The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1910-09-29
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
Some News From The Nations Capitol
interestingly Told.

Washington, Sept. 24.-The sew
enth annual convention Of the Nation
!al Rivers and HarborsCongress, which
will be held in Washington December
II, s, and 8, will undoubtedly be the
most important gathering the organi-
zation has ever held 1t will find the
Executive and Congress in harmoni-
Gus relation upon the great salient
feature of waterway improvements
The attendance is already assured of
the most prominent men in public
life, including the President of the
United States and in all probability
the Ex-President, Col. Theodore
Roosevelt. 1t is now high time that
all commercial and trade bodies in
terested in waterway improvement,
should be making up their list of dele
gates to the National Rivers and
Rarbors Congress. The convention
promises to have an enormous attend
ance, and accommodations for the Wis
itors to the national capitol, will be
in great demand, especially as the
date of the convention will be in the
week of the reassembling of the Fed
eral Congress- Subjects Of vital i'm
portance to this great body of water
way enthusiasts will be discussed the
intention Of the officers and directors
of the Congress being to make the
coming convention more truly rep
resentative of the whole people than
ever before, if such a thing be posi-
IbIe.
The election of Asher G. Kinds,
who was narrowly saved from the
Democratic tidal wave in Maine, will
is generally pleasing 20 old members
of the House of both parties. I'm
questionably a man of ability, in the
extremely responsible position of
clerk at the speaker table, Mr.. Kinds
while displaying rare and accurate
knowledge Of parliamentary law and
practice, showed he was fair-spiri-
ed man and never led the speaker Or
presiding officer for the time into er-
ror. Democrats generally spoke of
him as very decent fellow" That
he will be a useful representative both
parties freely admit.
When Caleb Powers, nominated for
Congress by the Republicans Of the
Eleventh Kentucky district, takes his
seat in the House, his district being
overwhelmingly Republican, he will
not be the only man in high public
position in Washington who has been
in Jail for alleged crimes. Powers,
as is we'll known, was for years in
prison charged with completely in the
murder Of Governor Goebel, and later
pardoned by Governor Wilson. JUS
tice Horace H. Lurton, of Tennessee,
was imprisoned at Columbus, Ohio,
during the Civil war He was one of
Gen. John H. Morgan's raiders,
with whom he was captured on their
rash venture into Indiana and Ohio.
General George w. Gorden, represen-
tative from the tenth Tennessee dis
trict and commander Of the United
veterans Association, spent some time
in northen prison after his capture
at the battle of Franklin, where, lead
ing his brigade in a charge on the I'm
ion breastWorks, his horse carried him
far in advance of his men and into
the arms of a merciful enemy, who
might have slain him, but tspared him
for a rest from his impetuosity in a
secure northern prison. Congress
man Richardson, of the eighth Alaba-
ma district, was in 1868, confeder-
ate prisoner in a Murfreesboro, Ten
nessee, Jail under sentence to hang as
a spy. He says he would doubtless
have met such fate, but for the fact
that General Forrest surprised the
Federals and rescued him. So there
will be two members of the next
house who have had to suffer the
agony of sentence to death, when Ca
| leb Powers takes his seat.
Nominations for the Congress are
now proceeding rapidly. The Demo
Gratis appear to be earliest in the field,
having nominated about three-fourth
of 391, the present size Of the House,
while the Republicans have nomi-
mated about 55 per cent Of their
candidates. New York, with 81
members of the House, is as usual
last to make nominations.
Harmony for Dress.