Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1891-07-31
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER
l.-..1f ,"--.s spnudcu,r "f the STANDARD. 5
" N~uI\.TnN Julv 10 1901

W N~HiNDTuN. July 10, 1881.
The administration is in peck q
trouble. and tclcgrams have been hv
ine th.k and fast To- and from Wash
luctlu and the Presidential cottage a
'apr Mag Point, but for the very goo,
reason that had Mr. Blaine'S advic,
been taken the administration woul,
NOT have lrcn in its present very un
peasant prCdIcamcnt, no telegram.
have been sent 10 Bar lIarhor. The
cause of AL this i the Gillian insur
gent steamer ltatl, which it has cost
Ia hrlng into the harbor at san Diego
California, more than 100000. It is
now feared hv Attorncy-GcncrAl Miller
and Secretary Tracy, upon whose
opinions A. lawyers Mr.. Harrison was
persuaded To sanction tho orders which
sent th" Charleston in pursuit OF the
ltata. IN spite ui Mr.. Blaine's opinion
that thI> Government mad no legal
night 10 take possession of the steamer
after -hc had gone outside of the three
mile limit, that mistake has been
made
II, ~ i now believed here, the court
shall decide that the Itata has not vio-
lated our neutrality laws. the Chilian
insurgents, whose agents and attorneys.
now here, claim that they represent
I the only constitutional government of
chill, will demand that the United
states pay a heavy cash indemnity for
having intcrfcrcd with their success hv
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 Balmaccda govern
mcni, and maybe before the thing is
finally settled somebody's reputation
will get badly smirchcd
This incident has again strongly
shown that Mr. Blaine is the brains of
the administration. Everything that
hc ha- opposed has turned out lisas-
trnusly ior his party. He was opposed
| I" the outrageous usurpation of power
/ lay Speaker Reed; the Force bill, and
I the Mckinley hill, which by superhu-
man efforts he succeeded in having
modified by lacking on as an amend
ncnt the good old Democratic doctrine
OF trade reciprocity, although it was so
restricted in the bill as enacted into n
law that but little benefit, further than
showing the benefits which would nat
urally follow II general extension of our
! trade with foreign countries. the trade
/ Of which il really worth having. and
the wis'om "f that opposition was un-
mistakahly demonstrated by the cy-
clone of last November.
Secretary Foster has announced his
Intention OF calling in the government
deposits in national banks, cxce1 (
about $4,000 900, which is, of course,
to hc left where it will be of the most
benefit 10 the Republican party. No.
thing that lac can do will, however. be
surprising after his audacity in putting
the 500, 900 900 of the gold reserve re-
dcmption fund and the fractional sill
yer on hand, which is hy law only Al le-
gal tender in sums of ten dollars and
under on the Treasury statement as
available cash to meet the current de-
mands on the Treasury.
Hon. l.. T. Neal, of Ohio, was in
town this week. having been called
here 10y the sad duty of attending the
funeral of his sister. Under the cir
cumstanccs he, Of course, would not
talk politics, although an attempt was
made 10y an unfeeling newspaper man
Ia interview him.
There is law on the statute books
of the United States which provides a
heavy penalty for any person or per-
sons in the employ of the government
who gives, or subscribes money to pur-
chase anything to be given to any
other employc of the government; but,
like many other good and sensible laws,
il il constantly violated and nobody
ever suffers for it. The latest violation
of this law was the presentation of
Mai Rathbonc, who has Just been pro-
NOTED from Chief Inspector of the
Postoilicc department to be Fourth
Assistant Postmaster General, an office,
10y the way, created solely for political
/ purposes by the Billion-dollar Con-
grcss. 10y the Postoilice Inspectors, who
had been his subordinates, of a $3.50
gold watch and chain. II is claimed
10y the Inspectors that Maj. Rathbone's
resignation as Chief Inspector, was ac-
ccptcd 10 take effect on the first of
July. and that ut the time of the pre-
scntation he had not been sworn in as
Fourth Assistant Postmaster-G General,
and that the presentation was no yio-
lation Of the law. These postofiice in
spectors are adopts in quibbling, but
il Is dollars To burnt matches that
when Maj. Rathbone draws his first
months salary the books of the dis
bursing officer will show that his pay
in his new Office began on the first OF
July; and II it did, somebody ought to
take the trouble to see that the men
who made the presentation are duly
prosecuted; but what is everybody
business is nobody's business. and it is
not at all probable that anything will
hc done.
The fact that Mr.. Wanamaker pro.
poses making big cut in the amoun,
allowed the southern railroads for the
fast mail service between New York
aud Tampa, Florida, which was origi
mated under the Cleveland administra
tion. is exciting good deal Of very IN
usual talk.
WAsIIISGToN, July IL, 1891.
II was not for Campbell first" sale