Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1893-07-31
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, July "a, 1898.


nouncement was made months agt
that the administration in conjunction
with several eminent free traders in
tended to prepare tariff bill and tina
Secretary Carlisle's supposed knowl
edge on the subject was the principa
reason for his having been made Sec
rotary of the Treasury-his best friends
never claimed that he was selected
for his financial knowledge; they
couldn't, because he had none. This
was printed in all the administration
papers and was never denied unit
now, when Secretary Carlise Says thai
no tariff bill is being prepared, anc
neither he nor President Cleveland
ever Thought of doing anything
which might be interpreted as ar
attempt to dictate to the House what ii
should do in regard to the tariff" He
forgets however, to tell why this state
ment was not made long ago, which
makes the inference clear that the
free trade idea has been, for the time
any way, abandoned.
Democratic Congressman have al
ready begun to do some very plain
talking to Commissioner Lochren
pensions he has been making, and un-
less they are Quoted in some way a
number of them representing districts
having large number of old soldier
voters will join the republicans in
bringing this matter before Congress.
There seems to be a hitch some
where in regard to the House commit
tee chairmanships. Inasmuch as Mr..
Crisp's re- election to be Speaker has
been a certainty for months past it is
difficult to understand why there
should be any delay in announcing the
committees and it was not supposed
there would be. Mr.. Crisp's friends
have been saying ever since he was
here several weeks ago that he would
arrange the committees before he re-
turned and expected to announce
them just as soon as he took his seat
as Speaker; but, as / said, there seems
to be hitch some where, for these
same men now say that he hopes to
complete the committees within
week or ten days after Congress meets.
This sort of thing is mere child's play,
and this announcement is now made,
not because Mr.. Crisp does not expect
to have the committee assignments
all made when he comes to Washing
ton, next week, but because he fears
that the rows wich will follow his hav
ing obeyed Mr.. Cleveland's orders in
making these assignments will neces-
state making some changes after he
gets here before they are made public.
Comptroller Eckels wants to be Sec
rotary of the Treasury-that young
man has gall-and he is charged with
having started the last rumor about
the intended retirement of Secretary
Carlisle because of a disagreement
with Mr.. Cleveland.
Secretary Carlisle denies very en-
phatically the rumor which came from
New York, that he had been rendered
the vacancy in the Supreme Court
caused by the death of Justice Batch
ford But when asked whether he
would accept it if it were rendered to
him he was discreetly silent, as be-
comes a man who would be very glad
to let some other fellow hold up the
financial end of the administration, if
he could only read his title clear to a
in the Supreme Court.
His anxiety on the subject has not
been lessened by the statement made
several days ago by friend of Secre-
tary Gresham, and not up to this time
contradicted, that Mr.. Cleveland had
promised that the influence of the ad-
ministration should be eXerted to
make Gresham the democratic nomi-
nee in '96. Mr. Carlisle had been en-
couraging the bee to do little buzz
ing around his head, but he knows
there cannot be two administration
There is one set of democrats in
WASHINGTON who are not slow in ex-
pressing their dislike of the cheese
pairing in the last Congress, on at least
one of the appropriation bills. 1t is
made up of officials of the Post Office
who find themselves I'M
able to meet the expectations of post
masters throughout the country in the
matter of additional help, owing to
ihsufficiency of the appropriation.
These officials are already getting
some plain talk and it will probably
become palmer when they shall have
allotted the money at their disposal
for increased help at the Presidential