The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-12-31
QUE. WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular correspondent

gone to the bOsoms of their divers
and sundry constituencies - gone
home to gladden. other places with
their presence and "presents." But
the weather resembles "Christmas
weather." or the usual weather of the
merry holidays, about as much as an
ordinary Democratic Congressman
resembles a statesman. 1t is sorry
weather for a merry season. No
snow, no music from dainty tongue
of sleigh-bell or sleighed belle no
frosty air to nip the world and send
denizens hurrying on their holiday
errands of pleasure. But the return
of the holiday season always lights
up this part of the year, though its
days are briefer and generally filled
with more of cold and gloom than
any others of the year. Echoes of
the songs of "Peace and Good Will
to Man" come merrily down through
the ages to gladden. the winter air,
and the glory of the white plumage
of the angles who bore the "Glad
Tidings" eighteen hundred years
ago, seems to flash oyer the world
once more.
Speaker Keifer's organization of
the Committees in the House seems
to have been carried out, in the main.
according to the expectations and
wishes of that body and at the same
time In manner that will well serve
the many public interests and satisfy
the party demands. The country
confidently expected that the Speak
ership would go to the West so
when Mr.. Kasson seemed unlikely
to be heavy enough to concentrate
the Western force successfully against
Hiscock's Eastean following, and
Don Cameron "twisted the tail of the
Pennsylvania delegation and brought
it around for Kiefer." -as leading
Illinois Congressman graphically if
not elegantly expressed it-and Wis.
consin and Michigan fell in and the
Western tidal wave swallowed up
everything, the result was taken
philosophically. What has followed
in tie organization of the Commit
tees is taken in the same way and
now the work of taking public opin-
ion, as applied to the various in
terests of the country, and crystaliz-
ing it into law and appropriations"
will go forward shortly. Already In
the Senate the keynote Of the coming
battle has been SCUM 1ed-on the tariff
question. This, to-day, is the vital
center of the power of the Republic
can party. That issue carried it
triumphantly through the last Ma
tional canvass, and seems plainly
destined to rule the destiny of the
next great National struggle of 1884.
Last fall demonstrated that the man.
ufacturing interests of Indiana had
suddenly converted a Democratic
State into Republican one. In Hi
nois and other Northern States. dis
tinctively agritural though they are,
the manufacturing interest are. out
stripping the agricultural Il. e.,
greater progress is being made in
manufactures than in the improve
ment of agriculture; and so the
tariff question is paramount in poll
tics.
So in the South. especially in Ten
nessee and Georgia, where manu-
featuring interests are. beginning to
dominate the planter interests, tariff
ideas are growing up with the "New
South" and it's new notions of po-
litical independence. The Houks,
Moores, Thornbergs, Magruders,
Hawkinses, and BroWnlows talk it
boldly about Washington this winter
that "Tennessee is going Republican,
straight and clean, next election"
And Marshal Longstreet, of Georgia.
is marshaling the Republicans and
independents" like Stephens and
Speer, and the young business ele.
ment of Tennessee's sister State, to
fall under the tariff banner and boom
the manufacturing era so ausplciously
inauguratPd in the Atlanta EXPOSE
ton, along with the Independent
era In politics-independe of old
Bourbon planter freetradeism. The
signs of the times. indicate, about
the National CAPITAL, that those pa
trots who calculate to win glory this
winter in Congress in revising the
tariff" to do much good, "-or harm
will, to use rather a forcibe slang
phrase of the lobby, "get left"
Washington city, along with all
the civilized world, is profoundly
impressed over the news of the find
ing that the New York HeraLcI's
Jeanette has been lost and its bold
and hardy crew found. But our city
feels a particular interest in the mat
ter because the family of Lieutenant