Year: 1879

ought to hold seat on the floor in the procur-
ing of which any money had been used. He
explained. in answer to question, that the
bill did not intend to apply and did not apply
to pensioners of the government, but did ap-
ply to all the great contractors with
the government who had been assessed
for the past fifteen years. The gentleman
must have done himself great injustice when
he talked about interference with something
that he wanted to do. Though he (McLane) had
never given the slightest consideration to pro-
fessions of political reotitude and morality,
yet this was the first time he had ever heard
man glorying in his own shame and infsmy.
(Applause on the Democratic side). Never be-
fore had he hear1 either Republican or Dem
ocrat stand up and avow himself the champion
aud defender of political corruption and vice.
On the contrary he had never known q man SO
bad, SO politically corrupt, that he did not
want to wash his skirts clear Of such political
corruption. The gentleman was blinded by
his own partisanship and passion. and was like
q mad bull when q red flag was Haunted in his
face. When that gentleman said that he saw
nothing on the Democratic side but corruption
that is all there is'') he did his people great
injustice. When the gentleman supposed his
constituents would wallow in the fraud and
corruption that he was willing. to wallow in, he
was very much mistaken. No man in Michigan
in his senses would indorse the continent that
office holders should be made to contribute for
political purposes.


He then branched off from the consideration
of the bill and proceeded to draw picture of
Louis Napoleon holding in one hand the
church, in the other the state, and utterly in
different of civil rights, stolid, apathetic, in
different, reckless. inscriptions and careless
of human life, careless of every moral princi-
write 'horse" under that picture when applied
to American politics? Did not everybody
recognize the American President who had
been and who, if the honorable gentlemen on
tho other side could have their way would be
again? (Cries of ''He will be- and applause


Mr.: McLane-Will oe7 For shame. then, to
you, if he is. and not only shame to you, but
t.. this country.


Continuing, he paid homa-e to the military
record of Gen. Grant, but said that never be-
fore the time of Gen. Grant had he known of
a President sitting in the White House who
had at his side a corrupt, confessedly corrupt
minister, and who had on the occasion of that
minister's resignation accepted the resignation
with regret.


Mr. Hayes l.)-Was the gentleman asleep
when Buchanan, Floyd. Cobb and Thompson
were in?


Mr.. McLane-1 wonder at1gentlemen making
such lame excuse. What has Buchanan,
Floyd or Thompson to do with Grant


Mr.. Hayes-You said you never knew so
corrupt President.


McLane-You cannot go TO the country with
any such excuse. You cannot talk about Bu-
chanan, Floyd and Thompson. In the first
place Floyd and Thompson Indignantly denied
the charges made against them and deied your
Investigations while on the other hand the
guilt was confessed, and when not confessed
was absolutely proven, and you are indebted to
my forbearance that do not extend my pic
ture. (Shouts of go only


Mr.. McLane-I say in all candor you are in
debted to my forbearance If I stop at the secre-
tary OF war, because you know as we'll as do
that it did not lie in the mouths of any of his
associates to call that kettle black. Continu-
ing, he reproached the Republican party with
fostering corruption and vice. The issue was
before the country and the issue was the
bill. He was persuaded that it was no other
motive but a corrupt political motive which
deferred gentlemen on the other side from con-
sideriDg the bill.


MIR. Conger-That is an infamous assertion
from the gentleman, and I say it to him here
in my place. "a great deal of noise and con-
fusion ensued.


Messrs. Hawley and Manning demanded that
the language of McLane and Conger should be
taken down as unparliamentary. The e-words
were written by the official reporter and read
by the clerk, and the Speaker having decided
that the language did not apply personally to
any member in his representative capacity, Mr..
McLane was permitted to proceed with his
speech in favor of the bill.


MIR. Butterworth asked McLane if he would
favor an amendment extending the bill to
under State and municipal gov



MIR. McLane said he would not because that
would be beyond the constitutional power Of
Congress- He would extend the principle a.
far as possible and he doubted not that tho
principle being once established State govern
ments would act in the same direction.


The discussion was closed ~ demand for
the regular order of business and the bill went
over till the morning hour tomorrow. l}


JURIEs.


The House then took up as unfinished bust.
ness the Senate bill in relation to juries. Mr..
Herbert. who has charge of the bill, tried to get
the Republican side of the House to agree
upon plan of disposing OF the bill, but was
met by the objection that as the principle of
the bill was embodied in the judicial appro-
priation bill, no action could be taken until
that bill was finally disposed of. Thereupon
Mr.. Herbert moved the previous question on
passage of the bill, and the Republicans re-
sorted to their favorite strategy Of declining
to vote and SO leaving the House technically
without quorum. After various roll calls
further proceedings for the call of the House
were dispensed with.


CONFERENCE.


A conference committee consisting of At
kins, Blount and Baker, was appointed on the
legislative appropriation bill. Another at
tempt to have action taken on the bill in Iela-
tion to juries was made and again resisted, and
after about two hours spent in the struggle it
was abandoned by some Democrats and the
House adjourned.