Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1886-05-17
WASHINGTON LETTER
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE OF THE MONITOR.

r,
Washington, May 10th.
There is a good deal of buste
about the White House now which s
not due to annual house cleaning.
Society young ladies who profess b
know all about it assign the cause TO
the approaching transfer of Miss
Cleveland from the exalted social
post she has filled for more than
year and the succession of Miss Fol-
som to the position of first lady of
the land.
President Cleveland has the name
of being the least communicative of
all the presidents, and no one has
been able to entrap him into an ad-
ny. 1t is announced, however, by
the ladies who claim to know, for the
first week in June. for the reason that
Miss Cleveland retires to her New
York home during that week. Con-
gress will still be in session, rushing
thro' the appropriation bills,and as it
would be difficult for Mr.. Cleveland
to leave the city at that time, it is
also set down as certain that the mar.
riage will take place at the White
House.
The president has been quite an
noyed 10y the immense amount of
gossip that has been published about
his approaching nuptials, and will
doubtless be glad when it is all over.
The big, silent old bachelor is bash
ful and does not relish having his
.fancee paraded over the country.
After a three weeks discussion of
the great river and harbor bill, the
House voted S15,000,000 to patch
up the water ways of the country,
and dozens of villages will rejoice to
learn that the creeks which meander
past them are going to be improved
so that the local cabbage crop can 90
to market quickly and easily. But
the Capital of the nation was ignored
in the grand dole. Potomac Flats
get nothing.
The tendency of congress to waste
time on insignificant subjects receiv-
ed striking exemplification during the
past week. The House spent one
whole days session in frultlessly dis
cussing the wal services of twelve.
year-old boy. His claim to boun.
ty of 5000 led to a revival of wal
memories in which the battle of Rich
mond, KY, played an important
part. This boy being refused mus
of his age and size, it was claimed
that he purchased a uniform ant
served in the regiment year, acting
as bugler and performing gallan
scout duty.
Representative Bragg of Wiscon
sin, in sarcastic speech, said the
great patriotism which had been dis
played by the boy seemed to have
oozed away, and he had become {
beggar asking money of the govern
ment. A touch of sentiment was
added to picture of battle scene
by placing in the foreground the fgur'
of a dead drummer boy with his drum
beside him. But it was only senti
ment. In reality, the drummer boy
at the beginning of battle, coult
be seen breaking the head of his drum
and running to the rear to do hospit
al service. One of the most gloriou:
memories of the war was of the nobl
women who became nurses in Orde
to alleviate the sufferings of the sol
dier, but now these women wer
: found coming to the war claims com
mittee, begging that their gratuitou
services should be coined into dollar
and cents. That knocked all tn
sentiment out of the thing He want
ed some of the rich memories of tn
war preserved. He did not wan
them all brought down to dollars AM
cents.
Representative Weaver of Iowa
after admitting that war pictures wer
very deceptive, called attention t
that particular humbug in America
military history which pictured a
officer leading charge. The officer
: were generally where their order an
the rules of war required them to be
in safe place in the rear, while th
privates did the shooting, fightin