Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1897-08-12
WASHINGTON LETTER.


There are many opinions as to why
John Sherman should have returned to
Washington aud take charge of the state
department at this time. Some say that
the old man intends to make IL fight to
knock out the llannaMcKinlcy plan of
kicking him out the cabinet after the
Ohio election; others that he has a
scheme of his own to get even with the
| administration for the treatment he has
received by getting il into some new
foreign complication, but the generally
accepted idea is that he is in Washing
ton solely to enjoy bossng the state de-
partment, privilege that is denied him
when Mr. Mckinley and Assistant Sec
retary Day are in town. Mr. Sherman's
virtual acknowledgement of his ignor-
ance OF the nature of the instructions
given to Minister Sewall concerning
Hawaii is proof of how little he knows
of the important part of the foreign
policy of the administration. Mr. Day
has had exclusive charge of all matters
relating to Hawaii and Cuba.
ultilb OillNt blllIldlS HdNt ltSLllltu III
the diSbarrmGnt proceedings against
John Wedderburn Il Co., now going on,
that practically one-half of the nearly
$500 applications for patents filed by
Wedderburn & Co., during the past two
years, have been for what was unpat-
cntabIe, and that large percentage of
the remainder, which contained devices
that were patentable, were of such
triilng nature that it was practically
wasting money for their inventors to
pay for obtaining the patent. They
also testified that either knowingly, or
through lack of knowledge that should
be part Of the equipment of every
patent attorney, Weddcrburn ~ Co.
have sought TO secure money, and often
secured it, from these would-be nven-'
tors as fees for applying for foreign
patents and for advertising for sale
these unpatcntabe devices.
Of course every man has a right to
have and express an opinion upon sub
jects before the public, and yet opin-
'Diio w Va l'I'coth III outA Il way
as to make man appear to be gloating
over the misfortune of something that
he opposes, which causes them to strike
most people as being in bad taste, or
even worse. To the latter class belongs
the publicly expressed opinion of Mr..
Preston, director of the United States
mint, on the decline in the price of sill
YER With the usual gall of the know
it-all Mr.. Preston tells the public not
only that he knew the decline in price
was coming but that he knows the de-
cline is going to keep on until the price
gets down to 40 cents an ounce The
belief is Irresistible that Mr. Preston's
talk represents his wishes rather than
his knowledge on this subject
The order just issued by Commissioner
of Patents Butterworth, providing that
all attorneys practcing before the
patent office shall be registered and
prescribing the rules which must be
complied with in order to get upon that
register, is one Of the most important
tNtl lNSbtu bb d Yum III IlNSIOlltl Vi IubCnlS,
aud reflects credit upon Mr.. Butterworth
both as a lawyer and as an official. His
laudable aim is to raise the tone Of the
patent bar, which has suffered in credit
by the liberation on the part of the
patent Office of loose practices on the
part of a few of its members.
The Spanish minister has only to tip
the wink to the secretaryo of the treasury
to put all Of the machinery of the United
States customs service to work at fill
buster hunting. His latest was an ale
cation that arms were about to be
shipped from Bridgeport, Conn, or
Whereabouts, to the Cubans Special
| orders were at once sent to all the OFF,
GERS Of the customs service in that
| vicinity to turn themselves into dctcc-
tiyes to please the Spanish minister
John w. Foster, the gentleman who is
credited with having written the in
Structions to Ambassador Hay that were
signed by Mr., sherman, has returned
| from his sealing mission to Europe. lie
says it was succcSsful; Prof, Elliott, of
the Smithsonian Institution, says it was
Hat failure. Which of them is right
will not be known until after the inter
national conference, which meets in
Washington next October, shall have
| been held.
Not little joking has followed the
the naming of the new submarine
torpedo boat, which small party Of
officials went over to Baltimore to see
launched from the Columbian Iron
Works. Teddy Roosevelt, who is al
/ UnvS trvipc tn do Sntnothinu ont nf thu