The Press., 1897-08-12
Washington Letter.
Washington, Aug. 2, 1897.

WashlngVon, Aug. Y, loS.
 The return of Secretary Sherman to Washington and his resumption of his duties as secretary of state, at this time, when almost the entire administration is | on vacation, has started the rumor mill to working over time, although Mir. Sherman declares that his return has no | significance whatever; that he resumed work because he felt liko 1t, and that he intends working right through the rest of the summer, unless a spell of warm weather should drive him away for an- other little rest. Most of the rumors are connected In some way with Japan and Hawaii, but this may be because of the reported intention of minister Sewall to declare e protector ate over Hawaii, which was brought on one of last weeks steam CTS, or because of Secretary Sherman having officially notified Japan that the United States would not guarantee the carrying out of the arbitration between Japan and Hawaii.
 Some of the facts brought out in tho hearings now going on before the patent office, in which John Wedderburn Co.,, are being allowed an opportunity to show cause why they should not be dlsbarred from practice before that office for fraudu- lent practices, should greatly interest the inventors of the country. For instance, patent office officials have testified that of the more than 3,7O0 applications for pat ents filed within two years In that ofll1e by Wedderbu & Co, more than 1900 have been absolutely unpatentable, for lack of novelty and the patentable points, in a large number of the remainder have been of such an insignificant nature as not to justify the inventor in paying the cost of obtaining patent; and that the firm has solicited and In many cascs so- cured additional fees for applying for foreign patents for these unpatentable devices, as well ss sought and obtained money for advertising the same for sale, either knowingly or through ignorance of what any efficient patent attorney should have known.
 If Mir Preston, director of the U. s. mint, Is a trustworthy prophet tho decline in the price of silver Is likely to continue until about onefourth of the present price has been chopped of. Speaking of the matter, MT. Preston said "I see no future for eIlver whatever. 56 cents an ounce is the current quotation. It Is my honest opinion that within six months silver will fall to 40 conts an ounce. There is nd for Thfna fS 1nf buying any, Japan Is out of the business, and there seems to be no demand for 1t in any country to any extent, even to use as subsidiary coinage" Other men of pro- minence who have studied the silver question long and earnestly declined to put themselves on record us positively as MT. Preston does. but nearly every one questioned whose opinion Is entitled to weight expressed grave doubts about the future of silver.
 The interior department is now wrest- ling with new problem, which, while 1t does not involve any great important question is more or less interesting, be- cause in it are tangled up the official fortunes of two Inviduals who have been nominated, and confirmed by the senate, for the same office, and who are both or their way, by different routes, to the scene of their future official labors but the official labor of one of them will be short lived, as his resignation will be demanded as soon as the official papers can catch UT with him. The story is not so compli 
 cated as might be supposed. As soon as the Sunday civil appropriation bill which authorized the appointment of additional U. 5. commissioners for Alaska, became a law, Senator Wilson of Washington succeeded in getting w. J. Jones, of his state, nominated for commissioner at St Michael, and his nomination was prompt ly confirmed. Then MT. Jones wrote tC Senator Wilson saying that he didn't wan the place and would resign and the sen ator notified the secretary of the interior In order to save time MT. l.. B. Shepard was nominated and confirmed, and start ed for St. Michael, the Klondike gold ex citement having added much importance to the position. When the interior de partment heard from MT. Jones, instead of getting his resignation, it got his bond properly approved, and the notification that he had taken the oath of office ant started for St. Michael. Both men can not hold the same office, and the depart
 ment has decided that MT. Jones has go
 to 1.-Two up to his letter to Senator Wilson and resign and it is supposed that he will do so as soon as he gets the communica
 ton sent him, but suppose he shouldn't
 There might be no end of trouble in Al
 aska before he could be removed.
 Hon. Beni. Butterworth, commissions
 of patents, has issued an order requiring all patent attorneys to beregistered in tn
 U. s. patent office, and stating the require : ments for registration. It Is considere' to be one of the most important order
 ever issued by a commissioner of patents
 and to be a long step towards the reform ation of some of the abuses of paten
 practice.
 Secretary Bliss has taken cognizanc of the rush to the Klondike's gold field
 and Alaska and has issued the following | Ar ho