Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1885-07-08
WASHINGTON.
esrEsr Gets the First Pennsylvania
Rev snus collectorshlp.
CONVICT LABOR AND Mr. MANNING.
O,,,masssr General. Villas Puts His Foot
Down on the ExOrbitant Post
Office Leases.
GENERAL WASHINGTON DISPATCHES.


WuHIxGroS, July THE President this
,AsrrOOu appointed Willis ]. Clark COllee-
,cr Of Customs for the port of Mobile, Ala.
Frederick Gerxer, who was to-day ap-
,o, ted Collector Of Internal Revenue for
tbs First district of Pennsylvania, is . prom
i,sut business man of Philadelphia. AT
he outbreak of the war be enlisted as first
6ru,enant Of the Ninth PennsylyaniA vol
ua,esrs. He ssEvsd throngh5ss sksw4f
and attained the rank Of Major, and brevst
Lieutenant Colonel Since then he has
been engaged in railroad business, and at
one time was lessee of the Baltimore and
Delaware road His appointment was
urged BY Representative Randall and many
Others.
A Labor Question.
The Secretary OF the Treasury to day decid-
Cd contract case involving an important
a5Or question. Bids were recently opened for
stone work on the poStofiee at Peoria, Ills.
Nessrs Brsinard & Co, of Joliet, were the
lowest bidders. A protest against their be-
ing awsrded the contract was fled By Straub
i Co. of Buffalo, the next lowest bidders,
on the ground that Brainard i Co are con-
tractors for the labor of the Illinois Srase
prison snd would employ convict labor on
the uoslofice. The matter was referred ID
Solicitor MeCge who gave an opinion thai
the department should not be expected TO
10 dictate the means by which contractors
perform their work and that he did not be.
heve the protest wss valid one. Secretary
Manning has sustained the Solicitor and
the contract viii be awarded to BrsinSrd L
Co.
Curtailed the Star Route.
The Postmaster &c leral has curtailed the
nail service upon the star route from Ksl-
ton, Utah, to Weimsr, Idaho, thus effscting
sn annual saving Of $4,000.
Patents.
The Patent Office to-day issued 522 pat
snts, IA designs, "a trade marks, 20 labels
spd ) reissues. Thirty patents were award
ed 10 cilizens Of foreign countries. OF the
domestic patents issued New York secured
s. Pennsylvania 6S, Massachusetts, 4S and
Illinois ~.
49, Exorbitant POstofice Leases.
Postmaster General Villas has been inves-
,igating the methods formerly pursued 10
the department IN leasing the buildings for
postofices. aud has arrived at the conclu-
sion that In certain cases where leases have
been made for a number of years in some
instances for periods Of 20 years prices paid
by the government were exorbitsnt. The
question was submitted to the Attorney
General as to whether the government was
bound by leases in such cases,
In bis opinion the Attorney General held
Sbst IN the absence of express authority con-
ferrsd by act of Congress the Postmaster
General has no right to make lease for any
period beycUd the time for which the sppro-
Driation wss made. L nder this decision the
Postmaster General feels that the leases are
not obligatory upon the Government and
proposes 10 terminate them upon notices IN
cases where 1t appears proper for hm to
DO 50.
Recommended by Hazen-
WASHINGTON, July 7.-Genersl Hszen,
chief signal officer, has recommended to the
President that Sergeant Brsinsrd, who was
with Lieutenant Greely in the Arctic re-
gions, be appointed TO heutensntcy in the
Inc He has sl.o recommended that Ser
gesnrs Mitchell and Ellis, who recently
PASSED examination for promotion, be ap'
pointed second heutensnts in the signal ser
vice.
No Monkey Business About IT.
By direction of the Secretary of the Treas
ury = !. TER WAS written to-day to the Arch
itecr OF the Treasury, instructing him to
cut trom me roof of the Treasury slI teie
phone and telegraph wires still remaining
there, aud 20 wind them up on the nearest
street pole. so that they will not be IN the
Eay Of foot passengers or horses The order
Ess given some time ago for all companies
10 take down their wires, but only some OF
them complied. Those remaining viii be
Get down tomorrow.
Chenowith Shields Higgins-
First Auditor Chenowith said to day IN
sptakiDg of the Kellar case, thst the news
pagers were wrong in blaming Appointment
Cl-rk gginss for the ,iusl rel c ion OF
Keliar, FER he had been regularly certified
AOE appointment Dl INC NAfA -
mission All that Higgins had to do with
the case was to introduce Kellsr to him
The First Auditor said be wanted It under
sooi that he alone was responsible Tor
vha; had been done in the case.
Appointed.
The Commissioners of Agriculture has
appointed Wm. King, of Ohio Chief OF the
see division of the Agricultural Depart
ment. Secretary Manning has appointed
Mrs Geo q. Cross, of this city, widow OF
Sergeant Cross, of the Greedy expedition 10
a place in his department. AT the req les'
OF the President the Commissioners OF Agri-
culture intended to provide for Mrs. Cross,
bot before place could be provided Sec
reisrY Manning gave her an appointment
An Outbreak OF Cheyennes
vas reported by the Secretary OF war VINO
SAID that steps had been taken to prevent
any more Of the Indians leaving the reserVa-
ten. BE stated that regiment ls-noE on
It's way TO the scene and other troops are
available, but the number is not suthclent
IN case Of g general on break.
The Question of Excluding Visitors
tron the departments on Cabinet days IS
Vel las Saturdays was discussed but no ds'
tsion vas arrived at. The new rule was
strictly enforced at the White House TO-DAY,
Postmaster General Villas being the only
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