The National tribune., 1884-01-17
SMALL TALK
About People and Thfnee

About People and Things.
1t seems that Congress is in earnest now about
the forfeiture of the unearned land grants. said
a Senator to rue to-day: Il IS hard luck to have
this land grant forfeiture crazestrike the eonn-
try just in time to catch as poor Southerners
While our country was yet paralyzed from thu
war; the Northern roads went on and have
earned their grants. We could not move 50
fast. We were poor and needed this help
which the Northwestern roads have had. Vow,
here comes the Committee on Public Lands
and decides to report in favor Of the forfeiture
OF eight of our land grants at one stroke. The
North is all right because It's people were ~hIs
to 90 ahead in time We are slower. The
country IS poor and far behind the North in
enterprise and development Our roads do noe
pay. / have a friend who owns the -
- line. He tells me the return is too
slow. he viii not build any more. The road
has been running now for six or seven years.
but there is not pew face along the route.
There is not that stimulation Of enterprise 70
follow and support a road, which makes bnsi-
ness and helps out in the North. He SAYS one
mans life is too short to do anything in because
the people cannot be quiekened to action. His
road runs right through country where the
hills are filed with coal and iron ore. but no
one has brought the elements together They liz
there yet. When he first took the read Though.
he learned where he could buy one hundred
thousand acres Of iron aud coal land for dol
lar an acre. 1t IS still there and he can buy ID
yet at the same price.
The talk about Huntington and the lobby az
the Capitol has revived many stories Of the
way things used to be done in the good old
days of the fathers Of the country. web
ster, Calhoun, Clay and all those old fell
lows had money given them time and
again. said veteran who has been for
fifty years an associate Of the great men Of
the capitol to me to-day. You know that 9reat
Driek house where Cercoran, the millionaire.
now lives IN Lafayette square. That house was
0ullt for Daniel Webster with British money.
When Lord Ashburton came here to negotiara
treaty between the United States and Great
Britain, Webster was Secretary OF State.
there We're certain interests involved in
getting the treaty fixed To suit them. They
accordingly went TO work and made up . purse
and built this house and presented it to Web
ster A fund was also placed in his hands to
enable him TO keep it up. Webster who was an
Impr0yident man, however, soon sauanGered
the fund and had to sell the house. He and
Clay and Calhoun were in the habit Of going
to the old United States Bank and getting
money, with the understanding that they we're
never TO pay it back, and they never did Is
was paid for them from time to time By rich
men who had axes to grind"
-
Secretary Chandler has great trouble to keep
the opposing forces ia his Department from an
open issue. SeandalOus stories viii crop oCk
from day to day with reference to the new
cruisers. well authenticated story comes
now to the effect that one Of the Advisory
Board, which meets with closed DOORS called
upon an inventor who had submitted plans and
urged him confdentially to withdraw part Of
them and the rest would be ad0Dted-ia
fact had been adopted. The gentleman was
glad. under such circumstances, to follow tip
from the inside. De was surprised to find out
sometime after that the board had not aG0Dted
his plan as stated by the member in question.
Then it was discovered that the reason why Is
was desired that he Withdraw the other plans
was that chief OF bareaH had submitted plans
which competed with his. They cOald not.
eonseieHtiously, adopt the chiefs plan with
such one as the gentleman IN question had
put IN competing with It. In order TO shield
themselves ii taking an inferior design. Il was
necessary to remove the competition, and this
was the means adopted to bring It about The
reason why they were so anxious about il was.
that one of the board had soft snap in the
shape of shore duty, with house rent free AZ the
Navy Yard, at the pleasure Of his chief. who
had put IN the competing plans Another Of
the board was also on staff duty. with a good
billet in the Department, at the pleasure Of the
same chief.
With all these rascalities going on It requires
great influence TO keep down the natural ten
denotes Of a Congressman to investigate. If the
bubble should burst, the jig Is up, and lot Of
men who are now constantly using their ciaI
places for private ends would be exposed
Rumors of personal difficulties between SEN
atOrs are favorite topics for sensational dis
patches to the newspapers lately. stories have
been circumstantialiy related Of encounters
between Senators Malone and Riddleberger,
none of which had the least foundation The
latest is to the effect that Senator Logan and
Senator Sewell had a passage at the manly art
day or two ago. The fatal defect Of the story
was that Seweil had been cut of the city for
some days, and he ard General Logan had not
met for over week from the time the occur
renee was alleged 70 have trsnspired The
fact IS that the whole thing was sheer inyen-
ton, and It seems strange that reputable news
papers should be deceived into giving currency
to such yarns.
IT IS q matter Of some interest to the public
sometimes to know inst what leading news
paper men think about leading questions.
which are not always reflected il the columns
OF the papers they e0atTol. 1 get from the
best authority for instance. that Whifelasv
Red-as he calls himself although his mother
called him Jacobs personally in favor OF
Gresham for President; that MUrat Halstead
is for Logan; that Nixon OF the hitter Oceap. IS
for Arthur; that Jones. Of the New York
Times. IS for Ednunds that MediIl of the
Chicago Tribune, IS for any oae to beat Arthur
r -
Daily Nelgs, is for Arthur o. Lincoln.