Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1886-04-30
Washington Letter.
From cur Regular Correspondent.
WAsHINaToN, April 16, 1886.

1 was on the point of saying that
nothing was going on here now, but
l reflected and remembered that
much is transpiling, both of interest
and importance. Congress is ad-
dressing itself to appropriation bills,
contested election cases and the sub
lect of interstate commerce. The
Senate is discussing the fishery
question and hearing pleas for open
executive sessions. Congressman
are presiding and speechmaking at
meetings held in the interest of la
Dor; Commissioner Black is quietly
unearthing pension frauds, and prov
ing that his predecessor, Dudley,
really did pay soldiers who never
went to war; the Congressional Pan
Electric investigation is winding up
its eventless career: arrangements
are steadily pro- ressing with view
towards materializing the proposed
exposition here in 1859, aud lastly,
the gossips say the President is to be
married in June.
In regard to the outcome of the
Senatorial debate on the abolish
ment of star chamber proceedings,
the opinions of two Senators may be
taken for what they are worth. SEN
ator Morrill,, of Vermont, said to
Senator Beck, of Kentucky, q am
beginning to be afraid that this open
executive session resolution will be
carried" You may set your mind
at rest on that point" replied Mr..
Beck, not even a respectable vote
will be taken in its favor"
Senator Platt started the ball in
favor of public Senatorial proceed
ings. He said there are two words
which the people of the country
wanted to see expunged from their
political vocabulary. Those words
are privileges" and 'prerogatives."
Ii it were not for being alliterative
he would have added two other
words. patronage" and "perqui-
SITES" which the people wanted to
have go. He insisted that the Seu-
ate was no place to assert preroga-
tive, that Senators had better trust
the people if they wanted the people
to trust them. OF the 1900 news
papers in this country, fully 10000
had declared for open doors, and he
said it was the country newspapers
that represented the real sentiment
of the country.
The Republican Senators never
expect to be called together again in
caucus on the question as to what
policy they shall pursue with regard
to the Presidents nominations. Mr..
Elmunds, they say, must have been
convinced when the caucus last ad-
journed, that no amount OF caucusing
would enable him and his few follow
ers to dictate the policy of his party
colleagues. He continues to scold
them whenever they vote to confirm
the successor of suspended Office
holder, but they are SO used to his
abuse that it makes but little impress
sion upon them.
Under the present Administration
there has been a reduction of 267
clerks in classified service of the
Treasury Department whose services
were not needed at oil, and whose
places will not be filed. The result
is an annual saving to the Govern:
ment of $232 600. And if the state
ments of certain officials in the var
ious departments are true, the per-
sons who have been appointed to
Office during the past year accom-.
plish nearly twice rs much work as
was performed by their immediate
successors.
Not many months ago Higgins
was the terror of the Treasury De-
partment. Now it is Chief Clerk
Yeomans. He paralyzed the Treas
ury employees by issuing tho nine
o'clock order, req hiring them to be
at their desks at that hour.
"Ah, times are not as they used
to be-" said a department clerk"
In the good old days of the Grant
Administration we clerks fourished
like the green bay tree. 1t was be-
fore the days of economy, and there
were more clerks than work, so no
one was rushed. Our hours for
duty were easy, and we came and
went pretty much as we pleased" ;"
Well, how IS it now? Have things
changed? "Yes, everything is run
by clockwork; the clerk must be ex-
actly on time Or he is reported for
censure like a school boy. If he
wants to leave his Office during bust
ness hours, he must hold up his
hand and ask the chief for pass to
60 out. And under the new Admin.
istration. if a clerk is sick two days,
the time he loses will be deducted
from his pay or his leave. In the
good old time. such thing as that
was unheard Of, and ! know Of many