Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1892-03-24
Washington Letter.
(From our Regulsr Correspondent.
Washington Mar II 1899


laying his answer to the dispatch sent
him on the inst, for the purpose of
allowing the fleet of Canadian seal
poachers to get to sea before this Coy
eminent had any opportunity to serve
notice upon the owners of the vessels
to keep out of Behring sea, this week
directed acting Secretary of State
Wharton to inform Sir Julian Paucefote,
the British minister, that he desired an
answer to that dispatch at the earliest
possible moment. The Presidents
reason for desiring an early answer is.
that upon the nature of that answer will
depend the wording of the orders
Issued 10 the revenue cutters and naval
vessels which will shortly be sent to
Behring sea. The request will also
have the effect of convincing Lord Sal
isbury that the President means business
and does not propose TO put up with
any nonsense, even from the alleged
mistress of the sea-" Lord Salisbury
has promise an early answer.
The dangerous illness of Senator
Morrill, has cast gloom over the Sem
ate wing of the Capital, gwhere. every
one is the friend of the Senior Vermont
Senator. His age gives him but slim
chance in fighting pneumonia, which is
the dreaded foe of the strongest men,
Mr.. Morrill, has been in Congress, first
in the House and then In the Senate.
since 1855.
Secretary Blaine continues to i'm
prove, although he has not yet ventured
out of the House. He has not decided
upon taking a trip to the South, but he
may do so.
Secretary Foster has returned much
improved in health by his flying trip to
Europe. and he also picked up while in
England in an unofficial way, some
financial information that will be found
useful to him in his official capacity.
Commissioner Raum took the wind
out of Representative Cooper's sails by
telling the House investigating commit
tee that while ready and willing to
answer any question or to give any
desired information about the Pension
Office or anything relating thereto he
would not answer questions about mat
tiers pertaining exclusively to his private
business affairs. The Commissioner is
generally commended for having taken
that stand. His official acts are prop
erly under the control of Congress, but
with his private acts and business Cob
gress has nothing to do.
The President and Secretary Elkins
were compelled by pressure of import
ant public business to decline invitations
to attend the annual st. Patrick's day
banquet of the Hibernian Society of
Philadelphia.
Colombia, Hayti and Venezuela are
the only countries that will feel the
heavy retaliatory hand of Uncle Sam,
all tho rest of the countries concerned
having either completed reciprocity
agreements with US or got them so near
completion as to let them out. The
| Presidents proclamation issued this
week restores the duty upon sugar,
! hides, coffee and tea from the above
named countries until such time as they
shall give notice of their having re-
moved the duties they now impose upon
he agricultural and other products of
this country. 1t speaks volumes for
the success of reciprocity that only
three countries have to be retaliated
upon.
! A more absurd statement was never
made than that of the democratic ma
jority of the House WAYS and Means
committee that they had concluded to
postpone the talking of vote on the
free wool bill from the q inst. to some
| indefinite date in the future in order to
accommodate members who wished to
speak ON that measure. The speeches
that the democrat have made on that
bill might just as well have been made
on any other bill, and the real reason
for postponing vote is that the demo-
Gratis are not ready to call up any other
free trade bill. there being a difference
of opinion among them as TO which of
the proposed bills attacking the Me
Kinley law shall be next called up.
The details of the French reciprocity
treaty, further than that Minister Reid,
who negotiated it, considers them very
favorable to the United States, are not
vet known to the State Department
The democrats of the House do not
expect to succeed in repeating the act
to increase the efficiency of our ocean
mail service. commonly known as the
''Mail subsidy act. and their only