The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1883-09-22
WASHINGTON.
mungrr Omce seekers.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21.-The candidates for
the offices of the House have already begun to
assemble, and the prospects are that early in
October the campaigns for the speakership,
the clerkship and the sergeant-at-arms will be
fully inaagurated. Two or three of the candi-
dates have alleady opened headquarters here,
and they are all confident of success. The
hotel men are pleased, as some of the candi-
dates have offered a liberal bonus for the best
suite OF rooms. Ohio, which seems to have at
least two Democratic parties on the State
ticket, has two Democratic candidates for SER
geant-at-arms-John g. Thompson and Mr..
Leedom-and both claim votes enough to
elect Mr.. Randall is here, and to his friends
he says, without boasting, that he has the ut
most confidence in his success. There are two
or three Congressman here who are represent
in Carlisle'3 interests, aud they deny Ran
dalPs claim at every point.
The Civil Service-A Question Raised.
Secretary Folger has raised an important
question in regard to the operation of the new
civil service law His opinion is that in max
ing selection from four names which may be
certified to him by the Civil Service Commits
sioners to fill vacancy in his department. he,
is required by section 1854 of the revised stat
utes to select an honorably discharged soldier
or sailor if there be one among the four.
Important Decision by Secretary Folger.
The Secretary of the Treasury has decided
the questions which have been pending before
under the new tariff. The provision for char
coal iron is held to relate only TO the iron
which is otherwise dutiable under the para
graph in which it is found, and the provision
for rivet, screw, nail and fence wire rods is
held to govern the rate of duty on those arti-
cles, Notwithstanding the provision else
where in the tariff for iron of the size and val
ue named in the paragraph relating to rivet :,
screw, nail and fence wire rods,
War a Southern Lottery.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 21.-Postmaster Gener-
al Gresham has sent letter to B. Merchant,
the postmaster at New Orleans, in which he
says:
Since you were instructed to deliver no reg
istered letters reaching your office addressed to
M. A. Dauphin and to redeem no money or
derS payable to him lie has directed, in an ad-
vertisement inserted in certain newspapers,
that all registered letters intended for him and
concerning the Louisiana State Lottery Com
pany be addressed to the New Orleans national
bank at New Orleans, and that all money Or
ders sent to your office for his benefit and con-
cerning the business of said lottery company be
made payable to said bank. l am in possess
sion of trustworthy Information that this bank
has been and still is receiving through your
Office registered letters and money orders for
the benefit of M. A. Dauphin in pursuance of
his published directions. This is a defiant
scheme on the part of M. A. Dauphin and the
New Orleans national bank to evade the orders
which have been addressed to you by the post
master general, in pursuance of the statutes of
the United States intended to protect the mails
and the public against business which is vic
ious and immoral, and which in the main
preys upon the ignorant and credulous This
bank cannot be permitted to stand in the shoes
of M. A. Dauphin and thus enable him TO ac-
compllsh by indirection what he is not allowed
to do directly. Hereafter, therefore, you will
deliver to thesNew Orleans national bank no
registered letters and redeem no money orders
payable to it, but deal with the same as direct
ed by the order of the department of Novem-
ber Is, 1879 This order will be revoked when
ever the bank gives satisfactory evidence that
it has abandoned the above scheme.
An amended order has been issued by Post
master General Gresham forbidding all post
master from paying money orders drawn to
the order of M. A. Dauphin and directing
them to inform remitters that payment has
been forbidden, and that the sum of such
money orders be returned upon pres
entation Of duplicate orders applied for and
obtained under the regulation of the depart
ment of all postmasters at offices at which they
were originally mailed, with the word "fraudu-
lent" plainly written or stamped on the out
aida