The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-03-07

OUR State In CONGRESS.
Many Things That Will
be of General In
tereSt.
NEWARK PORT BILL ALL RIGHT.
What 1t Costs to Collect Federal
Revenues Here-That Big
Ship Canal.
PORT BILL ALL RIGHT.

transportation act to the city of Newark,
whereby goods will be sent from the port
of entry in pond without breaking bulk,
and its friends including members of both
parties. there was little doubt Of its pass
age or approval by the President. 1t has
now become a law and will be put in OPP
GRAFTON Immediately. Another thing
in favor of Newark was that, while
it must prove of great benefit to
the commercial interests Of the city,
the cost of conducting the official
business at the port will not be increased.
rs the customs officers are already on
hand.
The Court of Claims having rendered a
Judgment for S., $50 i'll favor of Mary H.
NUonan of Jersey City, Senator Blodgett
has asked the Committee on Claims to
report i'll favor of its payment. The
money is due for rent of property in New
o. leans. used by the army during the
war.
IN Chief of Engineers has sent to
Congress d communication recommend
ing the improvement OF Goshen Creek, N.
j., so as TO provide a low water depth of
three feetRAp TO Goshen Lending, the cost
of which would only be S12, 600. The i'm
provement will probably be permanent.
In former times. considerable shipbuild-
ing was ChllICQ OA AL II kLOCEs II oui-
ing the fifty years preceding 1880, when
the channel was tHled up, it is stated that
from two to three vessels of from 300 to
AGO tons measurement were annually
built. Since the obstruction of the
mouth in 1880 this industry has ceased.
PATENT LAW REVISION.
Judge Buchanan. who is a member Of
the Committee on Patents, has in charge
Il measure prepared by him authorizing
the President to appoint a commission to
revise the patent laws. Such d revision
is necessary. particularly at this time. as
material changes are required to meet
the rules framed by the Convention for
the Protection of Industrial Property con-
GUIDED at Paris in 1883. and the similar
convention held at Madrid III 1890. Be-
You'd this the proposed commission is to
designate such Statutes, or parts of stat
uIes, as in their judgment ought to be
repealed. Before taking any final action
the committee expects to hear from
patent experts and otheIS interested in
Industrial property on the subject.
General Joe Wheeler, the Sheridan of
the Confederate Army. is strongly OPP
posed to the bounty Jumpers ~ dress
parade soldiers drawing pensions. He
says because he was a Rebel he is not OPP
posed to pensioning Union soldiers, but
they should have been, in his opinion,
real soldiers, who suffered from cold lead
and endured the hardships of war.
w uGel6E, uOW u SJDSICSSlidu 4lIOLl Ald-
bama, is as Dig a man in stature as Ma
hone, of Virginia, or as was Alexander
H. Stephens, OF Georgia, which is saying
that III size and weight he is very diminu-
tive. What he lacks in size, though. he
makes up in activity, n characteristic pc
cullarity in his cavalry operations during
the war. Grant once said when Wheeler
was cutting his lines of communications
that he would rather capture the elusive
cavalryman than any officer in the Con-
federate service. But this was not done,
as he escaped Imprisonment until in the
last days of the var he was taken
with Jeff Davis, whom he accompanied
in the celebrated flight as a body guard.
PENSION REFORM.
To carry out his ideas about the pension
system he lays down these propositions:-
Soldiers who did not engage in any battle
nor incur my disability. while In the
service, and who served less than three
years, shall receive not more than three
tourths the pension rate fixed by law;
and any such soldier who served less than
two years shall receive not more than
one.half the pension rate fixed by law,
and any such soldier who served less than
one year shall receive not more than one
fourth the pension rate fixed by law.
General Wheeler says an examination
of the pension roll develops the fact thai
many soldiers of the war, after a brief en-
listment, during which they did no actual
service aEu leIb tuG dTiuy WIIHOuu luCut-
ring any disability whatever, are now
drawing the same pension as soldiers who
served four years, engaging III many
battles and receiving wounds from which
they nave continuously suffered.
Mr.. Chris. Bergen has introduced a
bill of general application to the mail SER
vice and of interest to those whose postal
facilities depend upon the Star routes
and their permanency. 1t provides that
the Postmaster General after providing
by general advertisement for the trans
porlation of them mails in any State may
secure any mail service that may be-
come necessary before the next general
advertisement, by posting notices, for a
period of not less than ten days, in the
post offices at the termiDi of any route to
be let, inviting proposals for the perform
ance of the proposed service. The con-
tract for such service shall be made to
run to the end of the contract term under
the general advertisement. Temporary
service, it is provided. may be employed
by the Postmaster General without adj
vertlsement.
1t is understood this measure has the
approval of the department., and it is in
tended to give those living adjacent to
routes operated under the star service a
chance to secure Such contracts for carry
ing the mails. AT present, as Is well
known, under the present system of spec
ulative bidding. whereby the ring con-
lldStOlp 6OooAS ~ 1900 wa
tracts, the home people are frozen out,
and if they have n connection with the
postal system at all it is as sub-contractors
under the ring" men, who get all the
work they can for the least possible out
lay of money.
THE SHIP CANAL
Members OF The Committee on Rivers
and Harbors do not take much stock Just
at this time, with the Treasury almost
empty, in the ship canal scheme brought
forward by Judge Buchanan. to connect
the Delaware River with Raritan Bay.
They say it will not be the policy of The
committee to make recommendations at
present for any new works OF this kind
which will entail Il large expenditure OF
money. Said Mr.. Blanchard, the chair
man. TO your correspondent;-"The Com
mittee on Rivers and Harbors are exactly
in the position OF the managing editor of
a great ne wspaper; the question is not
what to put into our bill, but what can
he left out. While we would like to print
eyerything submitted to us, the volume
ri the measure which it is proposed to re-
mort will not permit of a fraction of the
appropriations desired being included
therein"
The Committee on Appropriations have
been asked by the Secretary of the Treas
ury to allow an appropriation of S117, 0e6
to make good a deficiency due New Jersey
for the maintenance of disabled volun-
teers in the Stale Home. For the last
wear the State was entitled TO. under the
law granting TO the States 800 for each
soldief so supported, the sum of 3l,25O,
kl. N nnANHnny n ThA