Omaha daily bee., 1885-07-06
PlLFERIkG CREDIT,
The Democratic Administration After
Republican Glory.
Sparks Merely Follows a Trail in
tho Land Grant Steals.
Cleveland Reads the Riot Act to Cab
met Members Who are Looking
Ahead-other Events.
THE NATIONAL CAPITAL,
AFTER REPUBLICAN GLORY.

WASHINGTON, July o. COMMISSIONS
Sparks, of the general land office, is reported
to be working out the details of a land order
which will, il promulgated, create O sensation
among the land grant railroad officials. 1t
is nothing lees than an overthrow of the in
demnity land system by the operation of
which it is charged that settlers have been
largely injured and railroads correspondinely
benefited, The nature of previous bureau
rulings, which the commissioner proposes to
modify or rescind, can be illustrated in the
case of the Atchison, Topeka & Santafee rail
road, which last year was compelled upon
tho appeal Of the state of Kan.
sas to surrender over 5000, 600 acres
OF land that had been set aside for it as an
indemnity of shortage in the lands granted to
that road. 1t is charged, for instance, that
the lands are u~pjustly withheld from settle
meet by allowing roads to file maps and then
to seek other and moro favorable routes. The
land over which the later maps are received
may have have o large number ef settlers
therein. Many of these are threatened with
oustrv on one ~technicalit y another. and the
roads claim indemnity for all losses by the
acceptance of settlements. ~ is now proposed
to make general in their application the rules
laid down IN the Kansas case referred to-.
1t is understood that the Northern Pacific ia
especially aimed at ia the expected order.
This route in Washington territory has sew.
eral times been changed and modified, and q
large number Of settlers are interested in
resisting the corporations claim to indemnity.
The commissioner of the land office has put
his foot down on two more things, He has
refused to give clerks passes TO work in the
Offices at night. He says ''They are making
a good thing out of it, and a great deal of the
information given to attorneys and outsiders
is perhaps such that the department should
receive pay for. They shall not any more de.
vote their b9st energies to making private
profit out OF the records of the office and half
perform the duties for which they are employed
by the government"
The administration is receiving more credit
than it is entitled to in the matter of the
Maxwell LAND grant. A land proclamation
has been made by the land office to the effect
that this gigantic fraud has been discovered
by this administration and that proceedings
have been instituted to recover about
1000, 900 acres of which an English syndicate
has secured possession, and and to restore it
to the public domain. The fact is that the
Maxwell land grant steal was not disco vered
by this administration but by the last adj
ministration, and the legal proceedings which
are now pending were commenced by republi-
cans, and Mr.. Bentley, ex.commlssioner of
pensions, has been for months engaged in the
collection of evidence and in preparing to
prosecute the guilty persons. The admins
tratlon hnds 1t necessary to retain Bentley to
prosecute this case on account of his special
knowledge. The credit, therefore, of the pro.
ceedipg against the Maxwell land grant Is
not due to Commissioner Sparks or to the
Cleveland administration.
Ohio politicians say there is no doubt that
John Sherman is a candidate for the presi-
dency as well as tor reelection to the senate
and his notion is that the one candidacy will
aid the other but that he will need tc win the
senatorship to realize his expectations con-
will fail in both. Foraker for governor is
stronger than Sherman for senator. The
fight will bs for the Legislature. The reput-
lican managers declare that the signs are
favorable for them for a number of reasons
that the party is not distracted by side Issues,
and that it is going into the fight with conf
dence on general principles.
Democrats who claim to know what has
been going on In the cabinet cay that the
president sharply called the more aggressive
spoilamen of the old school to order in the
cabinet the other day, and asked them what
foundation there was for the numerous re-
ports, made apparently upon authority, that
there was to be q clean sweep in the depart.
ments on July |. The president is reported
TO have been vigorous, emphatic and blunt in
his declarations, and to have notified the
cabinet that he did not propose to have them
shape a policy Tor him; that he had outlined
MS policy In repeated publications
and did not intend to change it, and that he
did not care to have them embarrass his
administration by attempting to inaugurate
q policy of their OWE. He had stated that he
should choose his W methods for the re.
moyal OF office holders, and did not intend to
alter them. This story comes from a senator
who claims to have heard it from a cabinet
officer. Whether it is true or not it is certain
that the programme which has been formed
IN some of tho departments for a clean sweep
was not carried out.
Samuel j. Tilden and his friends are very
indignant over the appointmentment of ex-
Governor Noyes to be government director of
the Union Pacific railroad, on account of his
connection with the electoral count in Florida
during the Hayes-Tilden contest of 1876.
THIS feeling Is not confined to Tllden and his
friends, but Is very generally shared by
democrats whose attention has been
directed to the matter. The re-
port of the investigating committee
has been ressurrected and that portion of the
report and the accompanying testimony which
relates to Cen. Woyes' participation in the
canvass OF the electoral votes of Florida while
serving as a visiting statesman has been laid
before the president. Some of the more
prominent democrats confidently assert that
the appointment of Ged. Noyes will be
revoked
In consequence of age and constant hand
ling some OF the earlier executive document
OF tho senate are in a very dilapidated condi-
tiou. To preserve these as long as possible
the secretary OF the senate has them carefully
Strengthened out and fitted to parchment
backs and bound In durable form. Included
IN these documents are three messages from
President Washington also a message from
President John Adams, May, 1897, nominal
inR his own son, John Quincy Ad-
ans to bs minister to Russia,
ana also his message of July 20, 1898, nom
inatlug washington to be Northumberland
and commander-in-chie of the armies of the
United States, 1t was at this time that our
infant republic was threatened with European
complications, and Washington had consented
to come from his retirement at Mount Vernon
and respond to the call of his country. A doc.
ument OF very rare character is q confidential
communication sent to tho senate by the house
OF representatives in 1863, through two of its
members especially appointed for that pur-
pose-Mr. Nicholson and Mr.. Bayard-and
which contained a copy of a bill passed by the
house with closed doors providing for the
conduct of negotiations with France and
Spain looking to the purchase of the Island
OF New Orleans" and the province of east
and west Florida.
AT the last session of congress appropria.
tons aggregatipg IS, 544,456 were made for
the construction Of public buildings in tgen-
ty-four cities. The following table WIDOWS
the amount appropriated for come Of the