Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1897-04-21
Washington Letter.

appointments this week, among the
most important of which were Presi-
dent James B. Angel, Of the Michi-
gan state university, to be minister
to Turkey, and -Representative
Meikeliohn, of Nebraska, to be assist
ant secretary of war. This is not
Mr.. Angeles first diplomatic appoint
ment, as he went to China as minister
during the Hayes administration, es-
pecially to secure a revision of the
Burlingame treaty, and succeeded in
getting it. He is thought to be we'll
qualified to enforce the determined
policy Of the administration in MAX
ing Turkey pay for the property of
the American missionaries destroyed
by rioters last year. Mr.. Meiklejohn
/ served two terms in the house with
credit and will make an efficient as
sistant to Secretary Alger.
Senator Morrill,, chairman of the
! committee on finance, celebrated his
! eightyseventh birthday this week and
had the honor of making the motion
upon which the first tariff test vote
was taken in the senate-to refer
| Senator Vests resolution, declaring
! Secretary Cages order to collectors
/ of customs, concerning the clause of
the Dingley tariff bill making the
duties take effect April /, to be with
out authOrity-and of seeing his mo-
ton carried by majority of one.
When the Dingley bill is put upon it's
final passage it will have a larger
majority than that.
A noc&ul 'Noture of the Jefferson
| banquet Of the silver Democrats,
! which was sc manipulated as TO en-
dorse Mr.. Bryan for the silver Demo-
cratic nomination in 1900, was the
absence of gold Democrats. 1t was
combination Bryan-silver love feast
and only those were invited who were
known to adore the combination
There are no longer any sceptics
concerning President McKinley's in
tention to live up to the ST. Louis
platform, by making every possible
effort to bring about the acceptance of
international bimetallism by the great
commercial nations of the world. In
appointing three diplomatic commits
sioners to visit Europe and ascertain
by negotiation with other countries
what can be done to bring about an
increase in the use of silver as money,
he chose men who are widely known
as staunch advocates of bimetallism-
Senator Wolcott, of Colorado; General
Paine, of Massachusetts, and Hon.
Adlai E. Stevenson, of Illinois. These
gentlemen expect to start for Europe
in about months time, and will
probably remain there until the atti-
tudes of all the important European
governments are officially made known
to them.
The committee from the executive
board of the Tennessee centennial
exposition which came to Washington
to invite President Mckinley to at
tend the opening of the exposition at
Nashville on May l, went home de-
lighted. The president told them as
himself and cabinet would attend the
dedication of the Grant monument in
New York, on the 9th of this month,
he was afraid he couldn't be in Nash
vile as early as the opening day, but
that ne would be if he could, and
would certainly visit the exposition
and bring as many members of his
cabinet as could make it convenient
to accompany him, and that if unable
to be in Nashville at the opening he
would start the machinery from Wash
ington, by electricity.
Believing that the Carnegie and
Bethlehem steel companies are trying
to embarrass the government by refus-
ing to make armor plates for the naval
vessels now building at a reasonable
price, Senator Chandler has intro
duced two bills providing that the
secretary of the navy shall take pos
session of the armor-plants of those
two companies and manufacture the
armOr plate needed for the three
battle ships now under construction
and authorizing those companies to
bring suit in the court of claims for
their compensation. Representative
Cannon, of Illinois, who will be chair
, man OF the committee on appropria-
tlons when it is appointed, was asked
what could be done to meet the stub
born attitude of the armor-makers
!, and he replied: Il suppose we shall
have to remove the limit Of cost and
allow the contractors their blood
money. The ships must be finished,
and the armOr must be had. But if |
could have my way, [ do not think
any more armored sea-going vessels
would be built by the United States
very soon"
The constant clashes between the
men who made Representative Bryan,
Of Texas, the leader of the Democrats
in the house and those who wanted to
make Mcmillan, of Tennessee, leader,
are really amusing, and it is believed
that they are being slyly encouraged
by ''Slippery JIM Richardson, of
Tennessee, and ''Silver Dick Bland,
of Missouri, both of whom have aspir-
ations to be the leader of the house
minority. Meanwhile the house con-
tinues to meet and adjourn every