Democratic Sentinel, Volume 5, Number 30, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 September 1881 — Butler and Terrapin. [ARTICLE]

Butler and Terrapin.

During Hayes’ administration, Butler, Blaine and Evarts sat together in friendly confab at a dinner company. Secretary Evarts—a high liver—smacked his lips over the terrapin stew, and, turning to Butler, asked: “ General, how much would it cost a year to have terrapin for dinner every day ? ” An estimate was made. ‘ ‘ But, General, I cannot afford so expensive a luxury, and yet I would exceedingly like to treat myself and my friends to this delicacy daily. You, who are so experienced in framing bills and engineering them through Congress, can you not smuggle through an appropriation providing the Secretary of State with funds sufficient to supply his larder with this delicious viand?” “The terrapin is a slow animal, is it not, Mr. Secretary ? ” “ Yes, General, proverbially slow.” “Well,” said Butler, musingly, “I think we might introduce and pass such a provision under the head of stationery.”—Hayes' Administration Archives. A foreion journal mentions the case of a lady suffering with cramps in the stomach, and to whom something less than a drop of a 1 per cent, alcoholic solution of nitro-glycerine was given, In two minutes the pulse fell from 140 to fifty, a clammy sweat covered the patient’s features, and she became senseless. Stimulants to the nose and brandy were quickly given, and in about three minutes more she began to recover—the pain was completely gone, and did not return all that night or the following day. The patient said she felt like two persons, and so strong was this impression that, though perfectly rational in her conversation and unexcited in her manner, Bhe could not shake it off. The London Daily News says that Americans will p a y $6 per pint for a wine which English laborers wouldn’t (brink at a shilling a bottle.

Republicans Advocating Repudiation* The Republicans’ bargain with Mahone, made last March, gave them control of the committees of the Senate. In return for his aid, Mahone was allowed to name the candidates for Secretary and Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate, in order that he might control the patronage attaching to these offices. An attempt was made to covet tip this disgraceful alliance by the pretence that Mahone, the repudiator, was leading a liberal movement in Virginia; Influenced by this example* and by the efforts of officeholders asserting that they spoke for the administration, the Republican Convention at Lynchburg surrendered to Mahone and adopted his candidates. The first joint discussion between Mr. Cameron, candidate of the coalition, and Mr. Daniel, candidate of the Democrats, for Governor, took place at Harrisonburg last Monday. The Baltimore Sun reports Mr. Cameron’s words as follows: He and his party were before the people as advocates of the financial measure known as the Riddleberger bill, passed by the last Legislature, and vetoed by the Democratic Governor, Gen. Holliday. He claimed great credit for the Readjustee in defeating the provisions of the bill known as the McCulloch bill, for paying the debt by agreement with the creditors, when brought before the people in the Legislative canvass of 1879. His estimate of the public debt of the State was based upon the figures published some time since in tho Richmond Whig, which fixed the sum upon which the party was willing to pay 8 per cent, at $19,400,000. When Mr. Cameron was editor of the Petersburg Index-Appeal he put the amount of the debt at $50,000,000, and said that, in order to pay it, he would ‘ ‘ take the last pound of flesh, the last drop of blood.” On the same day Mr. Blair, candidate of the coalition for Attorney General, spoke at Fairfax Court House. He said that he was a Democrat, but “not that kind of a Democrat that made him a Fuude- -that is, a debt-payer.” This is the same Blair who, after the passage of the P ddleberger bill, wrote in a public letter as follows : Having achieved a great triumph in the State on our viewof the debt issue, I now favor a vigorous application of the readjustment principles to the national debt In other words, he wanted to strike off about $800,000,000 of the national debt by applying to it the Riddleberger scaling process. When Mahone started the Readjuster movement in 1879, to revenge himself upon the Democracy for refusing to make him Governor, he made an elaborate speech in Richmond. The following extract has interest now : I would use my best endeavors to secure a vote of the people sanctioning a settlement at 3 per cent., for forty-five years, on tho basis of $32,977,090.02. He was particular even to the cents. Well, a Readjuster Legislature was elected, and made him a United States Senator. It passed the Riddleberger bill, which proposed to steal from the creditors of the State one-third of the debt acknowledged by Mahone. Concerning that scheme, we are glad to have had the opinion of our esteemed contemporary, the Times, on the 4th of March, 1880, after the bill bad passed the Legislature : The time between Saturday and Monday was used to the best advantage by the leading lteadjusters, and on the latter day, much to the surprise of those who, from their success on Saturday, had predicted the complete triumph of the debt-payers, the Repudiaton bill was passed by the aid of the colored members. By the provisions of the measure in question, the principal of the debt is reduced to $20,000,000, and tlie interest to 3 per cent. Further than this, it is provided that the bonds shall be taxed, that the interest coupons shall not be receivable for State taxes, and, worst of all, that the sinking fund, established under the constitution for the ultimato payment and extinguishment of the debt, shall bo abolished. In other words, the bill repudiates nearly onehalf of the just and legally contracted debt of Virginia, and makes no provision for the payment of that portion of it which remains. The only hope of the bondholders is that the Governor will veto the bill. That he will be lirave enough to do so, thereby inclining the lasting hostility of the Readjusters, there is, it is feared, some reason to doubt. The present Democratic Governor, Gen. Holliday, vetoed this repudiation bill, but he got no thanks for that act from the professed friends of the creditors. Mr. Cameron publicly proclaims that this plundering project is the vital issue of the campaign; and the Republican party sustains him, and respectable Republican journals advocate his election.