Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-15
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN THE STAR


members Of the democratic party in Con-
sress on the eve of con-
racine vening in 1857 the caucus
Caucus Of the majority held the
Saturday night previous to
assembling was wholly peaceful. In The
Star Of December is the following:
Nearly a thousand democratic poll
ticians of all degrees, embracing persons
from probably every state and territory,
congregated Saturday evening in and
around the rotunda and approaches to
the House hail. drawn by interest in the
action of the caucus. A very large pro-
portion of them were themselves candi-
dates for places in the gift of the elective,
or immediate friends of the elective or
Of the class named above. Intense ex-
element pervaded the throng, though
most commendable good humor was
manifested on ali sides. AS the announce
ment of succeeding action and voting was
made, the countenances Of the crowd
changed according to the manner in
which the interests and hopes OF indl-
viduals were affected. On the whole the
behavior of this remarkable congregation
OF politicians embraced an earnest of
democratic fellowship in time to come,
full OF promise OF good fruit. yesterday
the disappointed were in the best possible
humor, while those who had won the
night before were, take them all in all,
the happiest fellows imaginable. AS for
the nominee for doorkeeper Mr., Hack
ney, who really deserves his good for
tune If but as a reward for his in
domitable perseverance, it was more sat
isfactory than a capital oyster supper to
look on his jolly phiz-three inches
Shorter than at any previous time in the
last year or two, tor in his case a nomi-
nation is equivalent to an election
y
President Buchanan sent his first an
nual message to Congress on Tuesday. 1t
was an unusually i'm
Fres1oents portant document, four
MESSAGE subjects of vital conse-
quence being discussed. the
financial situation, the Kansas question,
the Mormon problem and the relations
with Central America The arrange
ments for distributing the message to the
press in advance were far from satisfac-
tory. In The Star of December 8, 1857, is
the following explanation:
On five or six of the city routes of The
Star we were unable to get the message
in the hands of our carriers last night in
time to have them served until this morn
ing. This was more provoking to us than
to our subscribers thus disappointed.
According to necessary custom the
document before Its delivery to Congress
Is conided to single printing office only
-that OF the Union. AS 1t was opened
after l pm, and we were compelled to
go to press at pm, no time was af-
forded us to get 1t In type in The Star
office for delivery yesterday. We were
consequently compelled either to disap-
point all our subscribers for the day or
purchase 1t for them in the only form In
which we could obtain tin the shape Of
an extra Union-and to receive 1t only
as that office could furnish It, We served
four-hfths of our city subscribers with it
IN due time yesterday. and greatly regret
that we could not obtain copies fast
enough to supply the balance until this
morning"
Some other newspapers declined to look
SO philosophically upon their failure to be
served with the message in season,
notably the Baltimore Clipper which did
not get its copy until the morning after
the submission of the document to Con-
gress, "Whereupon, The Star says, the
Clipper grew wrathy and denounced the
President in its issue today as a petty
scoundrel.'
4
For some reason the congressional eau
Gus did not effect a choice Of House chap
lain in those days in conse-
House quence of which omission
Chan1ain the matter was relegated to
the whole body, with the
result set forth In the following editorial
in The Star of December II. 1857:
For the Lord knows how many years
past no Congress has organized without
a sort of legislative squabbe over the
question of electing a chaplain to the
House, which in it's invariable features
exhibits the tendency of men In our land
to differ as wide apart as the poles upon
all things theological One cannot listen
to chaplaincy debate without concluding
that there are nearly as many sects or
shades of religious opinion in the United
States as there are honorable members
in the hall. Some are for prayers every
by single clergyman of a particular
church, others for prayers by clergymen.
in turn, of all denominations. Some for
paying one, some for paying all: and
many again for paying none for clerical
services out of the public treasury. On
the whole, the subject, at the north es-
pecially. is 'bunkum' question. In some
portions of the country-in New England
particularly-the c.ergy are politically
united for the most part, and thou ands
of them would combine, at the drop of a
hat, to smash up the prospects of any
public man who might strike at the cloth
in legislation. In other quarters of the
north and west there exists much ami
mostly against any paid employment Of
preachers by the general government
among men, especially, who carry their
religion into politics. Hence much of the
diversity of congressional opinion on this
subject. We witness the now annual
squabble about the House chaplaincy with
regret, because it not only embraces a
waste of valuable legislative time, but it
goes to show that there is more of passion
and prejudice at the bottom of the diff
ferences in popular opinion on the SUBJ
ject than of vital religion
President Buchanan warned Congress
in his message that he proposed to scruti-
nize every measure pre-
w ora OF sented to him for sigma
gWarnine. ture and would refuse to
sign any under the pressure
of session adjournment. Apropos of this
The Star December IL, 1857, remarked:
More than half Of all the reprehensible
financial legislation of Congress. as we
have repeatedly shown in the last four
years, occurs during the last two days
and nights of each succeeding session,
when. laboring amid a bedlamish up
roar, upon the high pressure system, with
a full head of legislative steam on, not
one in three knows the precise bearing of
the votes given on anything. Fortunately
the President has taken up the subject
in the message and in a few brief SEN
fences has exposed to Congress and the
country the grievous results of that sys-
tenn of transacting the public business.
1t costs the treasury many millions of
money annually, which Is worse than