The Portland daily press., 1874-05-01
Washington News and Gossip.


WIIuOOI fhEC6DENIs
There was little in either house Wednesday
outside of the routine business. On the Indian
appropriation bill Speaker Blaine called Mr..
Rainey from South Carolina to the chair in
Committee of the Whole. This is the first
time in the history of the government that
coored man has occupied the Speakers chair
in the House of Representatives. With col
cred man in the chair number of white MEM
bers on the floor were speaking in favor of
civil rights for Indians.
DAMAGING EVIDENCE AGAINST THE AMERICAN
BANK NOTE COMPANY.
The banking and currency committee We'd
nesday, in taking testimony in regard to the
bank note companies which do printing for the
Treasury, had placed in their possession copies
of letters addressed by the American Bank
Note Company of New York to the secretary
of the rebel treasury in 1861, offering 60 print
currency for the Confederacy and proposing
means Of communication Tonight the agents
OF the company thus implicated have succeeded
in obtaining these letters and keeping them
from the press,
MYSTERY EXPLAINED.
The special of the Boston Journal of Thurs
day evening says that the morning papers con-
toin singular business card. 1t is the an
uOuuCcIucDu VI Iuo uiooOlutOu VI buc VI
Alexander r. Shepherd & Co., by the retire
ment of Wm G. Moore, one of the four part
ners. This card explains the gre at mystery OF
the two days secret session of the District In
vestlgating Committee.
The evidence bias not been made public, but
it is known that the testimony taken daring
these two days pointed to she fact that Moore
received part of the money which Chittecden
gave Kirkland. Moore was himself examined
last night. The examination showed that
Moore did receive the money, but it did net in
dictate that Shepherd knew of the fact, or re-
ceived any Of the money. Friends of Shep
herd, and Shepherd himself declare that
Moore's action is infamous, aud that Shepherd
had no knowledge OF it, and that had Shop
herd received bride from De Golger and Nc
Cleland, he would not have cancel lied their
contract wheh less than half completed Moore
was Andrew Johnson's Private Secretary, and
there were curious stories current concerning
hrm in impeachment days. 1t does not yet APP
pear whether this new evidence impeaches
Chittenden's testimony, or whether Chittenden
was really deluded by Kirkland The sum
which went to Moore is very large The DISCO
luton followed directly upon knowledge Of the
fact of Moore's completely.
BASE BALL RULEs-The New York Herald
says:-The professionals and amateurs play
uuuer u Htreuu rules, tnOSo governing the for
mer class having been materially altered at the
meeting Ut the professional association held in
Boston last month. Not that any alienation
whatever was needed or wanted, but simply
because some people have an insane desire to
make change year after year, that they may
keep their names constantly before the base ball
public The latest and most absurd amend
ment to the rules is the one requiring the UNI
pire to call all balls sent in by the pitcher which
are not over the base as ''wdes,'' instead of
calling them "balls,'' as heretofore The intel
lect1al luminary who fathers this rule is the
same who, only year ago, had one passed re-
quiring an umpire 10 "calf' every ball-saye
the first one pitched-that the pitcher might
send in little too low or a little high,
or a little to one side or the other
of the base. This rule was exceedingly alb
surd, and had it been carried out to the letter.
would have ruined the game, for it gave the
pitcher no latitude whatever No man, how
ever proficient as a pitcher, can put the ball
just in the right spot every time, and he should
therefore, be allowed to deliver at least two
balls without subjecting himself to the penalty
of having them called and the striker given
his base. But, as though the object were to
fly from one extreme to anot her, both of them
nonsensical and absurd, rule is now adopted
restricting the umpire to "caling" every third
ball pitched over the plate, but not at the
proper height, and requiring him to call each
ball a wide" that goes outside or inside the
home base, so that, while last season man
could be given a base on four balls pitched, this
year the pitcher can deliver at least twelve
balls before base can be given. An effort
was made to have the amateur association in
dorse and adopt this rule, bnt they would have
no more to do with it than with the ten men
dodge 1904