The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1893-06-15
WASHINGTON LETTER.
from our regular correspondent.l
WASHINGTON, June 9th, 1898.

CIeNelanu s formal announcement OF his
intention to call an extra session of Con-
gress in September has cleared up the
financial sky and that all doubts should
be brushed aside by everybody. This
would be very nice and very satisfactory
if it were true. But unfortunately it
isn't. The financial sky has not been
cleared by Mr.. Cleveland's announce.
ment, which read between the lines
informs the country that he doesn't
know what Congress will do with the
financial question after he gets it
together, and prays the people TO help
him to influence Congress to repeal the
Sherman silver law. Away the Sherman
silver law. The Sherman silver law
never was considered a very desirable
thing by anybody, and it only became
law as compromise to prevent some
thing getting through that was thought
to be even less desirable. But with all
its faults the Sherman silver law is not
responsible for one. tenth of what it has
been charged with by Mr.. Cleveland and
some of his advisers. Republican Sena-
tors and Representatives with few ex-
ceptions will vote for the repeal of the
Sherman law, but it remains to be seen
what the Democrats will do. 1t will in
any event take much more than the re.
peal OF the Sherman law to inspire pub.
lie confidence in this administration,
and public confidence is the thing that
is needed above everything else. "
The appointment of Tammany post.
master of New York City was double
slap in the face for the mugwump ele-
lnent. In addition to giving one of the
best Federal officer in New York to
hated follower OF Croker it was viola
tion of the rule that postmasters should
be allowed to serve out their full terms,
rule which has received the adu lation
of the entire mugwump tribe. The
term of the Republican postmaster would
not have expired until the 10th of next
December, Rules don't count under
this administration, anyway.
One of the most notable things about
this administration is the disposition of
every one connected with it, from. the
President to the head of petty bureau,
to regard the United States Government
as their personal property, to be used
as they may see fit. To read the daily
conversations, all duly chronicled in the
newspapers of the new Comptroller of
Currency, a foreigner would suppose
that he was the sole owner of the entire
national banking system. This young
man is doubtless honest and well.mean.
ing, but he has case OF the big head
that is bound sooner or later to get him
into trouble, Mark this prediction.
There is difference between efficiency
and officiousness.
1t is an open secret here that four
members of the Cabinet have at every
meeting of the Cabinet at which financial
matters have been discussed advocated
an immediate issue of bonds to the ex-
tent of $l00,OOO,O0 to strengthen the
gold reserve of the treasury, but Mr..
Cleveland will not agree to it; he is so
anxious to continue to impress the
"object lesson," which he is pleased to
call the present financial stringency upon
the country.
Secretary Gresham has temper which
often becomes stormy, and just now it is
in one of its stormiest periods The new
Russian extradition treaty was officially
made public this week, but one newspa.
per printed the treaty and all of the
correspondence between the two gov.
ernments one day before it was given
out by the depa, tment, and Mr.. Gresham
says it was stolen, and that it could not
have been stolen without connivance OF
some employe of the department. He
is trying to find the guilty man.
Secretary Tillman, of the National
Farmers Alliance, thinks the assistance
his organization gave to the Democratic
party in the last campaign deserves rec
ognition, and that his appointment to
be Register of the Treasury will just
about cancel the obligation. Mr.. Cleve.
lands we'll known hatred for the ALI.
ance and its foster brother, the Peoples
party, does not augur we'll for Mr.. Till.
mans prospects of getting an Office.
In view OF Mr.. Cleveland's expressed
confidence in the early repeal of the
Sherman silver law the opinion OF Sena.
tor Henderson. who has never been a
radical in his financial ideas, is signif-
cant. He says that the Sherman law
cannot be repealed by the next Congress,
unless it be coupled with free coinage in
some form. He thinks it probable that
the silver men would agree. to increase
the amount of silver in the dollar in
order to get free coinage, but that free
coinage they must have or they will not