The weekly Thibodaux sentinel and journal of the 8th Senatorial District. [volume] (Thibodaux, Lna. [i.e. La.]) 1875-1898, 1884-01-05
LETTER.
From a Regular Correspondent
December cath, 1888.


December cath. 1888.
Ihad tho opportunity y day or two ago
to look over the morning mail Of . pr"mi-
nent western Senator. He receives daily
over ono hundred letters GA every ~conceiv
able subject /; offering praise, y Twice, MAX
ing requests for places. for hills, depart
men& pyramids, speeches, seeds, plants, for
eiga papers. ETC., etc, bat the greatest mum
Der were from ex-sotdicfs coacerning pen
sioas and demanding new laws IN the
sa0e subject Tho Senator in question
aims to read all his letters but it would.
consume all his time to attempt to attend
10 the demands ]ersonalS. His secretary
af he happens t. have owe, must do that.
And it keeps HAN busy.
Tho idea Of Walking Members of Con-
gress in Washington agents for their cOnsti
tuents is a ridiculous one. But almost
every district has wealthy men whose in-
terests are engaged in some way. The
men do net scruplU TO $ favOrs Of their
representatives and the latter do not dare
to refuse their demands. The consequence
il that the Legislative duties of = proni-
ent member, are = mere bagatelle compa-
red with his correspondence and official
errands. His dsak IN the House is his Of
NO 4 OPsUOuSCs 1AC WOiAS t4CIO ~ usC
writiag and only Oh rare occasions gives
attention tn what is going on, the business
for which. he rs sent here.
The resolution offered the other day to
remove the decks from tho Hall of the Re-
representatives., lis . step in the direction ct
needed 'retorm. The inattentiOn to what
Legislation ne in progress is a burning
shame, and an impediuent to business.
Members doclOt try to understand public
questions. II any doubt suggests itself
they oppose an objection aud the bill OF
measure lOOees its chance. perhaps for gUod.
There are more measures slaughtered he
caase of. inattentiun than for any other rea
son. 1T Ban easy way to haeet the harden
OF public duty, but it is by no means the
best way. l think that the idea Of renew
ing the, desks SO that Members will have
to. attend to what is going on, is = good
ene and when the public come to appre-
clate it.it will be denaalded. Certainly
something should he done to keep Congress
from. idling away it's time or devotia.g it to
purely personal and %extlaneous matters
1thas been commonly reported that Mr..
Blaine, a few months ago, erected . very
large, residence in Washington. Some .peo
pie have wondered why his nalne has not
appeared in any OF the lists of tax payers
IhsexplanatiOn as given to HE is that :Mr.
Blaine bought his building lot from Hon.
William Walter Phelps; that he has new
er bad his deed recorded. aud that he now
prefers to have the whole property stand in
MraRhelps' name. Mr.. Phelps is taxed for
about $l5O.OOO. COus quently NO xalua-
ton Of the Blaine mansion appears in the
tag list.
The object of the hill recently introdu
ced In the House to examine all the clerks
nOwin Office is said to he to create xacan-
ciee in order to fill them by civil service
methods. and thus insure if pessible per
Torrance of the reform. For it is sclear to
aiLhere that the endeavOr to div0Rce de-
pastMental appointments from politics
hashad the appearance Of being y little
NOSE than q device to keep Republicans in
aeiee. Should a Democratic a~dministra-
ton come i to power in March 1885 it
would find that less than II per cent Of
b tive or six thousand classified employees
ansthe departments have entered through
b n~On-partisan methods of the civil SER
vice law +; the other nine tenths haing the
appeintees Of Republican administrations
for political reasons mainly. 1t weuld in
fast, take a good many years at the pre-
sent rate of progress to bring the depart |
into such q state as would offer no
oxoase for Wholesale removals to . Demo |
cratic administration. The civil service |
sethas been in force nearly ten nonths,
And:Tet there are not much above q scoro |
81 appointments to its credit in all the de-
together.
The men aud women who look With pe-
culiar dread:upon the passage ofsuch q law
are.those who are retained or have been
appointed for sentimental reasona. There
of such. The class includes
en-and women who have grown cid in
the Aervice and have passed the age # eff
those who have been appeinted
they had failed in other Wake Of
Ute. 'snch - broken merchants, dismissed
Army and Navy officers &c, wi.!owsef de-
ceased soldiers, sailors, and politicians, se.
sured from absolute . by their pisces.
3uch people are least likely to passaa ex-
which ia at all searching.