Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1886-02-19
Washington Letter.
From our Regular Correspondent.

of comment here. What vii the
Republican Senators next do? is a
popular question. With Senators
Logan, Edmunds, Merrill, i...r and
Sherman as leaders they nigh do
almost anything that is extreme or
unwarran.able. But some of them
have become recalcitrant and lostil-
tiles may yet end in ii Senatorial re-
treat.
There is very little h"rmnny among
the majority in the 81 nate. There
are too many Presidential candidates
on their side of the chamber for
unity of purpose and action. There
are no less than eight Republican
Senators who are looking hopefully,
towards the White House and 1883.
The situation as between the Sen
ate and Administrator IL not mater
tally changed, but some of the Re
publicans are anxious to have the
trouble end, and have gone SO far as
to say there is no real issue. One of
the M said, 81 wish some one would
disabuse the public mind If he b =
lief that tLcie Is g".IG j" &c any
ti..ht between the PIe.id. ut and the
Senate. There can be nuIe,' con-
iinued he, " for the President is
master of the situation. If he refuses
the information we ask, that settles
it. We can do nothing but refuse
to confirm. Attic end of the session
he can re-appoint his man, or appoint
another man, that is all" And then
Senator Edmunds, who has been one
of the managers of this demonstration
against the Administration, virtually
called for truce to these farcial pro
ceedings. 1t was when he asked
. that Tie RiddleberSor resolution,
pre- scented 10y the chair 10 the Senate,
be laid on the table. The resolution
,ferreG 10 the strained relations be-
tween the President and Senate III
regard 10 information affecting
officials suspending or appointed,
and defined the Presidents duty in
the matter from The Riddleberger
standpoint. Mr.. Edmunds suddenly
awakened to the fact that the Senate
had been wasting time, and said
that there were but four months Of
the session left for business. The
resolutions embodied no practical
questions, and it would be time
| enough to debate the question when
. it should be practical one.
. Mr.. Riddlebergei is the Repub':-
! can read ulster Senator from Virginia
| He is addicted to making eccentric
propositions to the Senate, and
, something radical and silly is always
expected from him. But on this
occasion he was sufficiently sober TO
, criticise the hoary-headed Vermont
| Ell for voting against the Rildicber.
/, ger resolution. He mentioned the
I. fact that Mr.. Edmunds himself had
: inaugurated debate ON the subject
involved. He concluded by remark
| ing that he did not mind being run
: over by railroad train, bat he did
| object to being mashed by o wheel
c barrow.
:, Although the Republicans say a
great deal about removals without
cause, 1 happen to know that they
: only wish more had been made by
n the new authorities. A Republican
Senator expressed himself freely Il
: few days since. /" Confound Cleve.
r land" exclaimed lie, d" The Repub-
b Leans in my State have been com
s pletely demoralized and our organ.
i izatior has been broken up because
/ some of our most active politicians
s have been retained in office" Said
n he, " they are afraid to help us lesi
they might be removed, and I wish
! the President would dismiss every
!. Republican now holding office in
), my state. Then they would so tc
e work again for the party"
q The Senate has now called upon
: three of the Cabinet officers to fur.
= nish information bearing on officia
s changes, Attorney General Garland,
t and Secretaries Manning and La
:. mar. The two former have refused
j and the latter will do likewise. AnG
d now the House of Representative.
: has asked the Secretary of the
n Treasury to outline his future silve
!. policy. If the Administration were
Q not master of the situation, it would
e elicit the sympathy of the public
n 1t has been asked to account for it,
d past action, for what it is doing al
r present, and finally now it has beer
g asked to state it's future intentions,
Congress has accomplished but
little SO far this week. The Senate
has talked of Dakota, high art and
the electoral count, but it has mol
voted for anything. The House is
as usual waiting for something. II
is now waiting for committees to re.
port measures. The committee pro.
TESS to be hard at work, however, and
1 pretty soon bills will come nour;n n