Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-03-06
NATIONAL Interest
Is Being Taken in the Contest OF Hon.
John T. McGraw
AGAINST HON. N. B. SCOTS CLAIM
THAT HE is A SENATOR FROM
WEST VIRGINIA-MR. M'GRAW
WILL LEAVE NO STONE UN-
TURNED, AND WILL MAKE THE
MOST VIGOROUS FIGHT IN THE
UPPER HOUSE OF CONGRESS.

UPPER HOUSE OF CONGRESS.
Special to the Register.
Washington, d. c.. March with
the close OF the Fifty-fifth Congress the
country is commencing to look forward
to the makeup of the Fifty-sixth, and
in this connection the fight of John I.
McGraw, backed by the Democratic
assume national interest. Perhaps
there was no Senatorial election in the
whole country, with the exception OF
the bitter fight still going on in Penn
sylvania, that attracted more interest
than did the McGraw-Scott fight for
the Senatorship of West Virginia; and
now that McGraw is protesting against
the seating of Scott on the ground that
his election was illegal the attention OF
the national legislators who will COM
pose the Fifty-sixth Congress is again
being centered on the West Virginia
Senatorial situation.
Many of those who are not CONVEX
SAINT with the case that McGraW has
made out against Scott and are not
aware of the nature of the protest made
have been inclined to doubt that the
fight would result in the unseating Of
Scott, even if pushed vigorously. They
point to the recent case OF Senator
- x1rhn
was clearly proven case of attempted
bribery, and state that the charges
made by McGraw against the validity of
SCOTS election will be smothered in
the Committee on Privileges and Elec-
lions of the Senate and dropped in a
like manner. But it is right here that
they err. The administration was alb
Nsalutely obliged to purge Hanna, re-
CARELESS of consequences, as the debt
owed by the President to the junior
Senator from Ohio was too great to be
allowed to go unpaid. Moreover there
was no one to press the charges against
Hanna and no one who appeared before
the Senate Committee to substantiate
them and to give additional testimony.
The case of Mr.. Scott, though, is diff
ferent. No one realizes better than Mr..
Eagan, Hanna and SampsonSchley
case are bringing on the administra-
ton. The Democratic gains of last
fall were but a forerunner of the tide
of popular indignation that was then
just commencing to rise throughout
the country against the gross misman-
agement of the war as far as the Off
cial heads of the government were con-
cerned. Undoubtedly Mr.. Mckinley
wants Scott to retain seat in the Sen
ate, if it is possible for him to do so
without hurting his own candidacy in
1900; but when Mr.. Mckinley realizes
the stand the people of West Virginia
are already commencing to assume on
the pretended election of Mr.. Scott to
the United States Senate and the indig-
nation that has been aroused by the
high-handed and unconstitutional pro-
ceedings that took place at Charleston
to promote this election, he will consid-
err a long time before he will attempt
to have repeated in the case of Scott
the methods which have only within
The last week resulted in the white
washing of Hanna.
Moreover the case against Scott will
be pushed and protested vigorously.
McGraw has declared his intention of
leaving no stone unturned in his at
Tempt to keep the United States Sem
ate from seating Scott as the Senator
from West Virginia. Within the past
month he has been in almost daily COM
uunication with the national leaders
of the Democracy at Washington and
during that time has been in Washing
ton a half dozen times giving the case
his personal supervision. During the
coming summer the well-known attor-
neys, John H Holt, Henry NJ Russell
and John BrannOn, of West Virginia,
also Messrs. Wells and Bennett, of the
Congressional Information Bureau, of
this city, will be engaged in searching
the statute books for precedents and in
substantiating the grounds of the pro-
test now before the Senate. In addi-
ton to this a number of the Democrat
ic Senators have promised their hearty
assistance in every way not prescribed
by Senatorial etiquette. Senator NAL
lory of Florida, who is looked upon as
one of the ablest Democrats in the Sen
ate. will have the case more especially
In charge and has promised to look out
for the interests of the West Virginia
Democrats in the struggle.
Senator German, when interviewed
and asked for an opinion regarding the
chances of McGraw's success in the
fight, stated that he had not had time
in the press of business that marked
the closing days of the Fifty-fifth Con-
gress to go into the case in detail.
However, he paid high tribute to Nc
Graw, whom he characterized as a
bright, brainy, young Democrat, and
tntimated that McGraW knew what he
was about in bringing on the contest.
Senator Daniel, of Virginia,
also said that he was going to investi-
gate the case thoroughly and make a
study of the Constitutional grounds
on which the fight will be made. 1t
was the consensus of opinion that the
fight will be one of unusual interest
and one involving the determination
by the Senate of questions of the gray
est import.