Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1886-02-13

WASHINGTON LETTER.
IFTom our RegulaF CoFrespondeat }


WAsHINGTON, d. G.. Feb, 1, 1886.
The weeks work in congress can be
easily summarized. Both Houses devo-
ted one day to funeral orations. The
senate honored the memory of the late
Vice-President, and the House that of
the late Representative Ellwood, Of
Illinois. The senate discussed Dako-
ta's claims to statehood, and the House
listened to an unimportant debate on
the subject of the alleged DETACHMENT OF
monuments in the Norfolk Navy Yard,
and passed fifty pension bulls after Hs-
tening to a speech from Mr.. Crisp, Of
Georgia, against eEJravagant pensions.
Mr.. Crisp quot ed statistics 70 show that
! if the proposed legislation in regard to
pensions were to prevail, the treasury
would be left bankrupt He said the
| people whom he representeGewere will
ing even in their poverty to contribute
to whatever was necessary for the
! grandeur, glory and progress of the
! country. They were wiling to act in
good faith and literally with the sol
diers, but he thought it was not right to
tax them farther than that. lie would
not be parsimonious. he would be just
and liberal. but he did think there
ought to be a stopping place some
where.
The issue between the President and
Senate is the chief subject of discussion
in and about the Capitol. The issue
was joined squarely when the Admins
tration refused to furnish the papers
bearing upon the official character Of q
certain District Attorney in southern
Alabama. There are many indications
Of a bitter contest over this matter, and
unless remarkable skill is exercised
somewhere, a controversy of a thor
Oughly partisan character will develop.
The Administration has taken the
ground that the only supervision the
senate can exercise over removals from
office is Of a legislative character, and
it holds that the information now sought
has only to do with the personal fitness
of incumbents- 1t claims also that the
senate can only deal with the conduct Of
an Office in open legislative session. 1t
holds, therefore, that the call for doe
uments which bear on official changes
do not come within the province Of tbs
senate, sitting in executive session, and
the papers for that reason, are 10 be
withheld.
The senate has no direct way of fore
ing Its demands short of impeachment.
but it can retaliate by refusing to con
firm all nominations until the President
explains his reasons for making changes.
You remember we had a deadlock Of
this kind during Johnson's ADMINISTERS
ton, which proved to be a very dissa-
greeable episode.
There was an Interesting conference
this week in the room of the senate
committee on patents, the Hawley bili
on international copyright being argued
at length. There was a notable assem-
blage in the room, authors, publishers
and printers being present, and all par
ties Interested were heard but the
printer and book-buying public. Mr..
Clemens MARK Twain), George Tick
nor Curtis aud James Russell Lowell.
Ex-United States Minister to England.
were among those who discussed the
merits OF the question before the comg
mittee. The latter made an extended
argument for the bill, telling what q
proprietary interest IN ideas meant,
exc. He said there was a feeling that
books like umbrellas were ferGe natDrae,
Nobody supposed there could be prop
erty in an idea, but there was property
in the fashion given to an idea. The
constitution had already recognized
that in conferring the power to grant
patents. Patents were ideas fashioned
in a certain way. For instance, the
/ Bell telephone was case precisely
parallel with books, aud there were a
great many people in this country I'M
terested in the Bell Telephone
The FIRST evening reception of the
season at the White House was given to
/ the general public, and the parIors
were as deliberately decorated as if pre-
pared for a State dinner. The hours
named were from nine to eleven, but
! long before that hour the crowd began
to assemble on the. portico and soon ex-
tended TO the western gate. The stream
Of callers was continuous for two hours
and without Incident. It was strictly
peoples reception Neither Diplomats,
Congressman nor society people were
there. They prefer attending card re-
cepti0ns, which are never so crowded.
There was very few evening toilets
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