The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1889-08-17
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent

his trip to Boston ana Will remain
here for a few days before taking a
short vacation. He has worked very
hard since the 4th of March, as in
fact have all the cabinet officers. Few
people outside of Washington have
any idea of the hours these officials
have been obliged to put in at their
desks. The opening of new adj
ministration always means nnlimi-
ted hard work for the men who haye
to map out and put into operation its
policy. and this being such radical
change from the Democratic admin
| istratiOn has made the amount of
work to he done much greater than
usual. 1t is no eXageration to say
that the members of the present cab
met have worked harder during the
last five months than they ever did
before in their lives and several of
them have been for years at the head
of large and successful private bust
ness concerns. They have all earned
a rest.
''Sunset" Cox. the "funny'h DEM
ocratic Congressman from New York
never forgets to be humorous. He
has Just returned to Washington
from a trip through the four new
states aud he cody claims credit for
the passage of the bill making them
states by the last Congress. This is
carrying a joke almost too far. If l
remember Alright, and think | do,
the credit for the passage of that bill
belongs to the Republicans, who in
formed their obstinate Democratic
colleagues that unless the bill was
allow ed to 20 through the House the
President would call an extra session
Immediately after his inauguration
for the express purpose of passing it.
Mr.. Cox is entitled to the credit of
having had sufficient political sense
to make a virtue of necessity, and for
having persuaded some of his more
near sighted Democratic colleagues
to vote for the bill. Let Mr.. Cox be
as funny as he wants to. but don't let
| the record on this subject be M uddled
or confused.
The Government departments are
having a good deal of trouble with
the telegraph companies owing TO
the suspension of the contract for
carrying Government messages. The
telegraph people are making Uncle
Sam pay cash at transient rates for
all the messages sent. The Postmas.
General. who has authority under
he law to set the price for this work,
claims that one mill per word is a
fair price. This is denied by the tele-
graph companies. and in the mean
time Government officials have to
pay for their messages.
One pensloner Of the Government
has just had piece of good luck.
His name is Richard Whiting, and
in 1883, he was granted a pension Of
S24 per month, which was subse-
quently increased to $50 per month.
Afterwards, through mistake made
by a surgeon, the pension was re-
duced to S. per month. the PEN
sioner applied for reopening of his
case, and Assistant Secretary Bussey
has just decided that he is entitled to
a pension of S72 per month, and
arrears since his discharge, which
will amount to $4,000.
Elk. Postmaster General Frank
Hatton's latest charge against the
Civil Service Commissioner is that
lists of the questions to be asked at
examinations have been sold to APP
plicants. He has not yet stated who
sold the papers or when the otfense
was committed.
1t is said that ex- Attorney General
Garland has been employed to repre-
sent the Northern Pacific Railroad
in this city at salary of $4,000 a
year. 1t is to be hoped that his ex-
perience with this corporation will
be pleasanter and more profitable
than what he had with the Pan
Electric Telephone Company not
many years ago.
Before leaving the city for short
] rest Secretary Noble received the
,lpreliminary report of the commits.
sion which has been Investigating
, the re-rating of pensions. He has i'm
structed the commission to proceed
with the investigation. He wants
the proceedings for twelve months.
He declined to make public the pre-
Iliminary report but said the full re-
port should be given to the public
fEiust as soon as it is finished. 1 I'M
!, jderstand that the Secretary is satls-
fed from the report that there has
, been no serious wrong doing, but he