Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-12-06
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WAsn1NoroN, Dec. Q ISIS

pii' iiuii lSonS message was feuu
in both Houses of Congress today.
1T Is too early to say what is though.
of it, as few members pay close
enough attention to the reading of IL
message in the House or Senate to
care to express an opinion upon it;
they prefer to read it over carefully
afterwards. But it certainly WIS
not received with any enthusiasm by
the Republicans. That much could
be seen by any person that attended
the opening of Congress.
Gen Clark, the clerk of the last
House, called the new House to or
der nj noon today, and he is proba
bly, the last Democrat who will have
the honor of presiding, even TEN
pornrily, over the House until the
first Monday in December, 1891.
when Democratic Speaker is again
expected to be elected
Senator Quay, aided by the silent
support of the administration, suc
ceeded in making Reed Speaker of
the House, just as your correspond
eDt from the beginning predicted, out
1t may i'll the future prove to be
dearly bought victory for Mr.. Qray.
ms he has made some enemies that
will not hesitate to get even if the
chance ever presents itself. ind it
generally does IN political as well as
private life. One enemy that Mr..
Quay has made he may well beware
of. 1t is J. NJ. Carson, Washington
correspondent of the Philadelphia
Ledger, who had the audacity to be
come candidate for clerk of the
House without consulting Mr.. Quay
MIR. Carson claims that n minority of
tie Pennsylvania delegation had
pledged him thoir support, which
virtually meant his election, as the
place was conceded to Pennsylvania.
and that Mr. Quay by open threa
succeeded ill compelling the most O.
them to support his candidate fui
the place, Edward Mcpherson, secre.
tary of the Republican Congressional
committee. Mcpherson got the nom
nation but Mr.. Quay got the enmily
of MIR. Carson, who Yields a great i'll
fuence among the newspaper men.
who resent MIR. Quay's saying tina,
MIR. Carson represented lot of ire
sponsible newspaper men. No poll
tician has ever antagonized the Wash
ington newspaper men without pay
ing very dearly for it. Elk Speaker
keifer will bear me out in this usser
ton as also would the late Schuyler
Colfax if he were alive. Keep your
eye on Quay.
Mr. Reed has been made Speaker
because it is believed by the Repub
liccan leaders that he can be relied
upon to get the best of the minority
in their efforts to maintain their
rights in the House. He is not ex.
pected to do this by his superior
knowledge of parliamentary tactics,
but by arbitrary decisions. There
will be exceedingly lively times in
the House when he attempts to de
prive the Democrats Of any of their
rights.
The newspaper correspondents are
heartily glad that the speakership
farce is ended. They were required
by their papers to telegraph daily
accounts of the fight, when there
was no fight. There has been no
time i'll the last three months when
the fact was not perfectly plain to an
impartial observer that Reed would
be speaker. There were two reasons
for the exaggerated newspaper ac-
counts of the alleged contest. One
was opposition to Reed and the hope
that n real contest might be brought
about by the sham publications, and
the other was the desire on the part
of the correspondents to earn their
salaries.
The Democratic caucus to nomi-
nate House officers was called for