Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-04-24
TILL AUGUST.
Not Much Hope Of Adjourn.
ment Before that Time.
Work is Dragging Along--Cantcr
People Proud Of President.
gWhv Rich Men Get Oflices-1he Great Cos
oil Entertaining:
TILL AUGUST.

WASHINGTON, April 23-(SpeciaD--
national capital is degenerating INTO :
,lullncss that is almost like that OF mo-
summer. With the house in short session
only two days week, the senate dronlng
along without very much doing ana res
ident Mckinley going provokingiy SLOW III
the matter Of appointments to ONCE tnihss
are becoming quite monotonous. AUG, .
time they will be much livelier. The tarlH
bill will be up in the senate, and tnere
will be some sharp debating. In q lew
DAYS Senator Morgan promises to cal up
his resolution for the recognition oi 'ne
Independence of Cuba, and this Is sure 10
stir I'D the animals. Then there IS pros
meet that after a bit Speaker Reed Will
conclude to appoint the committees OF 1ne
house and permit that body to go to WORK
to some extent, though at very lelsureiy
uace. Every one in Washington at all IA
miliar with the situation is making pre-
parations to stay here till August.
Trouble Over the Rates.
The senate finance committee is making
fair progress in its revision OF the Dlngley
bill. While there are great many amenu'
mcnts am told they are not OF great I'M
portance The difficulty in putting rates
up or down 1 have already explained IN
this correspondence. There are too many
interests we'll represented here, too many
influential men fighting one another, TO
secure much of movement one way OF
the other as to those things which enter
into the life of trade. The senate commit
tee likes. however to have it said that 1t has
rcmodelcd the bill. 1t likes the sound OF
$3.50 senate amendments, SO that writers
for the press can dilate upon the manner
in which the upper branch has taken the
house bill and turned it inside out. The
number of amendments counts for good
deal in the minds Of ordinary observers,
irrespective of their actual Importance.
The senate amendments will be very nu-
merous. Many of them, however, are mere
matters of language and Others are trivial
There has been quite a competition for
places upon the finance committee OF the
senate. Mr. Hanna and Mr.. Burrows of
the west and MI. Plat and Mr.. Sewell OF
the cast have been ambitious for place up
on this important committee, without
doubt the most important and influential
in the senate. Quite good deal OF feeling
has been worked up between the rivals.
especially Platt of New York and Hanna,
though it has all been good hulnored.
A Bold, Bad Senator.
In this connection there is a good story
on Senator Burrows, which no one enjoys
better than the senator from Michigan him
self. At the recent Republican senatorial
caucus one of Mr.. Burrows friends, and
he has rs many of them as any man
know, suggested as q reason why Mr.. Bur
rows should go upon the finance committee
was that he had as member of the lower
house served on the ways and means com
mittee and helped frame the Mckinley
tariff bill.
WELL said one bold, bad senator, "if
Mr. Burrows has sat in the lower house
and served upon the ways and means com
mittcc he ought by this time to under
stand the constitutional provision which
requires revenue bills to originate in the
house of representatives.
This was INVITING on facts, for not long
ago Mr. Burrows in an absentminded mo
ment actually introduced tariff bill in
the senate. All the other senators are jok'
ing Mr. Burrows about his tariff bill.
Scarcely day passes that President Nc
Kinley does not have as guest at luncheon
or dinner one or more of his old friends
from Canton. The Canton people who
come to Washington are very proud OF
their townsmen, the president, and they
are also very proud that he does not forget
his old neighbors now that Ire has become
the chief magistrate. "That is the sort o.
a president to have" said one of them tt
me. "Why, Major Mckinley is just thu
same man he always was. He treats III
just as he used to when he was congress
man, or even when he was our prosecuting
attorney. He is the greatest man you eve
saw to remember all the old folks and al
the children, and all the relations ut home
and he always wants to know how the,
are getting on. You can't help liking ,
man like that. Around the White Hous
the employees tell me every one idolize
him. He is so kind and CHEEKY to then
all. But wish the major wouldn't worl
SO hard. 1t is beginning to show on him
He Is not as strong as he was when he lief
Canton to take up the cares of state, ant
when we come down here and run in t.
zee him after not having laid eyes on hin
for couple of months we notice tn
change. We tell him to pull up too, an
he promises to do It, But Ill wager h
won't as long as there is a man, woma
or child that wants to see him."
Sons of the Rich Only.
It is getting to be quite the fashion i
this country, just as it is abroad, to al
point the young sons of rich men to tn
secretaryships and assistant secretaryshiI
of our legations and embassies abroad.
asked one of our new foreign minister
why this was so, and he paused to explain
"Well, you see," said he, 1.-THE demand
upon q minister or ambassador are yer
great at the place of his official residence
Americans are great travellers. Every ola
there are a lot of callers at the embassy {
legation They have a pretty good opinio
Df themselves too. They want to be ente
tained. They have read of the big salari'
which we pay our foreign representative
and they think it only fair they should |
asked out to dinner. They like to sa
when they get home that they were ente
tanned by ambassador So and So or Mil
lister Such and Such. To entertain all the.
people, or even those whose official or s.
cial rank entities them to attention, is t.
much of a strain on the minister. So
contrives, If he knows his business, to ha,
a secretary who can take certain grade
these Americans off his hands. These a
the lower strata of the dinner people. The
there are Americans travelling witho,
wives-or other ladies-young fellows Y
turn these over to the assistant secretar
He is expected to show them the town. /
dividing up the tack we manage to g