The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1897-03-04
WASHINGTON LETTER,
from Our Regular Correspondent
WASHINGTON. d. O.. Feb. %. 1907

1hoIo 10 duoIucT awful mlXup con.
cerning Cuba. Whether Consul Gener.
al Fitz Lee actually did send in his res.
ignation or only threatened to do so, be.
cause of the failure of the administra.
ton to support the demands he made on
Gen. Weyler in behalf of American citi.
zens arrested by the Spaniards in Cuba,
will not be positively known until Sec.
retary Olney replies to the Senate reso.
luton calling for copies of all the cores.
pondence between Gen. Lee and the
State Department, and there seems act.
ually to be doubt as to whether Olney
will comply with that resolution. The
feeling is general in Congress that the
administration really has never taken
Congress entirely into its confidence as to
its relations with Spain and as to its Of
fetal information, and nothing but the
fact that the administration will retire
next week prevents some vigorous action
on the part of Congress that would make
things warm for Cleveland and Olney.
1t would naturally be supposed that
Olney would have given Senator Sher.
man, who is so soon to succeed him as
Secretary of State, all the information in
his possession, but it is known that he
has not done 80. On the contrary, he
told Senator Sherman that there was no
important news from Cuba, when it is
known that he had in his possession
communication from Consul Gen. Lee
that was of the utmost importance. It
is difficult to account for Olney's pecul.
lar action in this matter, which has re.
vived much of the ugly talk about his
personal relations with the Spanish
minister, which was 30 prevalent some.
time ago.
Mr.. T. 8. Ellison, of Mimi, called up.
on an official of the P. D. D., who is q
personal friend, to get some idea of the
places outside of the Civil Service rules
in that department, for friend at his
home who has official aspirations. In
Mr.. Ellison's own words, this is what
occurred after he had greeted his friend
and told the nature of his errand "He
told me to get sheet of paper and write
down the places that had the law exclud.
ed as he called them off. got a sheet
of foolscap, and in my innocence imag.
ined that rather big job lay in front of
me. First said he, the Postmaster
General and a private secretary; then
four Assistant Postmaster Generals.
Here he came to pretty long stop, and
thinking that he was waiting on me, I
indicated my readiness to proceed.
That's all, he said. Holy smoke You
can't mean it! What! Only six places
in one of the biggest departments in
Washington outside of the civil service
rules But he did mean it, and recited
nothing but the cold facts, as I found
upon verifcation of his statement"
As rule republicans in Congress
think the address issued this week by
the Senators and Representatives who
bolted the st. Louis convention would
better have been left unissued. The
signers of it-among them is Senator
Jones, of Nevada, who at the last session
of Congress announced that he had left
the Republican party and become pop.
ulist-put forth the claim that they are
still Republicans, although they bolted
the Republican national convention and
at the present session of Congress de-
clined an invitation to enter the Repub.
lican caucus, and ask other Republicans
to sustain them by joining in the organ.
ization of silver Republican party,
This address was signed by six Senators
and four Representatives.
Visitors to previous inauguratione
haye criticized unfavorably the failure
to decorate the public buildings when
money is SO lavishly spent to decorate
the private buildings. There will be nc
such criticism this time, as the public
buildings are to be handsomely decorat'
ed and also illuminated on the night ol
March 4, as they have not been since
the capture of Richmond in 1865.
The first member of President Nc.
Kinley's cabinet to arrive in Washing
ton was Hon. James A. Gary, of Mary
land, and the second, Hon. Lyman Gage
of III. They are both on the lookout
for residences for their families. They
received cordial welcome from Senator
Sherman, their colleague to be in the
cabinet, and from the other Republicans
in Congress. Neither of them would
consent to be quoted on ou5iic matters,
on the ground that it is not yet time for
them to speak. Both gentlemen already
knew many Senators and members oil
the House and nearly all have since
made their acquaintance and those who
met them for the first time have moth.