The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-29

the decree is evaded. Meantime spec
ulation in gold and silver goes on, and
there, as everywhere, the effort of gov
eminent to sustain it's issues by means
of making them legal tender proves
abortive, except to injure every one.
QUEER DOINGS IN WASHINGTON.
Secretary of War Alger went with
Col. Harrison Gray Otis, of California,
to the president to ask the appoint
ment of the latter gentleman as his as
sistant. In forty minutes, the vera
cious reporter assures the country, the
president convinced the colonel that
he could not be the generals assistant
because California had one cabinet
place in Judge McKenna's appointment
as attorney general, and two prom
inent places could not be given to one
state. 1t is not stated that Col. Otis
asked why the rule as to his state was
not good one to apply to Ohio, which
had the presidency, the secretaryship
of state, and has been trebly recog-
nized in the appointment of Joe Brig
ham as assistant secretary of agri-
culture.
And, speaking of Brigham, he must
have misunderstood his commission,
and took it to read secretary instead Of
assistant secretary. Or perhaps it was
because he is an Ohio man with all the
prescriptive, traditional and hereditary
rights, privileges and immunities Of
Ohio men, that led him to unfold to a
reporter, even before he had taken the
oath Of Office, what was going to be
the policy of the agricultural depart
ment. 'Tama" Jim has been SO mod
estly quiet since he sat down in Nor
toms chair, having ventured conf
dences to the public only on the topic
of sugar beet seed and such humble
and trivial matters, that Joe thought
something should be said about those
larger affairs that touch elbows with
nation. Any way, Joe had a big talk
about the foreign policy of the depart
an official, only going to-be. If those
COMPOUNDED Frenchmen and Dutchmen
didn't stop their pesky nonsense about
American pork and meat we will show
them a 'hio trick Well retaIiate
That's what we will do. And it is said
that Tama Jim thinks his assistant is
rather fresh.
Then there is Joe Smith, also of
Ohio. Joe has been Mckinley whoop-
er-up from way back. AS the sculptor
sees the statue in the unhewn marble
block, so Joe saw a president in Nc
Kinley long before anybody ever
dreamed Of it. Joe wanted recognition,
with salary attached, of course-and
Mckinley naturally wanted to recog-
nize his discoverer. But Joe had
once upon time said that
another Joe, one Foraker, had
to get out of Ohio politics.
and Foraker had it in for Smith. So
it was understood that Joe, which is
Smith, would be so non grata a persona
~ "OC' WHICH Is L OIdkeT, IndC no APP
pointment, with a salary, that required
the assent Of the senate, could be had
So, casting about for a place. that
Vermiform appendix of the service, the
director of the bureau Of American re-
publics, with $4,000 a year on the side.
held by Clint Kurdish, was picked out as
being about Joe's dimensions, especially
as to salary. Secretary Sherman forth
with bounced Clint and installed Joe
WhereupOn the other partners in the
bureau, the ministers from the other
Americas, which help pay the salary
intimated that under the original Jim
Blaine contract, they had something
to say as to who should be director
Sure enough, it is so nominated in the
bond, but the president is not to be de-
prived of substantially honoring Joe
Smith, and he informs the ministers.
so it is said, that Joe Smith will be di-
rector of that bureau And the min
listers are talking about having an OPP
GRAFTON performed and the useless and
troublesome appendix removed. Many
queer things are happening down in
Washington these days of the dis
pensation of pie