You get on the right side of his wife.

Is it an appropriation?
You'd go 'straight to the Committee, or to the Interior office, I suppose?
You'd learn better than that.

It takes a woman to get any thing through the Land Office: I tell you, Miss Laura would fascinate an appropriation right through the Senate and the House of Representatives in one session, if she was in Washington, as your friend, Colonel, of course as your friend." "Would you have her sign our petition ?" asked the Colonel, innocently.
Harry laughed.

"Women don't get anything by petitioning Congress; nobody does, that's for form.

Petitions are referred somewhere, and that's the last of them; you can't refer a handsome woman so easily, when she is present.