The weekly Thibodaux sentinel and journal of the 8th Senatorial District. [volume] (Thibodaux, Lna. [i.e. La.]) 1875-1898, 1897-12-18
WASHINGTON L
from our regular C0rresp ondent.)
WASHINGTON Dec. 10th, 1897.

WASHINGTON Dec. 10th, 1897.
S~ecretary Gage is about the only
member of the administration who
wonld really like to see his recon-
mendations for cinching the hold of
the single gold standard Oh this com
try become laws. Mr.. Mckinle; did
not dare to endorse the recommended
tions of his Secretary of the Treasury,
and he has no real desire for the
financial legislation he alf--hearted-
ly suggested. He knows that his
roundabout suggestion o: getting rid
of the greenbacks by turning them
into gold certificates could not get
Through Congress, even if only the
republicans voted upon it. He was
afraid that the recommendations for
amending the National banking laws.
so as to reduce taxation on National
bank currency, to allow currency to
be issued to tie face value of the
bonds deposited with the govern
ment. and to allow the establishment
of National banks with S25 900 capi-
tai in small places, might get through,
SO he added a proviso that he knew
would kill the whole-to make all
National bank notes fedeemable in
gold. The administration is simply
trying to bluff a portion of its own
party and the country. II doesn't
want any financial legislation. This
has already been made plain in the
House by the grab game engineered
by Mr.. Dinghy by which his COM
mittee-ways and Means-will take
charge of all financial bills and
smother them. Republicans have
also plainly indicated by their talk
that they had received %intimations
from the administration that no fin
ancial legislation was wanted. If
public criticism of its attitude makes
it necessary to strengthen it's bluff,
the administration will. through Mr..
Dingley. fix up a bill ana Jam it
through the House, knowing that
the Senate wo1ld not act upon it. OF
course, the people of this country
are fools enough not to know the
difference between this sort of thing
and real craftsmanship, and they will
be SO sorry that the administration
isn't Able to get what it doesn't want
sc sorry that they'll elect a demo-
cratic Congress next year.
The administration dosn't wish the
Nicaragua Canal question to he acted
upon by this Congress. and when Mr..
Mckinley said in mis- message that he
would have some thing further to
say on the subject when he submitted
the report of the Commission which
has just started for Nicaragua to
make a new survey and estimate OF
cost. under an act of Congress. he
was fully aware that the commission
was not likely to make a report be-
fore the death of the Fifty-fifth Con
gIess. In fact, it is known that MEM
bers of the commission were given a
broad hint before their departure
that their report was not expected
before March 4, 1899.
One Nebraska republican-Mr. Win
field S. StrawD, IN Omaha lawyer
has turned up in Washington who is
honest enough to publicly say that
the republicans haye M chances to
carry that State, either at the Con-
gressional elections next year or the
National election Of 1900. Mr..
Strawn says the republicans have not
been able to get back the farmer
votes they lost on the silver question,
and that they are not likely to get
them back so long as that question
Is unsettled.
With the exception of Senators
Morgan, of Ala, aud German, Of Md,
every democratic Senator is now lined
up against the annexation of Hawaii,
and the opposition among the repub-
licans already includes Senators Hoar,
Morrill, and Pettigrew. This makes
it impossible to procure the %two-thirds
vote needed to ratity the treaty pro-
viding for annexation, and the re-
publicans are already seriously think
ing of abandoning the treaty and
trying to secure annexation by ma
iority legislation. 1t looks a little
as though the annexation question
was going to be used by the Reed
machine to whack Mckinley over the
head. The Gar is understood to
have privately announced himself to
be opposed to annexation. In fact,
present indications are that before
this session has grown very old the
line between Mckinley republicans
and Reed republicans will be sharply
drawn.
If Spain isn't entirely pleased with
the situation at the Washington end
of the line she must be hard to please.
Il was a new thing for a President Of
the United States to devote nearly
half of bis message to Congress to an
argument in favor of allowing a fore