LIVELY WHILE IT LASTED.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1265, 28 May 1896, Page 10

LIVELY WHILE IT LASTED.

A DISGRACEFUL SCENE IN THE U.S. CONGRESS. Washington, April 23, IS9G. Ono of the most disgraceful personal en- ’ counters in the history of Congress occurred in the room of the House Committee on Naval Affairs to-day between Representative Hail, of Missouri, and Representative Money, of Mississippi. These two gentlemen are members of the Committee on Naval Affairs. They were engaged in a discussion oi tho question of reorganising the personnel of t lio navy, and when they had completed their debate the walls, furniture and carpets of the room were bespattered with blood and ink, and Dir Money was in the hands ol a doctor, who was dressing a severe cut on the side of his head, while Mr Hall looked as it he had dipped his head into an ink barrel. The affair created intense excitement in tho Capitol. Both men have reputations as fighters, both are hot tempered, and the fear was general that their next meeting might bo fatal to one or both of them, though the fact that the entire affair arose from a misunderstanding gave reason for the hope that it might be so explained as to lead to a reconciliation.

Some of tho first stories of the row circulated were very much aggravated. It was said that not only had Mr Money's scalp been cut by a sponge cup thrown at him by Mr Hall, but that in a grapple which followed Mr Money’s hand and arm had been cut and his clothing slashed into strips by a knife which Mr Hall drew. The men wore not equally matched, Mr Hall being physically much the superior. A sub-committee of tho Naval Committee had been considering the subject of personnel legislation for some time, Mr Hall used some rather vigorous language regarding the writer of a circular, and Mr Money thought Mr Hall’s remarks applied to him, and he promptly denounced Mr Hall as a “ damned liar.” Mr Hall retorted that no man could call him a liar, and, springing to his feet, he grabbed a heavy glass inkstand from the table and hurled it at Mr Money, who had also risen. This missile did not take effect, but struck tho wall behind Air Money, and spattered ink all about the room. Air Money, who had hacked along the table toward the door, picked up an inkstand and threw it at Air Hall. His aim was also bad. He did Air Hall no damage beyond spattering some ink over him, but a couple of tho spectators had narrow escapes. Air Wilson, who was just rising from his chair to try to separate "the combatants, escaped being hit in the head by hastily ducking almost under tho table, while the chair from which Commodore Phythian had risen was almost wrecked by tho heavy inkstand. Then Air Hall fired his second shot, which was a heavy glass sponge cup. This was the missile which did the damago to Mr Money'. It struck him on the side of the head, just above and back of the ear, with such force that tho glass was shattered. Air Aloncy was stunned by' the blow, but quickly recovered. lie continued on his way around tho table toward Air Hall, while the blood, which flowed from his wounded head, besmeared his face and hands and ran down over his coat. GRAPPLED,BUT SEPARATED. Air Hall, on his sido of the table, was also advancing, and the two men met at the end of tho table, by the door of the room. Here they grappled with each other, but before they had time to do any damage Representative Myor sprang between them. Clerk Bartlett, of tho Naval Committee ; Air Wilson and Commodore Phythian caught Mr Hall, while “ Tom ” Coakley, a messenger, and Felix AlcClosky, who had been in tho corridor and wero attracted by the noise, ran in and held Mr Money. The men were separated, and Air Hall was led toward the other end of tho room. Mr Aloncy broko away from those who hold him, and drew a small pocket knife, which ho opened. Air Hall also drew a knife, and they again throw themselves together. They were not given an opportunity to use their knives, however, for Air Coakley and some of the others picked Mr Aloney up and carried him from the room. He was taken down stairs, leaving a trail of blood as he walked to the room of the Committee on Accounts, where his wounded head was dressed by Dr Bainc, a physician living near the Capitol. From there he was taken to his rooms in tho Metropolitan Hotol. WRECKED THE COMMITTEE-ROOM. The fight was all over in a few seconds after the first hot words wore passed, but the room looked as if a whirlwind had struck it. Chairs wero overturned. Papers wero scattered all over the floor. Pieces of glass wero ground into the carpet. Ink was everywhere —on the walls, on the looking-glass, on the chairs and carpet, and spattered over the papers and books on the table. At the end of the table, where the two men had grappled, and just outside the door, whore Air Money was taken, there are splashes and small pools of blood. In the excitement of the moment the ideas of the participants and those who witnessed the fight were not very clear as to just what had happened. Some of them thought they saw a dozen inkstands in the air all at once, while the pocket knives which the men drew were magnified into daggers and dirks of formidable dimensions. As soon as his enemy was carried off the field Air Hall calmly washed the ink irom his hands and head, and a few moments later went on the floor of tho House and took his seat as if something extraordinary had not happened. Alter a force of labourers had put tho com-mittee-room in order and wuslio 1 up the blood and ink-tains tho sub committee heard arguments from Engineer-in-C’hief Melville, Surgeon-General Tr.yon and Assistant Pay-master-General Carpenter in regard to tlmir several corps. Air Hall was present during this Inuring, but Mr Aloney remained in his hotel. MANY OTHER ROWS. When Governor “ Extra JJidy ” Smith was a member ot Congress in 18.5.5 he took umbrage at certain criticisms in an evening paper of Washington. Don las Wulneti was its editor, and Smith undertook to chastise him. They were robing on the ground pummelling each other vigorously when separated. Galusha Grow, of Pennsylvania, now a member of the House, had an altercation on the floor with Air Keith, oi South Carolina, in 1858, and they wero about to attack each other when friends interposed and prevented further trouble. Mr Barsdale, of Mississippi, was also engaged in a row, but suffered nothing worse than the loss of his wig. It is said that an assault made by Albert Rust, of Arkansas, on Horace Greeloy in the

Capitol grounds, in 1859, was the cause of Rust’s defeat when a candidate for re-elec-tion.

The late William E. English, of Indiana, fought on the floor with Air Montgomery, of Pennsylvania, in the latter part of 1859. A blow given James R. Clay, of Kentucky, by General Cullom, of Tennessee, on the floor nearly resulted in a duel. This was in the fifties. i The cruel assault of Preston F. Brooks on I Charles Sumner in the Senate Chamber is I well known. Out of this attack grow a [ quarrel between Air Potter and Air Pryor, both members of Congress. Air Burlingame had challenged Pryor, but they could not agree upon a place of meeting in the United States. Finally Burlingame proposed to fight in Canada, and when this was declined Air Potter, an lowa Representative, offered to meet Pryor with bowic knives, without the assistance of seconds. This also was not accepted, on the ground that it was contrary to the code, and the affair ended. There have been several fights on the floor of tho House in recent years. In tho Fiftysecond Congress, Air Wilson, of Washington, now a Senator, and Air Beckwith, of Now Jersey, passed the lie in a debate and sprang at each other. Air Lehlbach, of New Jersey, jumped between them and received tho blows each of the warring members had intended for tho other. William C. P. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, and Air Heard, of Missouri, had a row during the last Congress. Air Heard declined to yield tho floor to Air Breckinridge, who called Heard a “puppy” and was trying to strike him when seized bv bystanders.