Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1886-07-03
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, June %, 1886.

WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, June %, 1856.
The Democratic quarrel in the
House Of Representatives; the dead
lock there and the Presidents whole
sale bombardment OF pension bills
are features of the week on Capitol
Hill. The bill for the reinstatement
of Fitz John Porter passed safely
through the Senate again with a
majority of thirteen, after a warm
debate spiced with personalities.
Gen. Logan opened the debate in
opposition to Gen. Porter. Wheth.
er he is an orator or not may be an
open question, but one fact is indis-
putable. Whenever it is known
that the Senator from Ill. is going
to make speech, the Senate gal
leries fill up and he holds their close
attention from the beginning to the
end of speech of almost any
length.
Gen. Logan has opposed the re
lief of Fitz John Porter in every
Congress for the last twenty years,
and it would be strange if, under
the circumstances, he could say any
thing totally new on the subject.
He did present the matter in new
light, however, beginning with an
objection to the bill on a constitu.
tlonal point, to the effect that the
bill provided for an increase on the
retired list of the army, provided
the president appointed a certain
person to the place. If he did not
make that special appointment the
vacancy was not to exist. Where
asked he "did the Senate get the
power to name to the President the
person whom he should appoint to
an office ?"
The Senator said he did not ex
pect his words to have any weight
in the Senate, for he always noticed
that when the Senate determined to
do a thing, iG turned deaf ear to
everything else, whether law or fact
interfered with its purpose. He
did not consider this case a trial OF
Porter. Porter had been tried and
condemned. This was trial OF
Abraham Lincoln, of James A. Gar.
field and of many brave and distin-
gulshed officers of the Army. 1t
had been said that Porter had been
good soldier before the war. Gen.
Logan thought that was no argu.
ment. Jefferson Davis and Robert
E. Lee had been good soldiers and
loyal men before the war. "As God
is my Judge" said he " l would stand
over the dust of Abraham Lincoln
and swear by all the gods to his act
being an honest and just one."
You, gentlemen, who were down
in the Confederacy," continued Gen
Logan, "know nothing about this
case except what you have read, and
you come up here and vote for this
man out ofsympathy." Porter would
have been condemned to death and
would have been shot had not the
kindly Lincoln said, "For Gods
sake, don't require me to shoot a
Democrat at this time" although
Lincoln had said that the evidence
warranted the death of Porter. This
SO called vindicatlon of Porter was q
stab at Abraham Lincoln.
Senator Voorhees, of Ind, asked
if Gen. Grant had also stabbed
Abraham Lincoln ? holding that nc
man had said as much rs Gen. Grant
had said in vindication of Porter
Whereupon Senator Plumb, ofKans.
mentioned that this new reverence
for Gen. Grant was as marvellous as
the conversion of Paul. He did moi
think it would do for the friends Of
Porter to use Grants name. They
had long held him up as everything
that was base.
Mr.. Plumb conceded that there
was division among northern PEG
pie about the matter, but it was q
division like that occurring in the
Mississippi, the eddy going one way
and the great-full- headed stream the
other. He spoke of the significance
of the fact that every man who ser
we'd in the Confederacy would vote
to put Fitz John Porter on the roll
of Union heroes. He had heard
lately OF an apotheosis of JEFF
Davis, at the same time that we GOT
defamation of Edwin M. Stanton
The re instatement of Porter was an
attempt to write the history of the
Union Army by putting that which
was unfaithful above that which was
loyal.
After three weeks honeymoon
the Presidential bridegroom has
gone on fishing cruise down Ches.
apeake Bay, leaving his bride at the
White House, although she purchas
ed fishing paraphernalia in Paris
with her trOusseau.
So far the President has vetoed 7G
bills, mostly for private pensions.
President Grant, during his eight
years of Administration made only
~ vetoes, and no other President
ever reached that number. Indeed
before the Cleveland administration,
only one pension bill had ever been
vetoed.
Representative Bayne, of Pa, at
tackled the President for the temer.
lty he showed in so recklessly put.
ting the seal of his sarcasm on the
vote of the House of Represeutatives
and the Senate of the United Safes.
Even the austere and rigorous An
drew Jackson, DESTROYS of asserting
his power and making his indivi-
duality conspicuous, had never mon
opollzed power as Clevelad had
done.
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The Democratic State Executive
Committee met in Parkersburg last