The Portland daily press., 1873-03-10
Washington Matters.
INTERESTING TO THE MERCANTILE CoMhU-
NIFTY. .ta.t

INTERESTING TO THE MERcANTlLE coMho-
NIFTY. .ta.t
The most important bill to the mercantile
community passed at the recent session of
CONGRESS is one to establish the value of the
sovereign or pound sterling OF Great Britain,
and 10 fix the par of exchange, which was
read the second time and considered as in
committee of the Whole. The first section
provides that the value of foreign coin as ex-
pressed in the money accounts of the United
State shall be that of the pure metal of such
coin OF standard value, and the values of the
standard Coins in Gil culation of the various
nations of the world shall be estimated annu-
ally by the director of the mint and be pro-
claimed on the first of January by the Secre-
tar of the Treasury.
The second section provides that in all pay
ments by or to the Treasury. whether made
here or in foreign countries. when it becomes
necessary to compute the value of sovereign
or pound sterling, it shall be deemed equal to
1864 mills, and the same rule shall be applied
in apprasing merchandise imported where
the value is by the invoice in sovereign or
pound sterling, and in the construction of
contracts payable in sovereigns or pounds
sterling, and this valuation shall be the par of
exchange between Great Britain and the
United States, and all contracts made after
the 1st of January, 1874, based on an assum-
ed par of e2 change with Great Britain of If
| ty-four pence to the dollar, or IA 4-9 to the
| sovereign or pound sterling, shall be null and
| void.
| This will force merchants and stock brokers
| to adopt the new par of exchange in place OF
that now used, which places our bonds al
such disadvantage in the stock lists.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
le--1hcse who are opposed to the civil service
rules have construed the reference to civil
| service in the inaugural address to indicate
an Intention on the part of the administra-
| ton to recede from the recommendations of
the Civil Service Commission. The members
| of the Commission confidently assert that not
only the spirit out the form of civil service is
to be maintained, and that the system is to
be extended as rapidly as the Board shall be
able to adopt the principle to other branches
| of the public service, 1t is understood, how
ever, that some of the absurd rules and ride
| ulous questions which have done so much to
| bring the system of civil service into dsre-
| pute are to be modified,
THE LOBBYIST S SUIT AGAINST THE SPEAKER
Speaker Blaine has been served with an
official notice of the suit of Joseph b. Stew
art, ex-contumacous witness, against him for
one hundred thousand dollars damages for
false Imprisonment. Attorney General Will
liams win defend Mr.. Blaine, and the case,
for the final decision of the legal principles
involved, will ultimately go to the Supreme
Court of the United States. Stewart has Sc
cured as counsel three of the ablest and most
expensive lawyers of the city, evidently not
expecting to net the entire amount of his
damages out of the operation. II is stated
| by those who ought to know that, as a mat
| ter of fact Stewart never held any-of the
| bonds for which the committee were search
l. ipu md fhoti If no had eli sold cax
have escaped further trouble and an oppor-
| tunitv for martyrdomE q --.