Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1896-04-18
CLEVELAND OFFERS MEDIATION.
Secretary Morton's Bunco Game
Public Printer Benedict Defiant.
(From our regular correspondent.)

(From our regular correspondent.)
WASHINGTON, April I3.-It is said
Mr.. Cleveland has paid sufficient
Difference to those Cuban resolutions
to ask Spain to accept the mediation
of the United States in negotiating
with the Cuban insurgents for peace;
but, according to current gossip. he
doesn't wish Spain to agree and
doesn't expect it. According to stor-
les whispered in inside circles, the
fine hand of ex-Secretary Billy Whit
ney is playing the game for Mr.. Cleve-
land, having succeeded in persuading
him that the only salvation of the
Democratic party lies in working up
feeling towards a war with Spain.
The offer to mediate is made for the
purpose of convincing the world that
the administration favors peaceabie
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 deep game, to take advantage
of the general sympathy of this coun-
try for Cuba to boost up the lettering
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 record in the
date of adjournment. So far as the
House is concerned, it would be easy
enough to adjourn by the first of May,
as there remain only two appropria-
ton bills-fortifcation and general
defciencies-to be disposed of, and
the first of those will be passed this
week. Unless the Democratic Sena-
tors become obstructionists just to
delay adjournment, it is regarded as
probable that adjournment will occur
somewhere in the neighborhood of
May IS.
Senator Cullom denies very en-
phatically that he has written or in
tends to write letter withdrawing
his name as candidate for the Presi-
dental nomination, and Senator
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 agricu1-
tural department are charged with
having deliberately and Intentionally
misrepresented facts to Senator Proc
tor and Representative Wadsworth,
who acted with Secretary Morton as
a committee to award the contract for
seeds for free distribution, in order to
get the bid of Chicago firm, which
was $40, 900 below that of the firm
which secured the contract, thrown
out. They charge that Secretary
Morton represented that the seed sub
mitted as samples by the Chicago
firm were found poor, when as mat
ter 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 Sec
rotary Morton told his Congressional
associates on the committee of award
that the Chicago firm declined to as
sumo possibility by printing their
name upon the packages of seeds they
proposed furnishing, when that firm
had stated both orally and in writing
that it would cut its bid $40, 900 if al
lowed to print its name and address
on every package. They charge
further that Assistant Secretary Dab
ney worked against them because
they refused to use certain patent
bag filling machine advocated by him.
It is very serious business if these
charges can be substantiated, and the
men who make them say they can be.
Public Printer Benedict has had
collision with the Civil Service Com
mission concerning the eligibility for
reinstatement of certain printers dis
charged by him after the Government
Printing Office passed under the Civil
Service rules, and the matter has got
before the Senate Civil Service Com
mittee. According to one of the wit
nesses before that Committee, Bene-
dict said to member of Congress who
called on him to secure the reinstate-
ment of one of the dismissed printers,
on the ground of the Civil Service
Commission having declared him
eligible for reinstatement without
examination: II don't care what these
d-wet nurses say" The Committee
will investigate and make report.
Democrats are trying to persuade
Senator Hill to once more become the
Democratic candidate for Governor of
New York, but Mr.. Hill has such
vivid recollection of the drubbing adj
ministered TO him by Governor Nor
ton that he ism inclined to regard the
matter at all favorably.
The House Republicans held eau
Gus to exchange opinions on the two
immigration bills now pending, one
radically restricting immigration and
the other slightly amending present
laws. Owing to the difference of
opinion among Republicans it is re-
garded probable that the question
will be allowed to go over to the next