The National tribune., 1884-09-25
WASHINGTON GOSSIP.
The Weekly Collection About the Ma
tiOnal Capital.
REsrcEkT1oS OF COL. ". ". DUDLEY.


70 the Secretary OF the Interior. who promptly
accented the same. It viii not take effect until
Nov 10 but as Col. Dudley has arranged 10 be
away from the Office the most of the time un-
til then, il may be said that his term OF service
has already virtually ended. Rumors have
been current for several months that he in
tended 10 resign, these originating in the we'll
known dissatisfaction of his superior officers
with his administration. Report went so Tar,
a few weeks ago. as to assert that Gen. Beaver,
of Pennsylvania, had been offered and would
accept the Office. When Dudley was approached
on the matter he strenuously denied that he
intended To resign and said positively that he
expected to stay through the present admins
tration. as I" he had every reason to believe that
he was desired TO do So a rather astonishing as
sertion indeed, in view Of the notorious facts.
Another statement, of much the same char
acuer, was sent out by the Associated Press
about the same time which was in effect that Col.
Dudley had incurred the eensure of the Secre-
tary Of the Interior on account of has TOO great
HbeTdlitg in granting peESl0RS,-that he was
strongly favorable to the deserving ex-soidier,
while the Secretary was disposed to construe
the laws as rigidly as possible against the APP
plicant. This statement, which bore strong
marks Of having been inspired in the Pen
sion Office was an absolute reversal of the
truth, for Secretary Teller has been the most
liberal man toward ex-soldiers of any one who
has ever held the Office of Secretary of the
Interior and he and his able Assistant Secre-
tary Judge Joslyn, have had constant battle
with the Commissioner Of Pensions 10 secure
relaxation Of the iron-clad red tapeism which
has been built MP in the Pension Office by John
A Bentley and others and the substitution
therefor Of rules of procedure founded upon
common sense and common justice. Dudley
proved so obstinate and so hide-bound in his
ways that il was at last found necessary
TO establish a Board of Pension Appeals, en-
tirely independent Of him or the Pension
Office, to which applicants could appeal if
they thought they were not justly treated
in the Pension Office. THE NATIONAL TRIB-
UNE one day recently saw a lot of papers
which had Just been disposed Of by the
Board Ii consisted Of 21 rejected applications,
in is Of which the Commissioners decision had
been reversed. This looks like =" excess of lib
erality" on the part Of the Commissioner, with
a vengeance Besides this the Secretary has
made enough rulings and decisions over-rnling
the decisions of the Commissioner TO make
gOOd-sized volume All these have been
great ameliorations Of the harshness of the
Pension Offices rules. and substituted equity
and common sense for unreasonable technical
ism. Several Of the more important of these
were cited in last weeks NATIONAL TRIBUNE
Naturally the publication OF such an untruth-
ful statement as that In the Associated Press
kilograms did not tend TO make Col. Dudley's
relations with his superiOrs any the more pleas
ant and the elimination of the matter is the
resignation which we have announced. Col
Dudley has entered into partnership with
Bateman a. CO., bankers, in this city, and Will
have the management OF the business here,
as the other partners are engaged much Of the
tine IN New York. While Col. Dudley has
been an evident failure as a Commissioner Of
PeniOns, We have much faith IN his success in
his new vocation. be is well calculated for q
bank official lie has ability and integrity Of
q high order, Joined TO greatinGnstry. He has
our best wishes fer his success Secretary
Teller has as yet given no indication 70
whom he intends 10 appoint as Col Dadley's
successor
POLLUTED WATER
All the gtomaehs in Washington have been
suffering the most distressing qualms during
the past week because Of the unpleasant reve-
lations concerning the source Of the clty's
supply OF water. The cholera has been raging
among the hogs in Maryland aud Virginia
along the Potomac above Washington. and the
dead carcaSses are found IN the canal and river
IN great nunbers-eKcited people have re-
ported BIZ thousands" but this was evidently
an ezaEgcration- After several days the Health
O15cer made tour Of inspection, and reported
that there were perhaps dozen r0ttlng car
casses al q dam some 10 or y miles above the
city This, while Il WAS an enormous diminn-
tion OF the current reports, was slill not enough
70 settle the Nashingtcnians' rising gorges,
especially as the Health Officer was careful 10
say that that was the only place be had really
inspected, and he could not say for certain
how many there ight be lodged al other dams
and along tile shore Of the river in hooks and
eddies which were not readily inspectabe.
Nor did he even remove those he found Tester
ing on tie dam; that wcaid not be the Wash
lEgtOn way Of doing things. Anywhere else
in the country sn officer finding such polls-
ton Of the drinking water Of hundreds Of
thousands Of people would have raised gen.
eTal hue and cry and had force Of men 10
work remedying the evil just as quick as they
could be gathered together, and there would be
6 general ferment until the work was done
But everything IN Washington takes shape and
spirit from the Genius OF flircuml0cution which
reigns in the Departments TIE method OF
procedure VIII probably be something in this
line; Tho Health Officer will in due time make
his report TO some Board or another that the
drinking-water sources are frlghtfuily con-
taminated, and ask that a detail may be made
70 survey and investigate the matter The
commission VIII be appointed after Ieisurely
consideration, and viii make its investigation
and submit an elaborate report with dia-
grams OF the places where the carcasses lie
and photographs Of the rotting masses, and
probably chemical ANAL lyses Of the contamination
ofthe water at various points contiguous thereto
Then this VIII be submitted 10 another Board
20 estimate the expense Of removing the Of
1ensiye matter, and suggest the best way O
doing the same, and then 81 force viii be or
ganized," with plenty Of Superintendents,
Inspectors, Chief Clerks" etc, and prob
ably II theTe is any Of the pHtrid pork left b.
that time il viii be very thoroughly cleanel
away. But section boss" OF a railroad woulS
have taken his gang and cleaned out the who
river in day or two and thought nothing Of il
a COMMON MERIDIAN
BY an act OF Congress, passed Aug. 3, 1882
the President WIS authorized 70 extend invita-
tiaHs TO the governments Of all nations in dir
lol1atic relations with the United States {
send delegates TO an international Meridiai
Conference 10 be held IN this city. A circulz
10 this eject was sent 70 all the government
through the Representatives Of the Unite
States abroad, and the responses received sgen
favorable to the holding os the conferenc,
The time was then fixed by the President fo
Oct i, and at that time the conference wi
meet at the state Department foE the pGrpos
Of fixing 1p0n meridian proper 10 be eE1
ployed a common zero OF longitude an
standard Of time reckoning throughout Ia
globe. There is now 10 uniformity IN this II
spect. IN this country the L. S Naval Obscrvs
tory uses the meridian Of Greenwich in q
the astronomical calculations, while the Int
rl0r Department in its maps makes use of fi
meridian Of Washington. In their sea Observ:
tion nearly all nations calculate time fror
the meridian OF Greenwich, but generally III
some local meridian in their scientific II
searches. This lack Of uniformity is a gres
Inconvenience, as calculations Of astronOme
and other scientists have 70 be reduced TO Il
meridian in use IN the particular countr