Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1885-02-13
Washington Letter.
From our Regular Correspondent.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 31st, 1855.


ii ne draws on apace, expe citation Oh
tip toe is growing painfully nervous.
WHO will lie the Cabinet; what will
be IL 9 policy Of the new Admlnistra-
tion; how stiff, cruel and searching
will the new broom be; What levo-
Iu;ionS, political and social, local
and general will follow? These are
the questions that must :oon nave
an answer more or less definite.
Usually the interest i'll the Nation
al Capital wanes with the adjourn-
ment of Congress. This year it will
wax all Summer. Newspap CORE
spopdents will have to fo.t.o their
usual Summer picnic. and sren the
dog. days in Washington. Fortu-
nately there wi he plentiful sup
piv of ice water and such things,
and the city has grown to be a not
unpleasant Summer resort.
During the las. four months there
has been powerful undercuirent OF
political coa:-turninS going on Ill
tie Go,ern,nti.t Offices here, aLG l
AN told that i'll some Offices many
supposed Republicans have made tie
surprising discovery that they have
always been consistent Democrats,
awaiting in darkness but in hope for
the sun-burst of the fourth of March,
1885. The unselfsh forti,ude with
which these poor prisoners have en-
dured quarter of a century Of Re-
publican despotism, and repression,
toiling through the Administration
of Grant, blushing at the scandal
Gus usurpation of Hayes, and sor-
rowing over the election of Garfield,
paying money and making speeches
for their cruel captors, is really pa.
thetic. There has been a remarka-
BILE subsistence of Republican bras,
falsehood, and abuse of Democrats
in the Departments. If it were Lot
serious aud universal contaSion,
the Republican clerks who look at
each other across their desks would
explode with laughter at the silent,
saint-like disuse of the ISLANDERS, and
lies about the disloyal Democrats y
and their ob-cene candidate, which
only four months ago was the staple
of the work of the civic service Of
the party of "moral ideas"
Washington society which is main
ly official, and therefore Republican
has made desperate effort to smile
at grief, but the smile was brief and
sick!ed over with the pail cast Of
thought" The gay jewellers have
seen the fourth OF March at the lot.
tom of every oyster-stew, and the
Democratic broom has been the Da
mocles sword at every feast. The
chicken salad served only to remind
them of the Democratic rooster
The social season has not been bril-
liant or cheerful, and it is now clos
ing much earlier than usual. There
will be q brief revival of social fes.
tivities about the fourth of March
und then score of society queens
will abdicate forever.
The preparation for the inaugural
procession, illumination and bail il
going on. 1t is on a generous plan
aud it will be expensive, but there Il
no doubt of success. The vast en-
closure of the Pension building nov
surrounded by naked walls withou,
floor or roof, will soon be in readi
ness for the festival, and it will be
the largest and most imposing hall
ever before used for an inaugural
ball.
The citizens of the Capital arc
contributing to the Inauguration
fund literally and there is assur.
ances that ample provision will be
made for expenditures.
The cost of fitting up and decora
ting the Pension building will be
much greater than attended the al.
engagements for the Garfield bal
four years ago. but the interest taken
this year is greater than it was fou,
yeors ago, in fact greater than eve,
before. An immense number of Wis.
itors will be in the city, and many OIL
them will see the Capital of theil
country for the first time.
1t begins to look as if the last Re.
publican President intended to de.
vote the few remaining days of Re.
publican misrule to fixing his friends
in comfortable positions to which he
has little more right than to the fur.
niture of the White House, the coun.
try having declared in favor of q
new man, and, as o sequence, new
men. Nj. Arthur's appointment O!
Carpenter to be Governor of Mon.
tana Territory and of Davis to be
Judge of the Court of Claims, is now
followed by that of Andrew Draper
as Judge of the Court of Commits
sioners of Alabama Claims. MIR.
Draper has no qualification for the
office. He is simply warm person
| al friend of the Prasidont and tho