The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1886-09-24
WASHINGTON NEWS.

vi ~ uSiinS tNpctltlOl
Controller Durham, by advice, OF his
| physician, left town SATURDAY. for Bay
Ridge, Md, for the benefit OF his health.
Rear Admiral John ii. Russell has been
! placed OH the retired list. This makes
vacancy for the promotion OF Commodore
| Queen.
A supplemental volume of the records OF
| the Rebellion, containing full account OF
the Fitz John Porter court martial proceed
ings, will soon be issued.
| Judge Manning of Louisiana has been
appointed minister to Mexico, succeeding
Gen. Jackson. Judge Manning has been
on the supreme bench m his state for six
years. He is not politician, but is an In
| innate friend OF Secretary Bayard.
Brig. Gen. John Newton, chief of en-
| gineers, having served more than forty
| years as an officer of the army, has been,
at his own request, by direction OF the
| president retired from active service as OF
this date, and will proceed to his home.
The commission of Thomas L. Benedict
as public printer has been received at the
| white house, bearing the presidents sigma
ture of date the 10th of August. 1t is I'M
derstood that the new public printer will
relieve Mr.. Rounds about the 18th OF Sep
| TENDER.
The receipts of the Patent Office for the
| fiscal year ended June 81, 1856, were ST.
1896 1877, or Sl21, 1875 more than for the pre-
| viOus fiscal year. In 1856 there were Sc, 602
applications for patents, and "a, 1S1 patents
were granted, against 35,6SS applications
and % 296 patents granted In 1885.
The Indian bureau has been making
efforts to hasten the annual shipments OF
| Indian supplies west, and expects to have
| these supplies ell route fully one month
| earlier than in any previous year. 1t Is the
intention Of the office to recommend that
congress provide for the letting of con-
tracts for Indian supplies in March here.
after, so that there may be no trouble about
their transportation III time to prevent pos
| sibe suffering.
The question is being sharply raised with
regard 10 bids recently opened for the erec-
ton of public buildings as to whether the
treasury officials will bring convict labor
| In competition with free labor This is
emphasized with regard TO the bids for
Quincy, LII, which We're 5000 from con-
free labor, and $4,000 from Kentucky con-
tractors who, 1T Is supposed, intend to EN-
| ploy convict labor.
Secretary Whitney will soon publish the
advertisements for the construction of the
five new cruisers, the plans for which are
eign papers an invitation to ship-builders
across the ocean to submit plans for the
two 6,000-ton armOred cruisers provided for
! in the naval-increase ACT American ship
| pete with the foreigners. Navy officers
think that the plans. will be purchased
abroad, as were those for the Baltimore.
Supt. Kimball, of the lfe-saving bureau,
has received a letter from Admiral Ward,
of the British navy, aud for many. years
institution of Great Britain, in which he
says that the American service shows by
| far the most complete record of lite-Saving
work. Information has also been received
showing that the Spanish government has
adopted the gun invented by Capt. Lyle and
used in the service of this country for throw
ing lines over wrecked vessels.
Names for the new steel cruisers for the
navy have been selected. One of the 1000
ton vessels will be named Newark, the
other, modelled after the Japanese war ship
Naniwakan, will be called Charleston, and
the third will be called Baltimore. The
Baltimore will DC the largest. The designs
for this vessel were made by Constructor
! White, of England, for the Spanish Gov
eminent, but no vessel has yet been con-
structed in accordance with them. The
Baltimore is expected to develop remarka-
| BILE speed, and ii the engineers perform
their duty properly all naval experts agree
that she will be the fastest vessel afioat and
the finest vessel in the navy.
The Commissioned OF Internal Revenue
| has prepared set of regulations for en-
forcing the provisions OF the oleomargarine
act, which will be promulgated about the
| same time the new stamps are ready for
| circulation. rhc regulations will be for
the instruction and guidance Of collectors
! Of internal revenue and such persons as arc
interested In the manufacture, sale and inn
portation of oleomargarlne. The inspec-
tors of this class Of merchandise will DO
selected by the collectors of internal re-
venue at points where it is manufactured,
and their appointment and compensation
will be subject to the approval of the Com
missioner Of Internal Revenue The force
of inspectors at Chicago, Cincinnati and
other localities where The manufacture of
! 0le0margarlne is principally carried on,
will necessarily be larger than at Baltimore,
Boston and other cities where this industry
is still in Its infancy.
A well kept diplomatic and executive
secret to which interest is given by the pos
I sibility of q request being made by the
| United States for the surrender by Mexico
of Mondragon, for trial in this country, Is
the fact that q special eXtradition treaty
between the United States and Mexico is
now awaiting final action by the Mexican
Congress, having been accepted with
amendments by the United States Senate
| in June of this year. The treaty provides
that the surrender to either country by the
authorities of the other shall be discretion
airy with the Executive whenever notori-
GUS crime has been committed. This treaty,
| although approved by the nations, still
| lacks the final Mexican sanction to render
it operative. The only significance OF the
| treaty Is the indication of q disposition on
| tuC puIb VI VIC OIllIcu DutIto W
such relations with Mexico. Mexico al
ready has this authority to surrender no
torious criminal, but the United States has
1 no such power without this treaty. When
Mexico has voluntarily surrendered such
! prisoners the United States has only ac-
ceptcd the action with an understanding
that no obligation to reciprocate was in
volved.
A SERIOUS EVIL.
Consul Underwood, at Glasgow, reports
that men who are hired to care for cattle
shipped from this country 20 Glasgow often
come to serious want and suffering. They
are usually posscssors OF certificates ell
titling them to n passage home on the YES
sci which took them out, but no provision
is made for their sustenance while in port !;
ana it frequently happens that the vessel
having discharged her cargo, sails for some
other part of the world than America, In
which case the men are helpless, since no
other ship will receive their certificates.
and not beng sailors they can not hope to
work their passage. The consul suggests
that IL there be way of compelling ship
pers of cattle to provide for the main
tenance of their men in foreign ports, and
to make sure of their speedy return home,
a great and growing evil will be remedied.