West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1891-09-10
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FROM THE NATIONAL CAPITOL
Special Correspondence OF the Argus.
WAsnINoroN, Sopt, s, 1s!

have outstanding paper, payable on
demand, amounting to S27, 900, 600
and only $lS,579,5 ,565 of available
cash on hand to meet that paper,
would tho commercial world consi-
der him solvent ? Not much.
Well that is precisely the present
condition of tho United States
Treasury. There arc more than
S27, 900, 900 OF tho four.and .a-half
per cent bonds which were not pre-
sented for extension, and which
now simply stand for notes payable
on demand, and there is, leaving
out the fractional silver coin and
other funds that cannot legally be
paid out, only s1s, $40, ,565 OH hand
to pay them with. Secretary Fos-
ter is said to have u schomo by
which he expects to bulldoze cer-
tain of the larger national banks
into buying all of these bonds and
presenting them for extension, and
it is for that purpose that he has
announced an indefinite extension
of the time within which they may
be extended at 2 per cent. But il
is by no means certain that he can
succeed, and already since Wednes-
day, on which day the interest
ceased, nearly 1000, 900 worth of
these bonds have been presented for
redemption, and the most of them
came from National banks. That
made o big hole in the available
funds, and besides these bonds
there are big pension payments to
be made this month. On paper
Secretary Foster figures out q cash
balance of more than 500, 900, 600,
but he knows, as we'll MS every
other business man familiar with
the affairs Of the Treasury, that tho
amount mentioned above represents
every dollar which he can legally
pay out.
| Candidates for the vacancy on
the board OF Interstate Commerce
Commissioners, made by the death
Of Hon. w. l.. Bragg, OF Alabama,
are becoming extremely plentiful
around town, and Secretary Noble,
under whose province it is, is a
much sought man.
Col. l.. l.. Polk, the president Of
the National Farmers Alliance.
who is now here, is being somewhat
harshly criticized by both friends
and foes among Southerners for the
| light and airy manner in which he
disposed of the many personal
charges made against him by the
Raleigh News & Observer, and Of
the report that he contemplated
challenging the author OF the char
ges to fight a duel. This is the
way he speaks Of it Il: "If any one
wants to fight duel with me | have
not been informed Of it. The thing
is lot Of nonsense" Col Polk
may think it lot Of q" nonsense ,,
to be called a "poltroon and coward
but that isn't the way others regard
it, and accordinging to the Southern
idea it is he that should want TO
fight u duel with the man who is so
openly abusing him, instead Of
waiting to ascertain whether anyone
wants TO Gght a duel with him.
Men opposed TO the code under any
circumstances say that Col. Polk
should have his assailant arrested
for criminal libel, but the enemies
Of Col. Polk sly that dare not take
that course because il he did the
charges against him would be proven
in court. Thus the matter stands.
but there can be but little doubt
that it is iujurinQ Col. Pclk's
standing, and mas arc predicting
that it will result IN his being
deposcd from the Alliance presi-
dcncy.
1t is considered certain that Con
gress will order an investigation Of
the last census, and it is equally
certain that some very qucor things
will be brought out by the investi-
cation. 10 Is said by those who
have familiarized themselves with
the subject that all Of the recent
census bulletins, purporting to give
the assessed valuation Of property
] bv Ctofoe are ufrouo, o,1 tl.t t