Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1889-05-03
WASHINGTON LETTER
Written and Compiled for the HERALD
WASHINGTON, April 20, 1889.

The President and family, ac-
companied by the members of the
Cabinet and their families, will
the exception Of Secretaries Tracy
and Proctor, who had preceded
them, left on a special train this
morning, at an early hour for the
/ Centennial celebration at New
York City. The President has
been overwhelmed with invitations
to stop in New York after the cele-
bration, but owing to the pressure
OF important public business has
decided to return to Washington
on Wednesday night.
Private Secretary HalfOrd says
that Gen. Harrison is IN as good
health as he has been for
twenty years. Mr.. HalfOrd is in a
position to know about the Presi.
dents health, aud Of course we
must believe what he says, and yet
one has only to stand in the White
House door and listen to the con-
yeTsatiOn Of those who have just
shaken hands with the President
to discover that nine out every ten
of them believe him to be a sick
man. Ii is to be hoped that will
turn out to be one Of those num-
erous instances in which appear
auces are deceptive.
Nearly all of the Congressman
who have been lettering in Wash
iugton trying to capture some OF
the loaves and fishes, have run
over to New York to see the Cen
tennial celebration, and the office
seekers who hadn't money enough
to afford the trip have crawled
into their holes, knowing that no
appointments can be made while
the Pres ident and all the Cabinet
are away. Things really look
strange around the White Hou Sc
today, owing to the absence of the
usual crowd.
Secretary Noble has given orders
by telegraph for rigid lnvestiga-
ton of the charges made in the
dispatches from Oklahoma that
Government officials took advan-
tage of their officials positions to
secure desirable town lots and
homesteads before the bona fde
settlers were allowed to enter the
Territory, and he says that if be
can help it no person shall hold a
foot of ground in that Terri tory or
a claim that is not open and above
board, and entirely free from even
a suspicion of fraud.
Senators Sherman and SpoOner
leave for Europe this week. They
will remain abroad several months.
Secretary Blaine had an attack
of lumbagO last week, but he has
entirely recO yered, and just before
leaving for New York with the
Pre- sidentisl party expressed him
self as feeling particularly well.
He is to respond to the toast, "Ibe
House of Representatives. at the
Centennial banquet in New York
tomorrow night.
Several names have been prOmi-
nently mentioned for the vacancy
on the Supreme Court Bench,
among them being Gen. j. A. ).
Cresswell, of Mary land, and Mr.. j.
L. Bolster, OF Nebraska, but those
closest to the administration seem
70 think that Attorney General
Miller will be the fortunate man.
Political circles were consider
ably excited last week by the publ
cation Of letter written by Col
Dudley to a friend in Indiana who
had asked the Colonel to assist him
in getting a certain appointment
The following paragraph in the
letter was the important one;
'Perhaps there IS no one man in
the country who has done as much
for Gen. Har rison during the last
twenty years as myself, but be-
cause our Dem Ocratic friends down
IN indianapolis have started the
hue and cry on me, brother Ben
does not seem to feel that he can
afford to recognize me as an &C
Qualutance and consequently l
don't take dinner at the White
House as might be expected"
Republicans here have found it
hard to believe that the President
has snubbed Col. Dudley and yet
they find it difficult to place any
other construction upon the letter
recently published.