New-York tribune., 1880-04-04
0rrICT11 FILsINClTI0N.

The frequent occurrence or cases ol oinCi"i
Justification in the proceedings OF Congress Is Il
matter which calls for immediate ana earnest
consideration. Many discreditable things nave
been done in the National Legislature Ill former
times. but there has always been taclt agree
mont TO certain rules of fair dealing with re-
snect 10 the transactions of the two houses, ana
to violate them has been looked upon as q per-
sonal dishonor. All parties understand that
the public business cannot be carried on unless
members can place some reliance upon ono
anothers integrity. When a committee is IN
structed to examine certain statements or d0cu-
ments and report synopsis of what is III them' IL
is impractcable for the rest of the Senators OF
REPRESENTATIVES to go over the work after inc
committee and see whether trlck mas Deeh
PLAYED. When member presents repeft WIN
q statement that it is authorized py Ills
committee, it is not decent for the other
committeeman to take the paper out OF
his hand, in order TO see whether II
| ia the genuine report OF fctitious ohe'
Tn all legislative assemblies where action
must be delegated, it is necessary to take
great deal on trust. In other words, there must
be an understanding that honorable gentlemen
will not lie to one another
Rut during the present session of Congress
| there have been so many violations OF the old
traditions of honor that one cannot help sus-
/. nactinp the existence OF dangerous and wide
snraad decentralization. One member has been
detected in an attempt to foist upon the House,
&c tito renOrt of q committee, document which
tbo committee had never seen, and on being
ootad for an exclamation he has made q state
ment which is declared to be untrue Another
member has deceived the House In regard to
the reference of bill, violating not only the
general understanding but a positive rule. I'm
less Congressmen stand upon their honor In
such cases. the established routine of legislation
will have to be completely changed. With re-
spect to this particular gentleman, some OF his
colleagues have felt obliged to take the unpre-
cedented precaution of causing every bill intro
duced by him to be read aloud to the House
before it is sent to any committee.
The most serious falsifcations have been per-
petrated in the preparation of reports on con-
tested seats. The notorious Weber gave a
mass of sensational and incredible testimony
AGAINST Senator Kellogg, and then aUsconded
rather than face q crOss-examinatiOn. The Re-
nublican members Of the Committee asked for
} an attachment against him but the majority,
} knowing what the result must be, and remem-
bar;no how awfully the man had been exposed
ond d;soraced before the Potter Committee, pre-
ferred TO discard their own witness, and agreed
that the whole of his testimony should be
| otricLen out. Yet when the report is printed,
10. there il the testimony of Weber, intact and
| ostensiblv unmpeached. The report, more
over. se our Washington correspondence has
nointed out, and as Senator HOar showed in the
discussion a week ago, is full of gross misrepre-
sentations Of the evidence upon which it pur-
ports to be based, suppressions, and positive
misstatements. The report in the Donnelly-
Washburn case is still worse. Here the falsii-
cation is positively insolent; the testimony is
said to contain things which il does not contain,
and the untrue statements touch the vital points
of the contest.
No lawyer, trying case in court OF justice,
would he allowed to misrepresent evidence as 1t
Ia misrepresented at the National Capitol. An
advocate is expected to make the best argu-
mept he can for his side, but the bench will
| insist upon fair and exact statement Of the
facts brought out in the trial, and any counsel
who should do what Messrs. Hill, Manning and
others have done in Washington would receive
n scathing rebuke from the court, and be lucky
if he escaped still severer penalty. Indeed,
no reputable lawyer would be willing to COM
promise his professional standing by such an
offence. There ought to be even more rigor-
GUS respect for truth in Congress than at the
bar, Senators and Representatives occupy the
position of judges rather than of advocates
and they are sworn not to make out case for
their own side, but to deal strict justice between
men and between parties. Committees in par
ticular, being appointed to take evidence which
eould not be given before the whole House with
out interrupting the public business, are in
honor bound to make an absolutely correct and
impartial report of it. Instead of doing that
thew submit large volume of testimony, which
thew we'll know will not be read, together with
a report which is supposed to enbody synop-