Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1886-03-18
Mr.. EDMUNDS ANSWERED
&LDDLEBEkGER MAKES AN-
OTHER SENSATION. La
Senator Pugh Makes an Effective
Reply 60 Senator Edmunds, Attack
& On the President = Proceedings of
Congress- General Rotes.

Oongress- General Notes.
81 WAsHINeroN, March 10.--Senator pugh'
reply to the speech Of Mr.. Edmunds IN th
great controversy now pending between tn
President and the Senate was made to-da,
& to crowded galleries, composed OF many O
the most intelligent and refined people o
Washington. The speech bristted .witl
good points. which made Mr.. Edmunds
who sat opposite, fairly vince. At on,
time, when a passage from the record o
Congress was being read, MIR. Edmund
walked over TO Mr.. Pugh and quite an ami
mated conversation took place betweer
tlem on some point In the discussion. Thii
little incident was noticed and great,
enjoyed by the galleries.
In the course Of his speech Mr.. Pugf
Drought out several points which have
never yet been made, and to those who
heard Mr.. Edmunds yesterday and believed
ne could not be answered were quite start.
ling. These points are a good deal com.
mented on tonight and are regarded as
making the Presidents position impreQ.
nable. One of Mr.. Edmunds' chief arpii.
ments was that Duskin was still an officer
OF the government and, like any officer ,l
the army under arrest, simply suspended
from performing the functions of his office
Az the very beginning OF his speech Mr.
nuBh controverted this statement. He said
been misrepresented and misunderstood
On the 18th OF July, 1885, Duskin was sus-
pended, and on the same day Burnett was
designated to discharge the duties of the
ONCE. On the 18th Of December following
Burnett was nominated to the Senate and
the nomination referred to the judiciary
committee. There 1t rested for over q
December. 1886, the term OF office OF Duskin
expired and he was no longer an officer OF
the government. His commission had ex.
pred and there was no necessity to remove
MIN, notwithstanding this, ON the 25th of
January, one month after The expiration of
his term OF office, the Judiciary committee
sent communication to the Attorney
suspension.
IL is regarded that this effectually does
away with the hne-spun theory that action
on the part OF the Senate is necessary in
order to deprive Duskin of an office which
he really does not hold. Not having TO
give their advice and consent TO the oustinR
OF man who had already gone out by
virtue OF the expiration of his commission,
the Senate had no use for the papers In the
case OF his suspension year ago. They
nave only to deal with the nomination OF
his successor and about that there Is no
controversy. Suppose the papers called for
had been furnished and the Senate decided
that the removal was improper and unwise,
1t could not restore Duskin to the office OF
district attorney. Mr.. Pugh declared that
the whole controversy was useless and
tnat the Senate was turned into a moot
court to discuss purely abstract proposi-
tion. The point was very elaborately and
favorably made and driven home to the
Vermont senator with telling effect,
MIR. Pngh declared and showed that the
papers involved In the suspension were
naaagQartlU nrIUata mn aF
and as such could not be called for by the
Senate. Yet the resolution OF the commit
tee characterized the act of the Attorney
General In refusing to disobey the order OF
the President not to give up these papers as
subversive of "the principles Of the
government and OF good administration. :"
Such charge as this, II true, would subject
the Attorney General to impeachment.
In his speech yesterday Senator Edmunds
cited a communication from Senator Thur
man, when he was at the head of the Judi
ciary committee, calling upon the Attorney
General for information In regard to the
removal of the Chief Justice of Utah. This
was given as an Illustration that the dis
tinguished Democratic Senator took the
same view as Mr.. Edmunds did. MIR. Pugh
again astonished the Vermont Senator by
showing that the tenure of office act ex-
cluded Judges of the United States Courts
OF which he claimed the Chief Justice of
Utah was one. 1t was different case On
tirely.
