The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1895-06-12
WASHINGTON LETTER.
: re0uIar correapondent,

WASHINGTON, June Z, 1880.
Ha6 Mr.. Cleveland tried he could
hardly have selected a secretary of state
who wouldshave been more displeasing
to the democratic leaders in congress
than Attorney General Olney. Mr..
Olney does not lack ability, but the
ability he has is not the kind which |
makes q successful secretary of state.
He is utterly devoid of that spirit of
affability IN dealing with men which has
always been considered prime neces-
sity in the makeup of diplomat. He
has so conducted the business of the de-
partment of justice that the average
congressman prefers when he has busi-
ness with that department. to transact it
in writing rather than to take the chance
of being personally anubbed by Mr..
Olney, as his present colleague, Post
master General Wilson, was when he
was chairman of the house ways and
means committee and the recognized
leader of the democrats in that body.
BY the way, speaking of Wilson, if he
had not been postmaster general he
might have been secretary of state, but
since he joined the cabinet he has shown
himself to be too much of q narrow gauge
man even for Mr.. Cleveland, who is cer-
tainly far from being broad-minded
himself.
There is more or less dissatisfaction
among democrats over Mr.. Cleveland's
method of selecting Attorney General
Olney for Secretary of state. Although
there were score of men prominent in
democratic councils near enough to
Washington to have been called into
consultation without delaying the filling
of the vacancy or inconveniencing them,
no advice was asked of any Of them, and
about the only democrat outside of the
cabinet who has seen Mr.. Cleveland was
Senator Gray, of Delaware, who is known
as q cuckoo, but not as leader.
The convention of the republican ma
tional league, which will assemble at
Cleveland, Ohio, on the 10th inst, is
regarded by most republicans as a vir-
tual opening of the presidential cam
paign. All reports brought to Washing
ton indicate that the attendance viii be
large and enthusiastic, including nearly
every man who is recognized az one of
the national leaders of the party. Ex-
President Harrison, Gov. Morton and
Chauncey M. Depew have not yet ac-
cepted the invitations extended to them,
bat it is probably that they will.
Among those who have accepted invita-
tions and who will attend the conven-
ton, barring sickness or accidents, are
ex-Speaker Reed. Gov. Mckinley, ex-
Gov. Foraker, Gen. Russell, A. Alger,
Senators Allison, Dubois, Thurston,
Garter, Lodge, Nelson, Burrows and
Patton. One of the features of the con-
vention will be a mammoth harmony
dinner to be given in the evening of the
second day. This dinner will be served
on the ground floor of the Arcade build
ing, and the tables will be set for 1000
guests, and provided with the best eata-
Sbles to be obtained. The galleries above
the ground floor are half mile in length
and will accommodate more than 5000
republican men and women, who will
naturally want to see the greatest har-
mony dinner ever proposed eaten by the
delegates to the convention and their
guests. Republicans are not alarmed at
democratic predictions of trouble in the
convention, because they know that the
basis of the predicted trouble-the sill
yer question and the booming of some
particular candidate for the presidential
nominations composed of matter over
which the convention has no legitimate
jurisdiction, and with which it will not
attempt TO deal.
Retribution is sometimes almighty
slow, but it nearly always gets there
just the same. Charles B. Morton, q
Maine democrat who was made commis-
sioner of navigation by Mr.. Cleveland
in his first administration and auditor of
the treasury for the navy department
early in the present administration as q
reward for the scaYenger work he per-
formed in the campaign of personal abuse
that was waged against the late James
G.. Blaine in 1884, was this week sum-
marily dismissed from the latter Office
by Mr.. Cleveland, and, to make the de-
delayed retribution all the more salts
factory to decent people, Morton was
f1ismiaood for avooflx fbo ao,na raoaoy,