Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1884-03-28
"THE THIRD HousE..
It's Good and Bad Memberships Remark
able Experiences of Close Observer
Of Its Workings During .
Long Residence at
Washington.
Correspondence Rochester Dcmocrat.)

correspondence kOcheStPr Dcm0crdt.)
No city upon the American continent has
larger floating population than Wishing
ton. II is estimated that during the ses-
sions of Congress twenty-five thousand
people, whose homes are in various parts
of this and other countries, make this city
their place OF residence. Some come here,
attracted by the advantages the city offers
for making the acquaintance of public
men: others have various claims which
they wish TO present, while the great ma
jority gather here, as the crows flock to
the carrion, for the sole purpose of getting
q morsel at the public CRIB. The latter
class, as q general thing, originate the
many schemes which terminate in vicious
bills, all Of which are either directed at
the public treasury, or toward that reve-
niue which the matchmaking of corpora
tions or private enterprises may bring.
While walking down Pennsylvania ave-
nue. the other day / met Mr.. William NJ.
Ashley, formerly Of your city, whose long
residence hero has made him unusually
well acquainted yith the operations of the
lobby.
Having made my wants I'm this particu-
lar direction known, in answer to an in
terrogative, Mr.. Ashley said:
Eyes, during my residence here / have
become well acquainted with the workings
OF the Third House, as il is termed, and
could tell you of numerous jobs, which,
like the Heather Chinee,' are peculiar"
"You do not regard the lobby. as body,
vicious, do youP'
'Not necessarily so; there are good and
bad men comprising that body; yet there
have been times when it must be admitted
that the combined power of the Third
House has overridden the will of the peo-
pie. The bad influence of the lobby can be
seen in the numerous blood-bills that are
introduced at every session."
,,f how ho
"Easily enough, to the person who has
made the thing q study. l can detect them
at glance"
"Tell me, to what bin do you refer?"
swell, take the annual gas bills, for i'm
stance. They are introduced for the pur-
pose of bleeding the Was hington Gas
Light Company. They usually result in
an investigating committee which never
amounts to anything more than draft
upon the public treasury for the expenses
of the investigation. Another squeeze is
the dbattoir bills, as they are called.
These, of course, are fought by the BUTCH
ers and market-men. The first attempt TO
force bill of this description was in 1877,
when a prominent Washington politician
offered fabulous sum for the franchise"
Anything else in this line that you
think of, Mr.. AshleyW
ayes. there's the job to reclaim the Po-
tomac flats, which, had it become law,
would have resulted in an enormous steal.
The work is now being done by the Gov
eminent itself, aud Will rid the place Of
that malarial atmosphere of which we
hear so much outside the city,"
"During your residence here have you
experienced the bad results of living in
this climateY
"Well, while have not at all times cn-
loved good health, am certain that the
difficulty which laid me up SO long was
not malarial. It was something that had
troubled me for years. A shooting, sting
ing pain that at times attacked different
parts of my body. One day my right arm
and leg would torture me with pain, there
would be great redness, heat and swelling
of the parts; and perhaps the next day the
left arm and leg would be similarly af-
fected. Then again it would locate in
some particular part of my body and pro-
duce tenderness which would well nigh
at a time that would be afflicted with an
tntermitting kind of pain that would come
on every afternoon and leave me COM
paratively free from suffering during the
balance of the twenty-four hours. Then
would have terrible paroxysms of pain
coming on at any time during the day or
night when would be obliged to lie upon
my back for hours and keep as motionless
as possible. Every time / attempted to
move q chilly sensation would pass over
my body, or would faint from hot flashes.
i suffered from a spasmodic contraction of
the muscles and soreness of the back and
bowels, and even my eyeballs became sore
and distressed me greatly whenever
wiped my face. / became ill.tempered,
peevish, fretful, irritable and desperately
Respondent"
"Of course you consulted the doctors re-
garding your difficultyp
Consulted them? well ] should say
did. Some told me had neuralgia; others
that l bad inflamrnatory Rheumatism, for
which there was no cure, that would be
q Fad oil fa mud hat ftr,a. al mn
would mitigate my sufferings."
but didn't they try to relieve your mis-
'eriesi" Yes, they vomited and physicked
me, blistered and bled me, plastered and
oiled me, sweat, steamed and everything
but froZe me, but without avail"
but how did you finally recoverp'
81 had friend living in Michigan who
had been afflicted in a similar way and
had been cured. He wrote me regarding
his recovery and advised me to try the
remedy which cured him: 1 procured a
bottle and commenced its use, taking q
tablespoonful after each meal and at bed
time. ] had used it about a week when
noticed decrease OF the soreness of the
joints and a general feeling of relief.
persevered in its use and finally got so
could move around without limping, when
] told my friends that it was Warmers
Safe Rheumatic Cure that had put me on
my feet"
nent?
"Certainly; 1 haven't been so well in
years as l am now, and although have
been subjected to frequent and severe
changes OF weather this winter, have not
felt the first intimation of the return of
my rheumatic trouble"
"Do you object to the publication of this
| interview, MIR. Ashley?
"Not at all, sir. 1 look upon It as q
duty / owe my fellow-creatures to alleviate
their sufferings so far as / am able, and
any communication regarding my symp-
toms and cure that may bs sent to me at
| 506 Maine avenue will receive prompt and
careful attention"
Judging from your recital, MIR. Ashley,
there must be wonderful curative proper.
ties about this medicine"
"Indeed there is, sir, for no man suffered
more nor longer than did before this
remedy gave me relief"
To go back to the original subject, Mr..
Ashley, l suppose you see the same famil-
lar faces about the lobby session after ses-
sion"
mo, not so much as you might think.
New faces are constantly seen and old
! ones disappear. The strain upon lobby
lists is necessarily very great, and when
you add to this the demoralizing effect OF
late hours and incorporate habits and the
fact that they are after found out in their
steals, their disappearance can easily be
accounted for"
WHAT proportion of these blood-bills
"a very small percentage, sir. Not.
withstanding the power and influence of
the lobby, but few of these vicious meas
ures pass. Were they successful it would
be sad commentary upon our system OF
| government, and would virtually annihi.
late one branch of il. The great majority
Of them are either reported adversely OF
| smothered in COMMITTEES by the watchful-
ness and loyalty Of our Congressman"