The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1893-12-16
m our Regular Correspondent.
Washington Letter.
WASHINGTON, Dec. II, Is

WASHINGTON, Dec. II, 1898.
"Unless l am very much mistaken
that man has all the symptoms of
softening of the brain" The man who
spoke those words was one Of the few
administration Senators, and he was
referring to Mr.. Cleveland whom he
had just seen. Whether the Senator
was right in his diagnosis your CORE
spondent does not pretend 10 say
but it is becoming evident that Mr..
Cleveland's friends think there is some
thing the matter with him. His actions
have of late certainly been queer. He
is impatient, cross and almost insulting
to the few Senators and Representatives
he condescends to see at all, and when
they afterwards get together and COM
pare notes they find that he is change
able and inconsistent as well. Every
discriminating person who has taken
the trouble to compare the style OF the
literary work upon his annual message
with that of his messages during his
first administration must have discovered
a great difference in them. This may
OF course, be largely owing to the fact
that Dan Lamont finds the duties OF
Deputy President so exacting that he
has no time left to assist in the prepar,
alton of executive documents. Be that
as it may, Mr.. Cleveland's triends-he
sees no one else, except in public
way-are certainly showing among
themselves uneasiness about his mental
condition.
The democrats in the House are
acting more like lot of badly demora
lized school boys than statesmen.
They promised that the new tariff bill
should be reported to the House on
the first day of the session, and the bill
has not yet been reported, although
Mr.. Wilson promises that it shall be
this week. The democrats OF the Ways
and Means committee have already
made dozens of minor changes in the
tariff bill, thus acknowledging that it
was not properly considered before 1t
was made public. They are now
squabbling among themselves about
submitting the bill to caucus before it
Is reported, and democrats are openly
saying that they will not vote for the
bill unless certain industries in their
districts are protected. The House
committee on banking and currency,
which has been wrestling with that
plank of the Chicago platform, which
promised the repeal of the tax on state
bank currency, plank, bv the way,
that Mr.. Cleveland absolutely ignored
in his message. has arrived at no con
cIusion, although its chairman-the
much sat upon Springer, of Illinois,
has made public hodge podge of
absurdities that could not possibly be
carried into effect, even if they were
enacted, showing what alleged progress
the committee has made.
The democratic members of the
Ways and Means committee are at
daggers points concerning the items
that are to be included in the internal
revenue bill, which ought to have been
ready simultaneously with the Cleye-
land tariff bill, A majority OF them
favor personal income tax, but they
hesitate about incorporating it in the
bill because of MIR. Clevelands pre-.
mature announcement, in his message,
that the committee had agreed tG lax
the profits of corporations only.
Meanwhile the holiday recess is in
SIGHT and nothing h2s been accom-
plished.
In obedience to the demand of TIE
Senate resolution passed last week all
of the Hawaiian docu2sssssss' = ss:s3sssssz
week be se ess..si a-si.as'