Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1897-04-19
WASHINGTON LETTER.
TsPEHAL CORRESPONDENCE OF rHR MONITOR
IK.aLs,a.I1a, 1aaa.iI oh 1907

TsPE ,IAL ooRREsPoNDBNoE OF rHR MONITOR
Washington, april 18th, 1897.
President Mckinley returned from
his little outing much improved. The
weather was more or less disagreeable
during the entire time he spent on the
Dolphin, but he got what he went af-
ter and what he needed most-resG.
He was at bis desk today looking
fresher than for several weeks.
Jerry Simpson made an attempt to
prove that he was bigger man than
the entire House, but he only proved
himself a monkey. He thought, or
rather he thought that he thought,
that he could compel Speaker Reed
TO appoint the committees and the
House to go ahead with miscellane-
Gus business, although majority had
decided that the legislation of the ex-
ira session should be confined to
passing the left appropriation
bills and the tariff bill, both of which
the House has done. Jerry made the
point of "no quorum" to prevent the
House adjourning from Saturday to
Wednesday, but Speaker Reed had no
difficulty in counting a quorum, and
Jerry found himself down while the
House adjourned. Whether he in
tends to get himself knocked down
every time the House meets just for
the notoriety there is in it, is yet to
be seen. 1t is evident that Speaker
Reed regards Jerry merely as an
t'amusing little cuss."
Secretary Alger, under whose di-
rection the 5000, 900 appropriated last
week by Congress for the relief of
sufferers by the floods in the Missis
sippi valley will be spent lost no time
in putting the machinery of the War
Department to work in order that
prompt relief might be extended,
wherever needed. It may be a hard
thing to say, but it is strictly true that
the Cleveland administration was re-
sponsible for much of the damage
done by the Mississippi river floods,
by it's policy of delay in spending
money appropriated by Congress to
strengthen and raise up the levees
along the Mississippi river at those
points where U. S. Engineer officers
had reported the necessity of such
work Reports are on file in the War
Department from Engineer officers,
made after Congress had appropr1at
ed the money, urging that contracts
be made and thes work pushed on
these levees had been completed. A
number of the breaks are at the
points reported weak by the engi-
neers and ordered to be strength
ened by Congress. For all the dam
age done by these particular breaks,
the Cleveland administration is clear
ly responsible.
President McKinley's announced
policy of reinstating all ex-Union sol
diers who were dismissed from Office
by the democrats for no other reason
than their politics, is being carried
out in all of the government depart
ments as fast as the heads Of the de-
partments can get around to the cas-
rs. In the cases Of the chiefs of di
visions, the democrats are being Civ
en- better treatment than they gave
T republicans. They are allowed to re-
main in office, in a lower position, in
stead of being dismissed, as so many
were under TIE last ad
A republican Senator speaking of |
the talk in regard to the appointment |
of Hon. Theodore Roosevelt, to be |
Assistant Secretary of the Navy being
likely to make trouble, said: Crosse
welt may make trouble in the Navy |
Department, but if he does it will be |
in the interests of a better admins
tration of it's affairs, just as he has
made trouble for the law breakers
of New York city who had long
police protection. I notice
in all the trouble stirred up by Roose-
welt, he has always had the support
of those who believed in showing up
and reforming wrong doing wherever
found, and I am willing to stand be-
hind all the trouble he makes in the
Navy Department"
Mr.. Cleveland's order reducing the
of Pension agencies, which
was to go into effect ON the 1st of
next September, will never go into
effect. Pension Commissioner Evans
has ascertained by investigation that
instead of saving money, as Mr..
Cleveland claimed, it would cost more
to support the consolidated agencies
He said on the subject: ''While I have
no authnritV TO sneak for the PreSi-