The Portland daily press., 1874-07-22
Washington News and Gossip.
A BAD LOT.

The com mssary department has notified the
accounting officers of the Treasury that there
is good reason to believe that what is known
as the Sugg Fort claim for 1900 barrels of -four
said to have been used by the Union forces at
Nashville, is fraudulent, and request has
been made that TIE Treasury will ascertain the
names of all parties concerned in pressing it
and obtain their Indictment The history of
| the claim is this: Mr.. Butler of Tennessee at.
| temple in the House, short time before adj
| journment, to have bill pass directing the
adjudication of this claim. General Coburn of
Indiana objected and stopped 1t. The latter
gentleman then notified the southern claims
commission that he bad reason to believe thai
the claim was fraud, and he commission or
claims notified the different departments
However, by the help of r r. Butler it was
passed aud settled. The warrant paid was
early $4,000. A suit to recover the amount
Will not be instituted, but criminal suits will
be begun against all who were knowingly par
ties to the frauds. 1t is not charged that Mr.
Butler was one of the latter.
THE POSTAL CAR DIFFICULTY.
If President Hinkley of the Philadelphia,
Baltimore and Wilmington Railroad adheres
to his determination to take off the postal cars
on the LIST of August, and the act ng Postmas-
ter General continues to treat the matter as
one not requiring immediate action, mail com
munication between Washington and New York
will be seriously interfered with after that
date. Mr.. Banks, superintendent of the pos
tai car system for carrying the nails has no
tilted the Acting Postmaster General of the
necessity of avoiding the discontinuance of
these cars Cd the line, threatening to discard
hem unless paid more remuneratiye sum.
Acting POStmaSfar- (T General Raprla
probably the company will reconsider the deter
mnatlon 10 discontinue the cars, and that
They Will let matters remain In stdtu quo until
the new Postmaster General has an opportu-
nifty to examine into the n erits of the whole
question and make such decision as he thrk ks
proper: Nothing will be done by the Post
Ofhce Department. until the arrival of Post
master General Jewell. Before the retire
ment OF ex-PoStmaster-General Creswel be
bad arranged for interview with leading
fdiifodd oncfa1s, wfiich interrupted by
bis withdrawal from Office The department
oeins without head. and those administer
be disposed of during Their dd interim appoint
ment, it is more than probable that the Cars
Will be Withdrew, as Mr.. Huxley, in very
recent communications. has notified the de-
partment that he will insist upon the with
drawal of the cars on his road at the time in
dlcated unless his terms are acceded to.
THE SECRET OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES.
The grand jury took some curious testimony
in the matter of the safe burglary Monday.
The identity of the burglar who actually blew
the safe open was established. He was par
doned out of the penitentiary at request of
Colonel Whitley. The pardon was never de-
livered to him, but was held by Sommerville
the New York lawyer, who arrived in Wash
lnSton the day after the arrest of Benson, one
of the burglars, to defend him, and who has
also acted as attorney of the man who blew
open the safe. Sommerville received the arti
Gle as the agent of Whitley. The shrewdness
of this whole operation consists in the fact
that as states prison convict the burglar
could not testify, and while pardon relieved
him from the disability. the pardon was not de-
llvered but is IN such shape that it can be held
over the burglar as an inducement to prevent
him from exposing any one.
SENATORS IN WASHINGTON.
Senator Thurman is still IN the city, aud is
supposed to be engaged in preparing an elab
crate campaign speech to be delivered in Ohio
late in the summer. Senator Sergeant of Cal
ifornia, has been in the city almost continu-
ously since the adjournment. Senator Lewis
OF Virginia, has been here all the time since
the adjournment. He will go next week to his
blooded stock farm in Western Virginia. His
health is much improved. Senator Kelley, of
Oregon, has not yet returned to his constitu-
ents. Senator Hitchcock, Of Nebraska, has
been here for a few days on a flying trip, but
has now returned to Nebraska. He does moi
anticipate much trouble with the Indian, in
his state this sumner. The campaign he
thinks will be animated in Nebraska, as the
legislature that is chosen will have to elect a
successor to Senator Upton.
THE WORKING OF THE NEW CURRENCY LAW
Thus far about 50, 5OO,O 600 bonds have been
withdrawn from the Treasury by the banks,
and all greenbacks received, as yet, remain in
the Treasury, national bank notes having been
issued in thei- place to the new banks While
the formal requests to start new banks amount
to about $500 900, and informal notifications
OF intention TO make request for currency
swell the sum to about $4,0O0,0O0, none of these
new Org anlzatlons have perfected the Treasury
arrangements to receive their currency, and it |
will be some weeks before any considerable
number OF Them can comply with the urgent |
conditions, and un'il this issue begins the new
loan must continue to operate tas measure of
contraction.