The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-06-17
ORR WASHINGTON LETTER.
tFrom our Regular Correspondent


ning through several weeks and furn-
ching some rather peculiar incidents,
tbe Army bill got through the Sen
ate with a compulsory retirement
clause attached requiring all officers
70 Re retired at the age of GA years. |
No exception is made in behalf of |
the General or Lieutenant General, |
though there was an amusing con-
test between those who wished to !
except the former and those who de-
sired the latter omitted from the op-
Grafton of the bill. The friends of
General Sherman, or those most ac-
tive in the endeavor to except him
| from retirement, were not willing to
tale General Sheridan into partner
ship in the matter, and so the tw
Interests manpuvered at cross pur-
p0es all through the tendency of
TIL measure. 1t was easy enough to
pas an amendment excepting Gen.
Shrman and then on top of it one
infaYor of Lieutenant General Sher-
ion, but when the clause came up
asa whole those who voted for the
amendment would come forward
ara kin both rather than allow it to
pass in that shape.
Senator Williams, who Is not
young man, but who said he felt as
though he had 800 years of solid
fighting in him yet," thought if there
was to be any looping off it had bet
ter be done at the other end of the
line by cutting off the young men.
This appeared to be distasteful to the
gallery, which was filled with a part
of that idle horde of army officers
who lounge around Washington and
dance the german. So, also, was his
ridicule of the army, which had al
most as many officers as men-so
many officers, in fact, that nothing
could be found for them to do. "Let
them go to plowing," suggested Sen
ator Farley, glancing up at the gal
lery. Quite a dramatic scene occur
red just before the bill passed, while
Senator Logan was on the floor.
Quartermaster General Ingalls,, who,
during General Grants term was We
hement for compulsory retirement,
and who is now equally vehement
against it, occupied seat in the gall
lery. The piercing eye of the Hi
nois Senator detected General In
gals, and looking full at him, he ele-
waited his voice and said that two
years ago an officer had come to him
and insisted that compulsory retire
ment bill should be passed. Since
then, he said, that officers superior
officer has been retired, and he has
been promoted to his place, and "if
there are half a dozen Senators in
tins cnauIuoL VINO. nave not had
somebody come to them from him to
insist that this bill should not pass l
fail to know who they are" The
man who had worked so hard to sue
coed General Meigs slid out in hur-
ry. General Logan is a cordial hater
of shams, and is always found on the
common sense side of every question
the peoples side.
Few people realize what an inn
mense institution the y. S. Patent
Office is getting to be and how enor-
mously its business is increasing.
Probably half the people in the coun-
try are interested, one way or anoth-
er. in patents. There were issued for
the week ending June 6, $50 patents
the largest number ever issued i'm
a single week. The number of sp-
pllcation filed from January to June
l, 1882, is Is, 224, and increase off ,3O7
oyer last year. The receipts of the
office for the same period were S42S,-
SO5.63, an increase over same months
last year of S64 .622.55. AT the same
rate for the remaining seven months
of the year the total receipts for 1882
will be very close to a million of
dollars, and largely in access of the
expenses of the Office. In view of
these facts and figures it would seem
proper for Congress to take some
step towards reduction of the Gov
eminent fees. thus reducing the cost
to an Inventor of procuring patent.
1t certainly could not have been the
intention of the trainers of our patent
laws si1at the Government should
make a profit off OF the inventive
genius of the country. If such an
idea was eyer entertained, it is wrong
and should be corrected. That the
proper management of an Office doing
such a business as this requires a
Commissioner of clear head and ex-
ecutive ability will be readily seen,
and it is universally agreed that the
present Commissioner, Mr.. Marble,
is such man.
The general convention of the Ma