McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1884-09-04
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Washington, D. c., Sept. LIST, "a.

white women are moved to commi
grand larceny las one of them did thu
other day. expressly to get into thu
penitentiary because she was ''tiret
of living in Washington with thu
d niggers," as she expressed it
something ought to be done toware
inducing the white element to asser
itself. The fact that a vast majority
of the white voters are opposed to the
adoption of a system of self-govern
ment at the Capital, might seem dis.
appointing to you, but when you re.
member and realize that four out Of
seven votes cast in the District of Col.
umbia would be black ones, and
thrown for black candidates for office
the elective franchise hath no paticu-
lar charms for us. As it is now, the
colored people of Washington proper
approach nearer to an equality in all
socialconditions with the whites than
in any other city in the country, and
the official influence of such men as
Fred Douglass and Register Bruce,
and other leaders of the race, has fill
ed the minor positions in all of the
departments with colored employees
at the expense Of our much Wanted
patriotic interest in the heroes of the
war. In fact an empty sleeve as we'll
as an empty trowsers-leg have ceased
long since to be recommendation
for place under the government.
The running down and sinking of
the war vessel Tallapoosa by an ordi-
nary freight vessel, was the hair that
broke the back of our navy, and dem
onstrates with fearful certainty what
would become Of her and her crew
in contest with any thirdrate vessel
belonging to fourth-rate power.
Now Chill and Peru and Norway, and
even New Jersey, can snap their fin
gers at us in diplomacy and challenge
us to do our worst. By merciful
dispensaticn Of politics, the gallant
Secretary of the gallant Navy was
not on board to witness the departure
of the remnant of his war fleet, but he
left twenty-eight cases of Washing
ton Heidsick on board, which are now
with their native element
in ffty-four fathoms.
I went down to Mount Vernon the
other day to drop tear to the mem
Dry of the great First in. Had I not
gone upon a dead-head pass, the tear
aforesaid would have cost me dollar,
plus the other petty plunderings that
all have to experience who would
evince patriotism enough to visit this
sacred spot. The place has passed
into the possession, as everybody
knows, of the Ladies Mount Vernon
Association, over whose eyes the skip
per of a Potomac steamboat has pull
ed the wool beautifully. This captain
has been accorded the monopoly
don't you see, everything runs to mo-
nopoly ?-of being the sole proprie-
tor of the wharf franchise, and no
other boat has any right to land pas
sengers upon the sacred soil. For
this franchise the patriotic captain
rakes in two-thirds of the dollar ex-
acted from each passenger, and gal
lantlY accords the remaining third to
The Ladies' Association But what I |
lesire to call particular attention to,
S the inexcusable delay that has char
the management of this La
lies Association in. fulfilling the
promises made by them to restore the
Mount Vernon Mansion to the state
n which but few years ago, it was
:raught with the freshest memories of
is once great tenant. There are hun
lreds of relics scattered all about the
country whose history is fully anthem
;icated, and which may be had for the
lsking, but during the dozen years or
more that these promises have been