Year: 1878

pear in the House" That is to say,
they were too drunk to vote.


The candid reader will observe that
that this harsh criticism comes only
from Democratic sources. Last week,
Just as soon as Congress had reassem-
bled, another strictly partisan measure
was introduced by the Democrats. 1t
was series of resolutions to give a
rowing commission TO all the standing
committees of the House to hunt for
frauds and derelictions IN office, when
ever and wherever the committees
pleased. The committeeman were to
be grand inquisitors, clothed with full
and extraordinary powers. This
scheme failed And an analysis of the
vote shows that it failed because many
Democrats were classed as " absent and
not voting.n Curiously enough, the
Democrats who did not vote on the
Army bill did not, as a rule, vote on
Mr. Fernando Woods resolutions.


Something was necessary to be done,
and, just before Congress adjourned
for the holiday recess, Democratic
caucus was called for the purpose of
considering how the Democracy should
support newspaper organ in Wash
ington, and how Democratic members
should be compelled to vote or pair
with Republicans. When the growl
about Democratic absentees on the vote
on the Army bill was made, the Times
did the Democrats a substantial favor by
publishing a list of gay convivialists
who were classed as "absent or not
voting" This list, we have heard, was
subsequently discussed in the Demo-
cratic caucus, much to the ire of the
derelict members. Nothing came of the
party Indignation, however, and it is
now proposed to adopt a new rule of
classification. Representative Eden, of
Illinois, is appointed Chairman of a
Committee on Pairs, and Democrats
intending to absent themselves for a
day or two are directed to report to him
for those facilities for pairing with Re-
publicans which he is to keep on hand.
The trouble is that Democrats who in
dulge in "cold tea" and other seductive
beverages do not know when they are
likely to be absent until it is too late for
them to report the fact. A Democrat
who affects "cold teal is not likely to
have leave of absence beforehand; he
is drunk before he knows it.


A political variety of the Murphy
movement is proposed for the harder
cases. 1t is suggested that a sort of
blacklist shall be prepared, and that
struggling Democrats who neglect to
pair shall be put into that. In such a
case, those who vote and those who
pair with Republicans would appear as
voting or not voting, while those who
were absent without pairing would be
suitably put into pillory. This ought
to have a salutary effect. But we sub
NIT that it is thankless business, to say
nothing of its novelty, for a Reform
Congress to begin operations by re-
forming, or attempting to reform, its
own members. We who know nothing
of the virtues of the Reform Democracy
except what we read in their admirable
platforms thought that the stern patri.
OTIS who went to Washington with the
watchword: reform is necessary
would fumigate and reorganize politics.
1t is a disappointment to be told, as we
are, that the Reformers cannot even
carry party measure. They were able
to keep sober while they were in Il mi
nority. Is the Democratic majority in
the House literally drunk with power!
N Y Times.