Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1897-12-31
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Hawaiian Annexation Mat.
ter.
The President Anxious For II - Pension
Commissioner win Urge the Publica-
sons Scrap.
WAsH1NaroN. De-. 27. 1s97.

] AAuA VI AaioN-4Nthn AS W oeuhloE w IL
sons Scrap.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 81, 1897.
President Mckinley believes that
the existing critical condition of af-
fairs in the far east, owing to the
grabbing of Chinese territory by
Germany and the contemplated
grabbing by other European nations,
makes it imperative that the annex
alton of Hawaii should be speedily
consummated, and he has lost no
opportunity since Congress ad-
journed for the recess to impress
his view of the matter upon such
senators as have called ON him. He
may send special message to the
senate urging immediate disposi-
tion of the annexation treaty, but
that has not yet been definitely de.
termined upon, and will probably
depend upon whether the senate
shows disposition to speedily bring
the treaty to vote or merely starts
in to kill time in windy discussion
of the subject. The president shares
the belief of Senator Davis, chairman
of the Committee ON Foreign Rela
sions, that sufficient votes to ratify
the treaty can be obtained in the
senate.
Hon. H. Clay Evens, commission
er of pensions, says on much dis
cussed subject: "The cry of pen.
sion frauds has become so common
of J tie that the people do not regard
it seriously. 1t was for the purpose
of proving the fallacy of this charge
that l recommended to Congress and
will urge in a bill, after the holi-
days, the publication of a complete
list showing each pensioner, his ad-
dress, disability and amount of pen
sion received, which would do more
to stop this idle chatter than any
thing this department carr say,
The possibilities are great, and
everyone knows a man apparently
in the best of health, attending to
his daily duties, may have disabil-
ity which entities him to a pension.
This is hard for some people to see.
Perhaps, if they had an X-ray ap-
paratus with them, there would be
no difficulty. This list would show
what was the matter with such men
, and why they received pensions
But best of all, it would bring to
light the frauds which do exist, and
we all know there are some. But
| say without fear of contradiction
that in no other business enterprise
where so large an amount of money
is disbursed, are there so few mis-
takes"
Had Senator Wilson, of the State
of Washington, who is one of the
most accommodating and obliging
men in Congress, known that one of
the yellow journals of New York.
The yellowest of them all-in-
tended. to make him have a personal
encounter with a member of the
House, in the private Office of At
toney General McKenna, he might
not have left Washington in ad-
vance of the alleged occasion. but as
the yellow fellow didn { inform him,
he went away from Washington be-
fore he was made to engage in that
scrap, and has not yet returned.
There was no surprise in Wash
ington at the verdict of the British
! American Commission, chosen to as
sess the damages for seizures of
British ships in Behring Sea by the
United States. The total amount of
damages claimed was about 81, 500,-
900, and during the last administra-
tion, Secretary Gresham and agents
of Great Britain agreed upon the
sum of 1926, 900, and Mr.. Cleveland
asked Congress to appropriate the
money, but Congress refused. Then a
commission to settle the matter was
= provided for. With the official re-
cord of president and a secretary
of state having said that 1926, 900
ought to be paid, there was no possi-
billty of our representative on the
Commission getting a lesser amount
5 named. The award is $464, 000
. President Mckinley will forward
this finding to Congress in order
that the money may be appropriated
and paid.
Mr.. G. D. Stapleton, of Iowa, who
spent Christmas in Washington, is
proud of the Republican party OF
his state, of which he says: " The
Republican party of Iowa is better
organized, better managed and has
better decipliDe than in any other
state in the Union. The Iowa Re
$ publicans number in their ranks, q
S goodly list of able men, but for year;
they have with unanimous accord
agreed to abide by the leadership ot
one whom they all revere and ad
! mire-Hon. VIM. b. Allison. 1t il
, worth while belonging to a party
, that acts in such spirit of unisoI
: and displays so much sound sense il
a politics. The result of good leader
ship and loyal following in Iowa i
seen in the long continued domina
ton of the Republicans. If the Re
publicans were as sensible and fire
o from internal pickering elsewhere a
y in Iowa, their ascendency in the ma
: ton would be permanent. "
y Most men who know anything a
n all about the subject win admit tina
A there is no man who knows Obi
4 politics better than President Nc
Kinley. Knowing this, and tina
70 President Mckinley has not had
" single doubt of the election of Sena
ss tor Hanna by the Ohio legislature,
Do why the ridiculous stories of defeS
e tions among Republican member
l. of the legislature have found no Gre
dence in Washington, either anon