While speaking Of Thurman, who, he
snid, was the greatest, wisest and purest
American statesman now living, the enthu-
siasm OF the galleries, rs on yesterday,
broke out and with some difficulty Was
restrained by the presiding officer. Mr.. |
Pugh quoted Mr.. Thurman as saying that |
he regarded the power OF removal as an |
Executive power, and that the assent OF the |
Senate in the case of removal was a neces |
sary and logical result ul its assent to the |
of u successor.
Mr.. Pugh elaborated the arguments con- |
tained In the report of the minority of tho |
Judiciary committee, occupying two hours |
in his entire speech. He was heartily con-
graduated by his Democratic colleagues,
who consider that he fully exposed the |
motive of Republican senators in the CON
troversy which these Democratic senators |
claim was entirely unnecessary, although |
1t served the political purpose Of the other |
side.
RIDDLEBERaER RAMPANT.
WASHINGTON, March 1O-The Sennte has
been vastly entertained by Senator Riddle |
berger recently and he took new turn to-
day. The occasion arose through the re-
port of the sergeant-at-arms on the resolu- |
tion offered by the Virginia senator the |
other day requiring the names of the pri- |
fHlb SbCIbGtIlbS WuO M6Tb bulllltu 10
floor. Mr.. Riddleberger was after one par
ticular man, Stilson Hutchins, editor of the |
Post, who figures as the private secretary |
of Senator Ransom, but he smoked out u |
dozen other newspaper men at the same |
time. OF course It is well known that none
OF these perform the labor of private secre-
tary, and II they draw the pay OF So day |
II is turned over to the man who does the |
work or to the senator who lends them his |
certificate. Under the rules the senator |
must certify "on honor" that the alleged |
private secretary actually does the work |
OF one. The privilege Of the floor of the |
Senate Is OF great advantage to the corre-
spondent In his legitimate employment and |
the presumption is none of them get the |
pay. Senator Riddleberger denounced |
Hutchins as using his private secretaryship |
to advance Eads Ship halfway bill.
During the discussion the Virginia senator |
got involved with Senator Logan by inti- |
mating that in getting the Eads letter into |
the Congressional Record yesterday Senator |
Logan had made himself responsible for 1t. |
He nagged Logan until the latter bolted |
over and declared that If the senator from |
Virginia said he represented Eads he stated |
what was untrue. This giving the lie made |
q sensation. More confusion rose than Is |
seen In the Senate once u year. Riddle |
berger quieted it by disclaiming any in |
tention OF imputing dishonor to MIR. Logan. |
WASHINGTON, March 11.-hlthough the |
arguments on either side Of the great CON
troversy now in progress between the Prest- |
dent and the Senate are becoming mere |
repetition, there is still enough interest |
taken In them to attract the people in large |
numbers to the Senate galleries. The rush |
to-day, however, was not SO great as on the |
two preceding days, showing that the |
novelty In the discussion is gradually wear
ing off. The two great speeches already |
made, which laid the foundation for the |
both sides of the controversy, leaving the |
speakers following to attend to side issues /
and minor questions. The speech to-day was |
made by Senator Wilson OF Iowa, who has |
the reputation of being a very able consti- /
tutional lawyer and capable of handling |
any subject equal in Importance to that /
now before the Senate. But he did not con-
fine himself to discussion of the consti-
tutional questions involved, but made 1t the |
occasion for a political harangue against |
the President, In which he exposed the |
motive of Republican senators In pro-
voktng the controversy. His speech was In |
manuscript, which he read in monotonous /
way and lacked entirely the animation and |
force Of extemporaneous delivery. which |
caused the speeches of Senators Edmunds |
and Pugh to be listened to so closely.
The revelation he made was not at all |
startling, for 1t has been understood all |
along that it was the purpose of the Repnb-
llcan eide If possible to bring President |
Cleveland's civil service policy into disre-
pute. Before they began the controversy |
they did not want or expect any other issue |
than that now made. They did not expect |
he would yield his prerogative and comply |
with their demands, and on meru suspicion |
as to his motives In making suspensions |
they Intended to base their charges of in |
sincerity in the civil service reform. Thus |
rx, f,,nnrtunffv WINS atfOrded for inst sIIch n |