The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1880-06-05
AN EXCITING SCENE.
The Lobbyists Working Hard.
Desperate Efforts Of General Brady and
The Mail Contractors 10 the House
Their Doubtful Methods.

WASHINGTON, June 3.-Notwithstaud.
ing the all.abSorbing interest Of the Chi
cago Convention, scene OF excitement
occurred in the House this afternoon that
eclipsed anything Of the session, and re-
minded me iorcibly OF the exciting days
when the Pittsburgh Riot Losses bill was
hanging In the balance OF HarriSburg, and
the lobby, with Kemble at its head, was
active. The occasion was the considera-
ton Of the POstOlEice Appropriation bill,
with the Senate amendment striking out
the money amendment placed in 1t on lis
passage through TO protect the public
Treasury by requiring all expedited rOuteA
to be relet. '
The Satr contractors lobby, heP;ied by
ex.Congressmeu McKibben aud Worth.
iugton, who have access to the floor under
the fraudulent operation Of pledge that
they are not Interested In legislation,
have been active all winter, realizing that
they bad desperate conflict on hand
which was no more nor less than 4 life
and death struggle. This lobby comprises
about dozen sleek, well fed and well paid
agents or "altorneysn Of the Star route
contractors, who have been OIL hand all
the session, EealOusly supporting the
scheme by which Monroe, Salisbury AMI
Tom Brady are enabled TO rilch
their millions from the public treasury.
These lobbyists had TO tight their way
through the postal deficiency bill, but tIi-
uWphed by the potent giid oi cash put, as
0akes Ames used to cay, ,"wherel II woulddo
the most good" The same question, how
ever, arose again when the regular appro-
priAtion came TO be made for the PostOtilce
Department for the ensuing fiscal
year. The contractors and Brady,
with all their efforts, were beaten
In the House. They at once trans
terred their efforts 10 the Senate,
where they were successful from the s,.rt,
the Committee on Appropriations. rnder
the lead Of Wallace, reporting Ia tbeit
favor, and striking out tue provision placed
there at the instance OF sioney, 10 the
House, and designed 20 correct existing
abuses BY rendering 1t lmpossi le for hlr.
Brady To- let any more contracts for few
thousand dollars, and then expedite them
Tor the benefit Of contractors 70 nearly two
hundred Thousand dollars, when the pub.
lie service required no such expedition.
Having triumphed in the Senate and AZ.
curely fixed their base Of OPERATORS, these
gorgeously appareled, sumptEuua liyers,
and very agreeable gentlemen, transferred
their Establishments 10 members Of the
House, and In the most convincing man
ner that q Congressman can conceive Of,
went 70 woig TO melt away the opposition
that haa displayed itself on the former
test vote.
Many stories are told Of how they did
their work and where they placed their
cash, which for the present must be left
with the consciences oi members OF Con-
gress. Suffice II TO say that the chroniuler
Of the day, II so disposed, could recom
numerous instances OF conversions "A sud.
den as those Of Saul OF TaBrs, and that
like St. Paul, these concerts were the
most Jealous in the cause Of their new
masters.
The supreme moment arrived to-day,
when Blackburn, IRON the Committee on
Appropriations, reported the bill to the
House and moved non.concurrenc In tho
Senate amendments Tom Ewing, who Is
one Of the leading champions oi the Star
route steal, moved 10 concur. and made
fifteen minutes argument In favor OF his
clients, the contractors. He was replied
to by Hammond, OF Georgia, Cannon, OF
Illinois, and Blackburn, who did not leave
a peg for his argument to hang Upon, But
what do men with the cash in their
pockets care for argumeut2
Many Of those who intended TO vote for
the continuation o. the Star route robbery
had potent redt2.I for doing 80, and were
not 10 be pTayed from their purpose be-
cause hammond showed II was In the
noSeT OF Congress 10 annul the contractA
or because abuses In the existing system
whereby the Government was being con-
stantly bled was shown. While tne yeas
and nays were being taken on Ewinv'a
motion 10 concur, the lobbyists were mar
shalinR their iorcesl In hot haste, sending
over TO SandersOn's saloon TO bring back
those who had gone 10 take drink and
searching high aud low for the struggling.
During the call men like Page, Haskell,
COtIroth and other champions OF the con.
tractors were terribly anxious to asCer.
tain how tue battle was going. Colroth
twice went up 10 the clerks desx, and
looked over tie roll 10 see how the vote
stood. On his second attempt Speaker
Randall, from his chair, neryously
motiOned bin away with bis gayel, say.
ing ADgrily, "Get away from there"
COtfroth Obeyed and Sullenly took his
seat. CofIroth's friends are unable 10
understand why he Is 80 warmly enlisted
In the cause OF the contractors.
A iler the roll had been called twice, "a
Is the custom, and the pairs had been an.
nonnoed, the vote stood SO TO SO, which was
deieat Tor Ewing's proposition and tho
star contractors, and would have sent tI,e
hill TO Committee On Conference, INIT
McLane and Lowe changed their VOTES
from motto "Aye," and the CO, ,,traclom
had IL General Bragg, who Is The copsis.
tent Zoe Of oil corruption ami schemes TO
plunder the public Treasr. ~, changed bis
vote from mo" TO "Aye!" 40 that he conIj
reconsider the vote Uy which the amend
mendments were agreed 10. The vote
was announced, 81 ayes 10 10 noes, and the
opponent OF the contractors began fli-
bu'icSdng and finally forced an adjourn.
, a ent.
hlOtL u tne Only DtmOCtAt IN f6nLHyl.
yania who voted against the job, while
BAyne, White, oyerton and M.tciell ali
voted In the negative. Err.tt did not
vote. Belizhooyer, Dick, Wise and others
were absent, and CroHoth was, apparent
", the most anxious man In the House 10
have the bill so through. Just as Il was
wanted by the Star route contractors,
Brady aud tho Mckibb0n Washington
lobby. Tomorrow the fight will be re.
newed. Speaker Randall, who is bitterly
opposed TO the Star route fellows, prom.
ises that no stone shall be left nnturned to
defeat them. But my experience In legis-
lative bodies Is that Jobs always 20 through
when properly managed, and there Ia Ger
tainly no discnunt on the ability or
resources Of MoKibben & Co. It,s ale 10
say they will succeed, "Therc, Ia mIIIIons
in it" and mo such word az fall"
hoihersi hothersii Moiheriii
Are you disturbsd at night and broken
oi your rest by AICk child suffering and
CRYING Wlta thla NJ sru ri. 0ino t,aIn d, z -.