Chariton courier. (Keytesville, Chariton County, Mo.) 1878-current, 1884-08-15
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our regular correspondent
AUGUST 8, 1884.

| trEoin our regular correspondent.
AUGUST 8, 1854.
There is no lack of political work
and political gossip at the Capital
City these days, although the work
is pursued in a stealthy sort of way,
and the talk is carried on in an un-
dertone.
Searching for campaign stories is
the chief business of the committees.
They are ransacking the Congression-
al records, hunting up old newspa-
pers and collecting matter in vigor-
Gus, thorough secret way. Both par
ties have men at work securing the
departments and the Congressional
library for data to be used on the
stump. Every day men may be
seen at the Capitol poring over old
documents and files of old papers,
taking notes of all matters that may,
in any way, be of service in the COM
ing struggle.
The Democrats appropriate, among
other findings, acts and expressions
of Blaine derogatory to the Irish or
in antagonism to the laboring classes.
The Republicans are trying to find
some means of refuting these grave
charges and of establishing for him
record friendly to the iaborer and
to the Irish. Nothing can be found
against Governor Cleveland here,
and as for Hendricks, the record of
the campaign of 1875 is still pre-
served.
Much work is devoted to Senator
Logan's political history, which has
never been treated of minutely. Be
sides, his ante-bellum record, which
affords rich material, his pro-slavery
sentiments being quite inconsistent
with his present declarations, an
anti-clvil service, record has been
COTTON up against him.
The Republicans are looking hard
for reading matter for Greenback
allies. From localities where this
element is particularly strong they
are receiving urgent requests for f.
nancial arguments to strengthen
their position on this question. The
committee are troubled, however, as
to where to get new and important
material, and, in consequence, will
probably be forced to reprint the old
documents of the last campaign.
The department officials are be-
coming warmed up to a fighting con-
dition, and are restless in their de-
sire to make the campaign hot and
aggressive.
The department clerks are given
to understand that, Notwithstanding
their remonstrances, they will be
pressed for political contributions
this year as hard as in former times.
The finance committee began its work
on Saturday in a plain notification
that departments will be made to do
as well for Blaine as Jay Hubbell,
now politically no more, made them
do for Garfield.
The creation of special finance
committee for the District of Colum-
bia is a piece of new machinery, and
the appointment of Messrs. Clapp
and Raum as chairman and treasurer
are quite as significant of business.
These names have meaning to ev-
cry clerk in Washington. The men
have long been prominent in District
politics they know the department
people thoroughly, and how to man
age them. They say that money will
be needed now as badly as in 1880,
that men are just as able TO pay now
as then, and that no less than $780,
600 must be collected out of the gov
ernment departments here. Every
clerk knows that the screws were ap-
piled in 1880 as they never were be-
fore, and that there was stern bru-
tality about the methods of that year
that left no chance OF dodglng.
To get just the right kind of men
for this service of collection ocea-
sions the committee anxious thought.
In 1880 they were selected by the
bureau chiefs from among the clerks.
Some of them ostensibly resigned
from duty, while others took a leave
of absence for a month while col
lecting. They were paid a good
commission of their collections, and
were thus encouraged to squeeze
their associates dry. After the cleo
ton they were all reappointed, and
most of them were promoted. Un-
fortunately for the committee, the
civil service law prevents the contin-
uance of this practice. If man re-
signs now he can get back only
through the civil service examine
ton, and so no clerks can be used to
press money out of their fellow
clerks this year. So much for re-
form.