Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1886-04-17
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, April II, 1886.


tie waste of time in talk and speech
es, that everybody feels disposed to
say" Well Done,n and do not grow
weary of well doing" A few weeks
of legislation, equal in quantity and
Importance to that of the past week,
and our law makers would be ready
to desert the Capitol by the first of
June. 1t is predicted, however, that
they will not get away before some
time in August.
Some newspapers have been try
ing to incite Congress to industry
by saying that unless more activity
is infused into its proceedings, mem
bers will find themselves here in
Sept. 1886. But a question more
important with most of the alleged
statesmen on the Democratic side of
the House, is, whether they will find
themselves in Washington in De-
cember, 1887. They are discussing
the political situation very seriously,
and they are very fearful of losing
the House at the next elections. The
recent local elections in Ohio, In
diana, Michigan and Wisconsin,
have interested the politicians at
the Capitol, and there has been
much discussion of the results. The
blame for the Republican victory is
laid chiefly at the Presidents door.
Western Congressman say the DEM
ocrats are so disappointed with the
Administration that they have no
fighting courage left.
There is a Democratic Member
from Indiana, Mr.. Kleimer, who
thinks the bad condition ofhis party
in Congress could be remedied
by caucus. Said he; I'VE don't
know each other, and don't know
ourselves. There is no Democratic
programme. One wants free silver
coinage, another wants no coinage
at all. One wants all the offices, an
other says he doesn't. We ought to
caucus at once, and the Administra-
ton ought to be represented in the
caucus. The White House and Con.
gress should work together. The
party is disorganized and democrat
lied. We need caucus"
Returning to the weeks record of
Congress. both the Senate and the
House passed the bill for the cree.
tioa of the long projected Congress-
ional Library. The President of the
Senate and Speaker of the House
signed the bill, and the Presidents
signature is the only formality still
required to make it a law. The new
depository for the Nations literary
treasures will be east of the Capitol.
Half a million has been provided to
begin the structure, and S550,000
for the purchase Of the site.
The House, among other things,
voted to pension the Mexican veter-
ans and defeated the Bland plan
the unlimited coinage of silver. The
Senate invited Washington Terri
tory into the sisterhood of States. 1t
took her as she is, enfranchised wo-
men and all. This victory for women
suffrage in the Senate was not at
tanned withoutSo opposition. Sen
ator EuStis, of Louisiana, wanted to
amend by limiting the suffrage in
the proposed state to qualified male
electors only. He was afraid Of fe-
male Senators. They could not
keep executive secrets. 1.-THE Senate
recognized the right of female suf-
frage in Washington Territory by
passing the bill as it was, the Sen
ate might have woman knocking
at its doors, with full credentials.
q" She might be admitted" SAID Mr..
Eustis, "and that would solve the
problem of secret sessions. On the
question of the constitutional quail
fications of female Senator-as re.
spects age for example"-the rest of
the Senator's sentence was lost in
the laughter that greeted this re-
mark, and Senator Beck said, soto
rOce, that the question of retirement
on account of age would never be
allowed to arise even, among the
women.
"One very difficult social question
has at last been settled" remarked
IA lady the other evening who was
speaking of the gradations in the
aggregate of humanity called so
ciety. Yes, we no longer wonder
who is who. Washington has at
last had long felt want filed. We
have an Elite Directory, an inval-
liable volume. which we are assured
is a safe guide as regards the so
clal status of people. The thing,
however, that puzzles me is, how
this information was obtained, and
from whom? What rule has been
followed in writing down Smith in
the Elite Directory and excluding
Jcness They hold precisely the
same station in the community, yet
one is taken and the other left. By
whom was their relative position de-
cided ~