Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1881-12-21
From our regular correspondent
WASHINGTON LETTER,
Washington, Des, 10, 1881,

There has never been u greater
scramble for Office than that inaugua-
rated with the opening ofthis Congress.
It beats everything, The city Is full
of strangers and they are nearly all
after something, Six years ago when
the Democrats came In control OF the
House of Representatives, II was the
first sight they had caught OF the
"spoils" for many years aud naturally
there were numerous applicants for the
two hundred small offices to be filled.
We all remember the terrible howl that
went up from the Republican press
about the hungry Dcmocroiic "mob'"
But there has been right here in Wash
ingion during the last two weeks II
larger and more raycnous mob OF Office
grabbcrs than was seen in December
1875. This great Republican party
which has had 100000 offices under its
control for twenty years, scramplcS
harder for the few small places under
the House than did the whole Demo-
cratic party, when these few loavcs
were all it had to dispense. II is n
party of ilcsh-pots and spoils. But for
these il would have been beaten in
every election for the past ten years.
Take them away now and tho party
would never control another Congress
or carry another general election.
Clerk Mcpherson has had Il hard time
satisfying the different State delegations
whose demands exceed his resources.
Then in addition to this the old crowd
who held office under him before have
all come back except those who are
dead. And tho overflow from the
House cast eager glances toward the
Senate, where the corpulent form OF
Judge Davis alone stands between them
and the seventy or eighty positions now
held by Democrats under body. Even
cx-Members of Congress are candidates
for the privilege Of opening the doors
which were once opened for them.
Aside from the avalanche of bills
dumped into the house there is little
worth talking about in Congress as yet.
Perhaps every conceivable matter upon
which Congress has authority to legis-
late has been thrown into the hopper
already, and the performance has but
Just begun. notice plenty of Con-
gressmcn going around with pockets
bullying out, waiting their turn
Among the mass already offered there
are bills to repeal taxes and to impose
taxes, to erect public buildings, i'm
prove harbors and dig out the beds of
rivers, erect interoceanic canals, pro-
vide against epidemics, create addition
al executive departments, to amend the
Constitution in several particulars,
grant pensions, and to do or undo every
possible thing that the ingenuity or
cupidity of men could suggest. A large
number arc old acquaintance that have
made their appearance in Congress
with regularity for years past, and
many of them were present in the last
Congress and failed for lack of merit or
lack of time to reach them. The adj
journment of the present Congress will
find these bills suspended in the same
manner and for the same reasons, but
their familiar faces will doubtless be
found on the calendars of the succeeding
Congress. New members always in
troduce the greatest number of meas
ures because they generally imagine
that their future Importance is deter
mined by the ingenuity displayed in
this direction at the start.
Senator Logan's bill to place the
great American begger, Grant, on the
retired list of the Army will probably
pass the Senate, but / doubt if it gets
through the House. Senator Edmunds'
100000 bill providing for the pay
ment of the expenses attending the
illness and funeral of President Garfield
will pass both houses. 1t was gener-
ally believed that this amount would
not be sufficient to cover all demands,
but doubtless the Senator has made q
correct estimate, based upon informa-
ton. The bill offered by Representa-
tive Hewitt of Alabama, in the House,
to amend the arrears of pension act,
ought to pass. The effect Of it would
be to cut off the arearages for the time
intervening between the date of dis
charge and the time of filling the claims
in the thousands Of cases now pending.
President Arthur states in his message