Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1888-04-06
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
Regular Correspondence Of the Standard.
WAsHIN GTON, March %, 1883.

Cleveland and revenue reform is the
refrain that is being echoed from one
end OF the country to the other. Ex-
Congressman Hill, of Ohio, who is in
the city, says the Democrats OF that
State are unanimous for the nomina-
ton of Mr.. Cleveland, and that the
delegates to St. Louis will be instruct
ed to vote that way. Mr.. Cleveland
and his policy for revenue reform are
gaining strength every day, all over
the country, and yet right here at the
House of Representatives calling
themselves Democrats have set them
selves up in opposition to the whole
party and have gone deliberately to
work to prevent the passage by the
House of the Mills tariff bill, thus pre-
venting the party from redeeming the
pledges upon which it elected Pres
ident and hopes to re-elect him.
These men claim to represent the
sentiments of their constituents, but
unless Mr. Hill who is quoted above
is wrong about the sentiment in Ohio,
the members from that State who have
joined hand with Mr.. Randall, who
represents a Republican district in
Pennsylvania, are misrepresenting
their constituents in opposing revenue
reform. The same might be said of
the Louisiana members who are OPP
posing the Mills tariff bill The Re
publicans here are still in demoral-
lied condition, never having recovered
from the effects of the Blaine letter.
If they do not rally before the cam
paign opens they will not fight with
enough vim to make the contest in
teresting.
Senator Blair, of New Hampshire, is
thought by some to be suffering from
softening of the brain. His latest
crank idea is bill which he has intro
ducod in the Senate proposing that
the ex-Confederate soldiers and sailors
shall have preference over ex-Con-
federate civilians in appointments to
civil service positions. The bill was
not asked for nor is it wanted by any
body. But for all that its authors
motives in presenting it were good,
and he is a kind-hearted man.
The Ways and Means Committee
have completed the consideration of
the Mills tariff bill and before this let
ter is in type twill have been reported
to the House, unless the Republican
minority of that committee shall dis
cover some new method of delay.
They have already exhausted all that
were known.
The House Committee on Terrific
ries have reported bill to organize the
Territory OF Alaska.
Hon. J. L. Anderson, of Iowa, who
has been appointed Assistant Com
missioner of the General Land Office,
was the Democratic candidate for
Governor at the last Iowa State cleo
ton, and polled the largest vote ever
given to Democratic candidate in
that State.
Hon. S. NJ. Stockslager, who has
been appointed Commissioner of the
G. L. o., served in the Forty-seventh
and Forty-eighth Congress.
The bill to prevent the employment
of alien and convict labor on public
works has been passed by the House.
The President has sent to Congress
a communication from the Secretary
of the Interior, with much testimony
relating to grant of public land to
the State of Oregon for the construc-
ton of wagon roads. Accompanying
these documents is q message from
the President which says: "The
presentation of the facts by the Sec
retary is the result of an examination
which has developed, as it seems to
me, the most unblushing frauds upon
the Government, which if remaining
unchallenged, will divert several hund-
red thousand acres of land from the
public domain, and from reach Of
honest settlers, to those who have at
tempted to pervert and prostitute the
beneficent designs of the Government,
which sought by the promise of gen.
erous donations OF land to promote the
building of wagon roads for public
convenience and for the purpose of
encouraging settlement upon the pub
lie lands. The roads have not yet
been built and yet an attempt is made
to claim the lands under a title which
depends for its validity entirely upon
the construction of these roads," A
bill repeating these land grants and
rcverting the lands to public domain
is recommended for immediate pas
sage by the President. The bill pro-
tects the interests of parties who have
innocently purchased lands of the
wagon road companies. Dem.