The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-07-17
NashingioN letter.

=
ln, administration Is IN q peck oi
trouble, and kilograms have been flying
thick and fast to and from Washington
and the Presidential cottage at Cape May
Point, but for the very good reason that
had Mr.. Biaine's advice been taken the
administration would not have been IN
its present very unpleasant predicament,
no kilograms have been sent to Bar Har-
Dor. The cause of all this is the Chilian
insurgent steamer Itata, which 1T has
cost to bring into the harbor at San Di-
ego California, more than 800, 900. 1t
is now feared by Attorney General Miller
and Secretary Tracy, upon whose opin-
ions as lawyers Mr.. Harrison was per
suaded to sanction the orders which sent
the Charleston in pursuit of the Itata, in
spite of Mr.. Blaine's opinion that this
Government had no legal right to take
possession of the steamer after she had
gone outside of the three mile limit,
that a mistake has been made.
If. as is now believed here, the court
shall decide that the Itata has not vio-
lated our neutrality laws, the Chilian in
surgents, whose agents and attorneys,
now here, claim represent the only con-
stitutional government of Chill, Will de-
mand that the United States pay a
heavy cash indemnity for having in
terfered with their success by refusing to
allow the Itata to deliver the arms which
she carried. There is some ugly talk
here about bribery bv the agents of the
Balmaceda government, and maybe be-
fore the the thing is finally settled some
body's reputation Will get badly
smirched.
This incident has again strongly
shown that Mr.. Blaine is the brains of
the administration. Everything that
he has opposed has turned out disas-
trously for his party. He was opposed
to the outrageous usnrpation of power
by Speaker Reed the force bill, and the
Mckinley bill, which by superhuman
efforts he succeeded in having modified
| by tacking on as an amendment the
good old Democratic doctrine of trade
reciprocity, although it was so restricted
in the bill as enacted into a law that
but little benefit, further than showing
I the benegts which would naturally fol-
/ low a general extension of our trade
; with foreign countries, the trade of
= which is really worth having, and the
/ wisdom of that opposition was unmis-
! takably demonstrated by the cyclone of
! last November
! Secretary Foster has announced his
/ intention of calling in the Government
deposits in national banks, except about
/ S15, ,000, 900, which is, of course, to be
/ left where it will be of the most benefit
/ to the Republican party. Nothing that
/ he can do will, however, be surprising
/ after his audacity in putting the frac-
! tional silver on hand, which is by law
only legal tender in sums of ten dol
lars and under, on the Treasury state
ment as available cash to meet the cur
rent demands on the Treasury.
Hon. l.. T. Neal, of Ohio, was in
town this week, having been called here
by the sad duty of attending the fune-
! raj of his sister. Under the circum-
| stances he, of course, would not talk
| politics, although an attempt was made
by an unfeeling newspaper man to in
! terview him.
There is a law on the Statute books of
I the United States which provides a
heavy penalty for any person or persons
! in the employ of the Government who
. gives, or subscribeS money to purchase
anything to be given to any other en-
ploye of the Government; but, like many
| other good and sensible laws, it is con-
stantly violated and nobody ever suffers
for it. The latest violation of this law
was the presentation to Maj. Rathbone,
who has Just been promoted from Chief
Inspector of the Postoffice department to
be Fourth Assistant Postmaster General,
an office, by the way, created solely for
political purposes by the billion-dollar
Congress, by the Postoffice Inspectors,
who had been his subordinates, of a
$3.50 gold watch and chain. 1t is
claimed by the inspectors that Maj.
Rathbone's resignation as Chief Inspect
tor, was accepted to take effect on the
first of July, and that at the time of the
presentation he had not been sworn in
as fourth Assistant Postmaster General,
and that the presentation was no viola
! ton of the law. These postoffice in
spectors are adopts in quibbling, but it's
dollars to burnt matches that when Mai.
Rathbone draws his first months salary
the books of the disbursing officer will
show that his pay in his new Office be-
gan on the first of July; and if it did,
, somebody ought to take the trouble to
see that the men who made the presen-
tation are duly prosecuted; but what
I everybody's business is nobody's busi-
ness, and itsn't at all probable that
anything will be done.
The fact that Mr.. Wanama[er pro-
poses making big cut in the amount
allowed the southern railroads for the
fast mail service between New York and
/ Tampa, Florida, which was originated
/ under the Cleveland administration, is
exciting good deal of very unfavora-
4 BILE comment. NJ