The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-04-16
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
lFrom Our ReguIar Correspondent
WASHINGTON, April 10, 1896.

bjOUS W dSh DDdlIl W dCCOIO GHC
mediation of the United States in
negotiating with the Cuban insur-
gents for peace; but, according to
current gossip he doesn't wish Spain
to agree and doesn't expect it,
According to the stories whispered
in inside circles, the fine hand of
Secretary Billy Whitney is play
ing the game for Mr.. Cleveland,
having succeeded in persuading
him that the only salvation of the
Democratic party lies in working
up feeling towards war with Spain.
The offer to mediate is made for
the purpose of convincing the world
that the administration favors a
peaceable settlement and will only
resort to other methods when Spain
refuses to entertain mediation, and
to gain time. War is not wanted
now; it might be all over before the
meeting of the Democratic national
convention, not to mention the
November election. 1t is a deep
game, to take advantage of the
general sympathy of this country
for Cuba to boost up the tottering
Democratic party, and to go into it
it was necessary for Mr.. Cleveland
to go against his real wishes, as he
had been from the first apparently
on the side Of Spain.
Unless something unexpected
turns up to prevent Congress is
likely to break the long session rec
ord in the date of adjournment. So
far as the House is concerned, 1t
would be easy enough to adjourn by
the first of May, as there remain
only two Appropriation bills-fOrti-
fications and general deficiencies-
to be disposed Of, and the first of
those will be passed this week. I'm
less the Democratic senators become
obstructlonists just to delay adj
iournment, it is regarded as proba-
BILE that adjournmen will occur
somewhere IN the neighborhood of
May 18th.
Senator Cullom denies very en-
phatcally that he has written or
intends to write a letter withdraw
ing his name as a candidate for the
Presidential nomination, and SEN
ator Quay's friends make the same
denial in his behalf.
Secretary Morton is in hot water
again. and unless the men who are
making the charges against HIM are
out of their reckoning he may get
badly scalded before he gets out of
it. He and his assistants IN the
Agricultural Department are char
ged with having deliberately and
Intentionally misrepresented facts
to Senator Proctor and Represent
alive Wadsworth, who acted with
Secretary Morton as committee to
award the contract for SEEDS for
tree distribution, in order to get
the bid of a Chicago firm, which
was $4,000 below that of the firm
which secured the contract, thrown
out. They charge that Secretary
Morton represented that the seed
Submitted as samples by the Chi
cago firm were found poor, when as
q matter of fact the official records
Of the tests made by the department
experts show them to be as good in
every respect as those sent by the
firm which secured the contract;
that Secretary Morton told his
Congressional associates on the
Committee of Award that the Chi
cago firm declined to assume
responsibility by printing their
name on the packages of seed they
proposed furnishing, when that firm
had stated both orally and in writ
ing that it would cut its bid $40, 200
if allowed to print its name and
address on every package. They
charge further that Assistant Sec
rotary DabneY worked against them
because they refused to use certain
patent .bag-filling machine advoca-
ted by him, 1t is a very serious
business if these charges can be
substantlated, and the men who
make them say they can be.
Public Printer Benedict has had
3 collision with the civil service
commission concerning the eligibll-
ity for reinstatement of certain prin-
ters discharged by him after the
Government Printing Office passed
under the CIVIL Service rule, and the
matter has got before the Senate
Civil Service Committee. Accord
ing to one of the witnesses before
That committee, Benedict SAID to a
member of Congress who called on
him to secure the reinstatement OF
one of the dismissed printers, on
the ground of the CIVIL Service
Commission having declared him
eligible for reinstatement without
examination: 81 don't care what