The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1877-04-21
Our Washington Letter.
ChaInberIain's address-LOIEis-
lama COnmissiOn-2De efficiency
i'm the Naval Appropriation.

SO 6XnauSGlVely canVaSSeu LHdt every
one was supposed to have had their
fill. 1t was also thought that any
thing additional from either of the
contestants would fall upon satiated
public without eliciting any marked
attention; but the last letter of Gov
erhor Chamberlain, addressed more
particularly to his immediate follow
ers, and comprehensively renewing in
the most pointed and forcible way the
political history of that State for the
past few years has re-awakened the
tagging interest of the public and
profoundedly stirred the political cir
cles of the National Capital. Its
pathos seems to have struck q respon-
sive cord in the great popular heart
that will sooner or later manifest it
self in all unmistakable manner.
No effort can wholly conceal the
disappointment and discouragement
that followed the unpromising report
from the Commission now endeayoring
to effect an adjustment of Louisiana
affairs. Itappears from what is known
of the uncompromising attitude of the
Nichols party i'll that State that no
plan short of absolute surrender will
be willingly entertained, and the anx-
iety over the situation increases every
hour. 1t does not seem probable that
any agreement will be reached by the
consent of the two parties, and ulti-
mately the national authorities will
probably have to take the response
bility of deciding between the con-
testants.
Secretary Sherman has ordered a
strict compliance with the supple
mentary act of Congress of July 2,
1876, which explicitly authorizes the
Secretary to issue silver coin at any
time in the Treasury to an amount
not exceeding 1000, 600 in exchange
for all equal amount of legal tender
notes, - to be kept as special fund
and only to be re-issued upon the re-
tirement and destruction of like
sum of fractional currency" By this
act it was hoped to provide against
the scarcity of small change. AS seen
by the above quotation from the act,
it was required that The legal tenders
received by this exchange should " be
kept as a. special fund )" but it ap-
pears they have not been SO kept, but
have gone into the Treasury balances
and been used to meet current obli-
cations. The money sharks, "curb-
stone brokers'" who have in the past
accumulated handsome fortunes by
loaning money to needy clerks at 10
per cent. per month, are much gratitied
by a late order of Secretary Sherman,
prohibiting the semi-monthly payment
of salaries, adopted several years ago
for the very purpose of battling these
constituencies Shylocks. 1t is sup
posed the order was issued in antici-
patton of another heavy reduction OF
| force
1t appears that the Democratic
House insisted upon Il reduction of
SO, 600, 900 from the estimates of the
Navy Department, and as a result
Secretary Thompson finds himself al
most without funds wherewith to pay
the Navy, three months before the
expiration of the fiscal year and as
there is strict law against antici-
| pating the passage of appropriation
bills, much suffering will be unayoid-
able among officers aud men of the
Navy. 1t should not be forgotten
that this reduction was piece oi
sheer demagoguery, obviously made
for its result on the pending Presi-
Dental election. In this connection
it may not be amiss to say that the
reports sent from this city, charging
Mr.. Hanscom, Chief of Bureau of Con
struction and Repair, with willfu
neglect in transmitting an important
order, and that his dismissal had beer
determined on iii consequence, lool
very much like q malicious fabrica
ton, invented to damage deserving
officer.
Something of u sensation has beef
created here by the reported discov
cry of gigantic frands on the part o
large importers of foreign goods, b,