The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1893-04-28
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, April 18th 1893.

sued cancerning flags. People
have not yet forgotten the howl OF
Indignation that was raised during
his first administration when he is
sued an order directing that the
, battle flags in the war department,
which were captured during the
civil war by union troops, should
be returned to their original own
ers. That Indignation was so uni
versal, outside of the South, and
even there the order was not gen
orally favored, that the order was
never carried into affect, and the
captured flags are still in the war
department. The indignation over
his order to lower the American
flag which Minister Stevens had
raised over Hawaii months ago is
even deeper and stronger than that
aroused by the battle flag order.
but as yet it isn't so loud here, at
Washington, because, being an in
ternational question, prominent
men hesitate to publicly speak
their opinion about the lowering
of the American flag-the first in
stance of the kind on record, and
it is to be hoped the last-for fear
that it may injure American in
terests. But privately. condem-
nation of the act is heard on every
hand, and not little of it comes
from democrats. Even those dem
ocrats who tried to smooth the
matter over and talk about it's
coming all right in the end admit
their regret that the flag should
have been lowered upon Mr.. Gle
veland's order and by a man WHO
spent four of the best years of his
life fighting to destroy that flag
and all it represented. Perhaps
the members of the administration
are not familiar with a quotation
from Hon. William Maxwell Ev-
arts Our National Banner"
which is echoed in the hearts of
millions of American citizens,
ready and willing to fight, and to
die, if need be, for "Old Glory
"Let that banner wave forever,
May its lrstrous stars fade never,
Till the stars pale on high;
While there's right the wrong defeating,
While there's hope in true hearts beating,
Truth and freedom shall not die"
Had the sailors on the U. S. S.
Boston, now anchored in the har-
Dor of Honolulu, felt disposed to
sing the ''Star Spangled Banner,"
after the humiliating episode of
lowering the stars and stripes had
occurred, they might fittingly have
used a revised version of the ia
miliar worcs, something like the
following:
Oh, say, we can't see by the moons bright
light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's
last cleaning,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, in the
dim light,
" or bne TamparIS we watched, were SO
calantly streaming,
And the rockets red glare, the bombs
bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag
| was still there:
Oh, say, the star-spahgled banner doesn't
wave;
1t has been lowered by the band of a -
Raising the constitution of the
| q. S. as Il bar to prevent some
thing they do not wish to have
done is a very old trick with the
democrats in congress, and yet it
does seem surprising that they
should be willing to 60 before the
country with such tlimsy excuse
for not being willing to have the
charge of criminal embezzlement
against Senator Roach investiga-
ted. The republican senator's be-
ing a minority could not force the
democrats to vote on Senator
Hoar's resolution, before adjourn.
ing, but they could, and did, COM
pei the democratic majority TO put
itself OH record as being afraid to
allow this investigation to be made,
not because it would almost cei-.
tainly have resulted in the expul
sion of Roach, but because it would
have laid bare the methods by
which the election of Roach was
secured, methods far from credit
able. Republican senators are
willing to let the matter G, in that
shape to the intelligent people of
the country, for the present at
least. They will bring the matter
up again at the regular session of
congress, when they hope to be
able to compel the senate to take
action.
Half of official Washington will
pO down tn see the Interesting in