The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-01-26
FROM WASHINGTON.
The pingIey Shipping Bill.
rsnecial to the Press.l

The Dingley Shipping Bill
Especial to the Press.l
WASHINGTON, Jan. 25.-The Dingley ship
ping bill will be favorably reported from tne
House shipping committee Tuesday. Ii Is
not expected that action will be taken on II
before next week, but its friends are confl-
dent of its final passage.
Personal.
Asa Cushman, Esq. and wife OF Auburn
are here.
Maine Coast Defences,
WASHINGTON, Jan. 25.-The Fortifcatlons
Board recommends the appropriation OF TWO
million five hundred and eighty-seven thous-
and dollars for Kennebec and Penopscoi
rivers, and providing for forty-six guns and
forty eight mortars.
A Hoosier Democrats Indignation.
Representative Kleiner of Indiana, though
a Democrat, is boiling over with wrath at
the administration. While on his way to the
Capitol, in a street car, Kleiner vented his
spleen and ventilated his views with such
vigor and pertinacity as to catch and hold
afford them much instructive entertainment. u
"If the President had gone,to work at tne
outset" said Kleiner with double-barreleo
gesture, 'and cleared out the KepuDncans
and given the country Democratic admlnls-
trati0n, he would now have a united Democ-
racy at his back. AS it is, we are broken up
and divided, some pulling one way ana some
another with no policy and no organlzatlon.
We are in dilemma, and political disaster
sstares us in the face. If the Republicans
once get in again in the present condition OF
things, the Democrats will never see day
light again.
The President and the Fisheries
Question.
A Republican congressman, who has taken
a great interest in the fisheries question, says
that he has good ground for saying that Sec
retary Bayard is greatly astonished at the
general protest that is coming up from all
the States bordering on Canada against the
appointment of any fishery commission. MI
Cleveland is also taken by surprise, and is
inclined to think that he made his recon-
mendatiOn for the commission without Suffl-
cient information. This gentleman gives it
as his opinion that the commission question
will not be forced nor made an admlnlstra-
tion issue, but allowed to drop quietly,
Proposed Changes in the Pension Act
Congress will have to meet the question as
to whether the limitation of time in the ar
rears of the pension act shall be removed. lt
will be remembered that that act fixed July
l. $780, as the limit of the time within when
applications for arrears OF pensions should
ment offered by Mr. Browne OF Indiana
Republican, to the pending bill, increasing
the pensions of widows to 81 per month, 10
remove that limit so as to admit appllca,,
tions for arrears for an indefinite period, ana
therefore, of course, an indefinite amount.
One hundred millions would probably be a
moderate estimate of the sum necessary to
meet the demands which would be made IL
Mr.. Browns amendment should become
law. Itseems likely that it will be ruled out
1of~.- ,os-1 ADf nr4slAV l(ITf
simply postpone the real question for short
time. It is at least doubtful whether ma
jority of the House will havelthe moral cour-
age to vote in the negative on such propo-
sition.
A Decision in Favor of the ChcctaW
Indians
The Court of Claims today announced its
decision in the Choctaw case, rendering
judgment in favor of the Indians to the
amount of $4,000
Must Receive New Commission.
First comptroller Durham has made de-
cision that an officer of the government who
was appointed during the recess of the Sen
ate and gave bonds at the time and who was
subsequently confirmed by the Senate must
receive new commission, take an addition
al oath and execute new bond.
Confirmed by the Senate.
The Senate today confirmed the following
nominations: Chas. j. Canada to be Assist
ant Treasurer at New York, and John s.
McEalmont. of Pennsylvania to be Commits
sioner of Customs
Among the Committees.
The Senate committee on fisheries discuss
ed this morning. Senator SewalPs bill for the
coast and agreed to report it favorably
The House committee on pegslonS TO-DAY
added an amendment to the Mexican pension
bill introduced in the House by Mr.. Walford,
and directed the report of the bill to the
House.
Minor Matters.
Today, in the case of Shaw against Ritch..
lie, involving the title to two parcels OF
ground in a Square in this city, which in the
Court below was decided in favor OF the
plaintiff, Judge Hague delivered the opinion
Of General term. reversing the decree below.