Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1885-05-09
Washington Letter.

Washington Letter.
Your correspondent did not have
his usual siX-h0ur confidential inter-
view with the President of the Uni
ted States this week, and is conse-
quently not able to give you a news
report hot and steaming from thelips
Of the administration. Maybe the
reason why | did not call on the
President was because my friend did.
| have wild Western friend who
found himself in Washington last
week with two whole hours at his
disposal. He decided that the time
was not quite sufficient for him to see
and talk to everybody in Washing
ton Though he could come as near
doing it as any living man or even
woman) and inasmuch as he had to
draw the line somewhere, he called
only on the President, Secretary La
mar and your correspondent. | will
not attempt to tell all he told me, for
he talked without punctuation. But
to the President he made the original
remark, he had no friends to reward,
no enemies to punish, and no favors
to ask. The "no favors to ask" clause
seemed to please the President, and
he replied 81 am nearly worried to
death by those who have nothing but
favors to ask" Myfriend then called
at the Interior Department upon Sec
rotary Lamar and told him that he
wished to see his bath tub! The Sa-
turnine secretary at once set down
my wild Westerner for crank, but
a glance at his nice clothes and his
face painted red with intelligence and
humor convinced him that he had
struck character rare. So he showed
him the little zinc bath tub and the
two four dollar rugs, to buy which,
he has sold the ten thousand dollars
worth of government carriages and
horses.
The President and members of his
Cabinet have gone to Gettysburg to
celebrate the anniversary of the bat
tie. This is the first respite that Mr..
Cleveland has taken since the 4th of
March. Miss Cleveland is away in
New York. Col. Lamont and his
family, consisting of his wife and two
little daughters, have, at the urgent
request of Mr.. Cleveland, moved into
the White House and they will soon
accompany the President to his coun-
try residence at Soldiers Home. The
Presidents cottage at the Home is
about three miles from the White
House and about a mile and hall
from the Northern boundary of the
city. 1t is situated ona commanding
elevation with fine view of the city
and the Potomac river. Surrounded
by trees and acres of green sward il
will have all the advantages Of a sum.
mer resort with the additional advan.
tages of complete retirement from so.
ciety and fashion that cannot be OBJ.
tanned at Saratoga, Long Branch Oh
Newport.
What will the administration dc
concerning official changes {? isaques.
ton that is being very earnestly asked
at this time. There. are in round
numbers 1902, 900 salaried Office holders
under the Federal government
They are the regular army of politics
for it means their bread. Their dis
cipline enabled the Republican party
to keep itself in power for / a cen.
fury. Nine-tenths of these officials
are still in position. What is the
President going to do about it? A
gentleman who holds.a very respon.
sible and prominent appointment un.
der Mr.. Cleveland, and who comes
from a powerful State occupying q
most important political and geo.
graphical position, spoke very plainly
and fully the other day respecting the
matter of changes. He said: "NC
one better comprehends the necessity
for a complete change in all commits.
stoned officials than does the Presi-
dent. He is perfectly aware that the
people, in making the change in the
President last fall, did not mean
simply to put one man out and an
other man in. They meant that the
entire system should be altered and
renovated, and you may depend upon
it that is precisely what the Presi-