The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-04-19
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular CorrespondentJ
WAsHINGTON, April 16, 1884.

quorum WOulu eventually become
one Of the fixed rules of the House,
no matter which party is in power.
If he felt any surprise at all at the
action of the Democratic caucus in
directing the committee on Rules to
prepare a rule providing for the
counting of members present and
not voting, in order to make quo
rum, it was not because the caucus
had come around to his ideas but
because as many as forty Democrats
should have voted against the prop
osition. While the Republican
members of the House are thorough
believers in the principle of count
ing quorum it is not yet certain
that they will support the Rule
reported by the committee on Rules,
or that they will vote at all to help
the Democrats get a quorum to
adopt it. The principal reason for
this uncertainty is that the caucus
resolution also directed the commit
tee to report rule to compel the
attendance of absent members. 1t
will depend upon how the Demo
Gratis intend to accomplish the pro-
posed reforms what position the
Republicans will take.
Another Democratic Senator has
placed himself in the doubtful col
umn. Senator Smith, of New Jer-
sey, in his speech on the tariff bill,
which Senator Quay correctly called
a measure of mingled malice, com
promise and sectionalism, renewed
the cold shiyer8 which Senator Hill
sent up and down the splnes of the
free traders last week. 1t has been
agreed that the debate on the bill
as a whole shall end next Monday.
Then the contest over the indiyid-
ual schedules will begin and the
fighting will be forced by the Re
publicans from the first to the last.
The Democratic managers Of the
bill are IN doubt as to the status Of
at least six Democratic Senators,
not to mention the successor to the
late Senator Vance, of North Caro-
lima, who died here Saturday night.
Senators Hill and Voorhees, no
longer speak when they pass each
other. The cause is the remarkable
raking over Hill gave VOORHEES, in
ais speech. They speak of each
other to their personal friends in
such endearing terms as "blatant
demagogue" and "traitor," and
each refers sarcasJically to the
others "gall'' in considering him
self Presidential possibility.
VOORHEES, calls Hill a traitor because
in Difference to the almost unani-
nous sentiment of his state he
refused to support the tariff mon
strosity. That refusal is the one
act of Hills since he became a
member of the Senate that was not
taintediwith demagogueism. Hewas
sent to tine Senate to care for the
interests of the state of New York
and for once he did it, although he
had to oppose his own party to do
it. Hill hits the bulls eye when
he calls VOORHEES, a demagogue.
He has never been and never will be
anything else. If any one doubts
this let him read the speech with
which VOORHEES, opened the tariff
debate.
One Democratic Congressman
has provided himself with shelter
from the great political cyclone Of
next Noyember, and many more Of
them would like to do the same.
The man referred to is Barner
Compton, who got into the House
in '92, by the skin Of his teeth, as
the saying goes, from the Fifth
Maryland District, and who was
several days ago nominated by Mr..
Cleveland to be Collector Of the
port of Baltimore. lie knew he
couldn't be reelected so he utilized
his "pulF' to grab a NICE fat federal
office which he could keep until
after the Inauguration of Repub-
lican President in 1897.
1t is charged here that Mr.. Cleve-
land was not only cognizant Of the
corrupt bargain said to have been
made by the frightened free-traders
with the sugar trust, whereby the
trust is to be allowed to fix the
sugar schedule of the tariff bill just
as it wants it in return for helping
the free traders to push the bill
through the Senate, but that he
suggested the making of the bar
gam.
No Washington jury eyer rem
dered a more popular verdict than
that which gave MISS Pollard $15, =
coo as damages in the breach of
promise Of marriage suit she
brought against Representative
Breckenridge of Kyn 1t was, taken
all in all, perhaps the filthiest case
ever tried in the Washington courts,
and il was made worse by the black