Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1890-04-17

Their Ihaings.
The Waahineton correspondent of the
New York Commercial Advertiser writes
There Is one day in the week when the
minor members OF the House are given
full sweep, They are all in their glory on
Friday. IL Gil the world Friday is tina
uniucky dsy-hsngmsn's day. In the
House it ia tie Tins when private bills
may be taken mp; it is the opportunity
Afforded the member whose capacity does
not reach the level OF public measures to
exercise his mind and tongue and como
to feel that there really is something in
Congress that he can do. II is amusing
to notice the eagerness with which certain
members come into the House on private
bill day with bundles of papers under
their arms and great schemes revolving
in their heads, such as o pension for Mary
Ann Mclaughlin or claim to pay loyal
farmer Jones for the mule and bundle of
fodder borrowed by "Unole Sans"
troops during the war.
The private calendar is attacked with
great earnestness, aud members who
never speak on other occasions let their
tongues wag eloquently in behalf OF this
or that constituent, and it becomes a
national question whether or not Farmer
Jones or Platter Smith was loyRl-at all
events VIII Their he was loyal enough
TO be entitled to payment for his mule.
Most OF the ebler members of the house
absent themselves from this weekly ses-
sion. The whole day and from TO 10 at
night the time ia spent in passing or try
ins 10 pass bills granting Eoma sort Of
gratuity to individuals Uncle Sam" is
considered to % under obligation TO.
| Friday is mendioants' day, and no col
ony OF beggHrs in crowded city ever
| inyente more pititul 6nd more absurd
stories than the people who come to Con
grsss for assistance. The pension claims,
of urse, occupy most OF the attention
OF tho industrious representatives. When
q commissioner Of pensions will decide
that q nan who died from eating toe
| much green apuie pie came to his dealt
in the lire Of duty, the case must be very
bad that 10 Brought to Congress for re-
! lisf. There could not be anything more
absurd than come of these pension olsins
not to mention the cases Of towards and
deaertsrs who come to get their slice Of
pork at this late day when their cowardice
may have been forgotten.
Three cases that have Just been de
cided are good examples. One woman il
given pension practically upon thu
ground that marriage is failure. Sh,
wes the widow Of soldier, and as sucl
might have been entitled to q pension
but she concluded to marry again. Hav
ing married, she found that she and he
second husband did not get along yer,
we'll, and came to the conclusion that sh
had rather be the widow of her tirst bus
band than the wife Of her second. Sepa
rating from the latter. she applied for
pension on account OF the services OF he
former husband, and the House in 1t
wisdom decided that she oug I to have il
Another woman, the widow OF an ex
soldier, asserted that she had lost he
husband and two sons in the war, an
enforced her claim Ia this way. Her hps
band was not actually killed in the wal
but INST his death long afterwards in
snowslide. 1t was said, however, il b
had not served in the war, his service
making him feeble-minded, he would nc
have been at work in the vicinity Of tn
snowsl,de. Tbs fact that several othe
me1, who had not been in the army, wer
with him at the time and were also killed
did not weaken this logic in the opinion c
the House. One of the woman's son
was shot in the ankle during the war an
recovered. Years afterwaFd he fell dowr
stairs and broke his neck. 1t ia elaine
that il he had not served in the war an
had his ankle La t, he never would hsv
tumbled downstairs, and, therefore, hu
! band and son Loaf their lives in the Sc
vice of the government. Son No.
served in the wer, and Is not daRd at tn
time, but is Insane or feebie-minded, ani
though, hs seems to have inherited il
sanity from his father, it is argued tn,
} his mind would have been all right il b
had sever besn in the army. Thus al
claims to have lost husband and tw
sons in the var. and the House ia COZ
WINGED, as 1ikado might be, by sue
unsnswersble logic.
: Another woman is given pension b
cause she says that her husband took col
during the Revolutionary war, while 81
tiug on dock Watching the British We
. sels. There IL no evidence that ne eve
did anything for his country further this
, TO sit with his legs dangling over til
wbarf. Bat perhaps the old lady is ei
titled to pension on account I
longevity, sinos she is said to be SOM
thing over hundred years old.