaver rapidly walked towards him, stripping off his coat as he proceeded; and Sparks, af- ter clutching a chair for moment as if to raise 1t for a weapon, commenced to take off his coat and moved to- wards his approaching adversary Numbers of their respective friends hastened to seize and hold them back, but Jones, of Texas, Greenback sym pathiZer with Weaver, had meanwhile jumped over his desk, exclaiming, If there's going to be light, I'm in it! '' Mills, of Texas, was observed to plunge his hand into a hip pocket, as if to draw pistol. The members gathered hastily to the point from all points of the House, and amit cries of " order, " order " " Sergeant at Arms and all sorts of undistinguish- able utterances, the confusion mo- mentarily increased until it actually looked as if free-iight were immi- nent Speaker Randall, very proper ly disregarding the fact that the House was in Committee ofthe Whole, and that no motion 10 rise had been made, hastily took the Char, displac- ing the mIld-mannered Chairman, who was Intellectually trying to quell the tumIlt, and strongly pounding with the gravel, commanded order, and directed the Sergeant at Arms to enforce it. This command proved effective and the parliamentary forms of coming out of Committee of the Whole were then promptly gone through with and the House imme- diately adjourned until noon to-mOr- row It is proper to add that the sym pathy of the House and the current of popular feeling are mainly with Wea- yer, as against Sparks, for the latter manifestly provoked the violent issue, and egged Weaver into an Outburst very unnecessarily.
 More oi It.
 WASHINGTON, December 22.-In the House-After prayer by the Chap lain, the Speaker, as usual, directed the Clerk tO read the journal of yes terday, whereupOn Bowman rose 10 a question of privilege relative to the dlsgraceful proceedings which had Oc- cured in the House yesterday.
 The Speaker said the Chair would prefer the gentleman wait until the Journals should have been read.
 Bowman (Rep. said it was on that point he wished the Speaker 10 rule. A vote of the House stated that mem bers should be held tO answer-not be subject tO the cenSure of the House for anything laId in debate, if further debate or business had intervened. He desired to know whether the read ing of the journal could be construed as such intervening business as would shut off further proce edings by the House for the gross violation of its dignity.
 The Speaker sad the reading of the journal would take from the House none of its privileges.
 Immediately after the reading of the Journal. McLane, as a quessiOn effecting the dignity of the House, called attention to the scene Of dis order which teok place on the floor yesterday, and which he characterized as offensive, derOgatory and discredit- able to the House as a parliamentary body. He called upon both offending members, before any other business was entered, to relieve themselves of that Offense by ample apology.
 No resphnse having been made by either member immediately con cerned, Bowman rose tO present what he called a substantive proposition. He spoke of the scene of yesterday as a crime and aS l insult offered Co the House, to Congress and 10 the coun- try. There was not, he said, a man present who did not yesterday hang his head in shame, and did not re- gard that scene as personally disgrace ful. and all over the country and world men were reading this morning of Toulouse brawl, gambling house quarrel, and the fight with fists (oDly prevented by force) that took place yesterday.
 Harris, of Virginia. suggested that perhaps both offending members were now willing to make an apology, and if SO, they ought to have an oppor- tunity at once.
 Haskell suggested that other mem bers had been guilty of conduct equally worthy of cenSure.
 McLane insisted on his question Of privilege, and offered resolution re- auiring the two offending members to apologize to the House.
 In the course of McLane's remarks, he recognized thaL most Of the mem bers present yesterday were partly re- spousible for the scene of yesterday.
 Bowman took the floor and quoted a remark of Fernando Wood as Co the character of yesterday's incident add lng that if the two offending members had been two boys fighting on the sidewalk they would have spent the night in the TOOmbs and be brought before the Police Court in the morn ing. He felt that the House should now take action that would be warn mg. He would, therefore, offer resolution of expulsion, apunishmeni | L:ob --o7,Id only he commensurate