The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1896-02-08
Our Washington Letter.


1t remained for Senator Wolcott To
strike the first discordant note heard in
Congress in connection with President
Cleveland's Monroe doctrine message
and the appointment of the Venezuelan
Boundary Commission, which he de
clared to be menace rather than a guar
antee of peace. That Mr.. Wolcott is a
brilliant orator is conceded by all. but
that he is too shallow ever to become a
statesman was well known before he de-
livered that speech attacking Secretary
Olney. President Cleveland aud the Mon
roe doctrine. Oratory is a gift, while
craftsmanship can only be acquired by
deep study and long experience, with
| more than the average amount of brains
to start with. Had Senator Wolcott
confined his remarks to opposing the
Monroe doctrine resolution reported to
the Senate by the committee on foreign
| relations he would have been in good
| company, as many of the strongest
friends of the Monroe doctrine consider
that resolution ill-timed and badly word
ed, but when he tried to jump upon the
| administration for its action in patriotic
ally upholding the Monroe doctrine, and
upon the doctrine itself, he found him
self alone.
Although there are lots OF strong silver
men among the Democratic members of
the House and Senate, with the excep-
ton of Representative Bell of Colorado,
who is more of Populist than Demo-
crat. not one of them took part in the
silver conference recently held in Wash
ington, for the purpose of making ar
rangements for holding national silver
convention to nominate Presidential
ticket. All of the silver Democrats were
invited to participate in this conference,
but, regarding it as merely tail to the
Populist kite, they declined doing SO. In
fact nearly all the members of Congress,
even the Populists, seem to have turned
the cold shoulder to the silver confer
ence, which was composed of nearly the
same men who at the last silver confer
ence nominated Sibley OF Pennsylvania
for President. sts .so
Tim Campbell, who for a considerable
period represented one of the New York
City districts in the House, and who,
when he failed to secure the Tammany
nomination, ran as an independent Dem
ocrat and was defeated by Henry Miner,
the Tammany candidate, has been turned
down by one of the home election COM
mittees. He contested Miners seat, but
the committee decided against him.
Tim says he'll try again. Personally,
Tim is very popular in Washington. He
originated the expression. "What's the
Constitution between friends?" which
was jocularly quoted by Senator Hill the
other day.
The departure of Miss Clara Barton,
president of the Red Gross Society, for
Armenia, and the reporting of a resolu-
ton expressing sympathy for the Ar
menians and calling upon the European
powers to give the protection guaranteed
them by treaty, to the Senate, brought
that matter quite prominently to the
front this week. Through the efforts Of
Mr.. Terrell, our minister to Turkey, the
Sultan has agreed to allow Miss Barton
to enter Armenia for the purpose of dis
tribuiing money contributed by our PEG
pie for the suffering Armenians.
Secretary Olney has furnished Con-
gress with all the information in his pos
session concerning the Cuban revolution.
The hot-heads in Congress are still adyo-
eating immediate recognition of Cuban
belligerepcy, bnt the conservatives who
counsel moderation for. a while longer.
are still holding back.