The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1898-12-30

| The Democrats in Congress may not succeed
| in Defeating the scheme to Increase the regular
army to lO0. 600 men. but they intend that the
| country shall be thoroughly acquainted with
| the enormous and decentralization which
! tuUse who are behind the scheme are trying to
| put upon the Poop Z. The report ot the minority
| of the House Committee on Military Aifai's
| signed by every Democratic member of the
| Committee has been ii ed with the Clerk or the
| Euuse-owius to tn, railrpaGlug of the Hell hill
| through til, Committee ard reporting it 20 the
| House before the holiday =; cess. they had to
prepare i after Congress adjourned -gnd it is
| an interesting document. It points olt that
| while al army Of 100000 men would l.,
mcua-" to cur liberties il time of peace, il
would he too weak to cope with any iirSt-ClasS
| power in war: that the cost of the Hun hi!l
would be about S151,Ono Ou0 Il year, which
added to our Pension payments would bring
| our Military expenditures up to nearly 500
900 oob more than is paid by any nc Of those
great European nations which keep their
| armies practically on a war footing all the
time Here is a clause OF the report, especially
deserving consideration: ut Is well under
stood that The great corporate interests Of the
country demand this large army for obvious
reasons. \ President with such II force behind
dom Of speech, and even desecrhtc the ballot
itself" The democrats On the committee ac-
company their report with bill, with which
they will put the House on record, by Offering
it IA Il substitute for the HUI! bill. II provides
for regui army of thirty thousand men, and
for the enlistment, for not more than two
years, of 80, 900 volunteers, for service in the
new possessions Of the L. :. aud in Cuba. There
/. at 10 Ia rllur wa.
Will have any actual need for an army OF mere
than sc, 0G0 iccn two years hence, rs the Islands
which we are now compelled to garrison are
likely to be either governing themselves hy
that tire. or owned hysornc other government.
Professor Blair, OF y -, who is in Washing
ton, said THE purpose of the North Caro-
linans to follow the example OF Mississippi,
South Carolina and Louisiana. and accomplish
the part al dsfranchist III nj of the negro. is
worthy and )mmcndabc of all supporters Of
the institutions Of this country. Il is quite in
line with the most advanced idea OF the Nc
kineY administration. represented by Senator
Cullom's Hawaiian Cummi sion, which, hy the
way, has modelled splendid plan fer the dis
franChisemeut of the North Carolina negroes,
without Intentionally doing such thing. The
bill he has reported, DISTINGUISHING the natives
| of the Hawaiian Islands, is very good one, in
that the natives of the Islands are not lit TO
govern an American territory. If this is true
in Hawaii. it is doubly true in North Carolina"
Gen Miles badly frightened number of per-
sons, and some Of them hold L. ). Commissions,
when he said that he WAS making personal i'll
vcstigdtion into the sending of "cmbalmcd''
beef to our soldiers in Cuba and Porto Rico.
An in7estigation-u real investigation is about
the last thing anybody connected with that
"cmbatmcd" beef wants 10 see, because, in the
first place, it would show that those high in
authority agreed to making an experiment
that endangered the health ana hives of thou
sands of soldiers for no more apparent reason
than that ii would be very profitable tor those
who sold the gov rument the "cmbalmrd"
beef.
Senator Gray, the Only Democratic member
OF the Peace Commission, which mas just re-
turned from Paris. bringing the official copy of
the Treaty of Peace, expressed pleasure to
learn that Democratic Senators generally had
accepted Col. Bryau's idea, that the question of
expansion was not in amy way involved in the
treaty, and that consequently there would be
no party opposition TO the rutiii, alton Of the
treaty. Failure to rutify the treaty might
cause international complications, while its
rgti1icn ion will clear the deck for domestic
contest, as 10 whether we shall keep the Philip
pines give them their Independence or dispose
OF them to some otkcr country. Senator Gray
declined to express an opinion on tins matter,
further than to say that he was 4 Democrat.
which probably means IDat IL Will oppose oar
keeping toe hiIipprc'.
There is one thing connected with the Treaty
of Peace that may force All extra session Of the
next Congress. That is the $50, 900, OOO, which
we have got to pay Spain. Tie Treaty
provides that this money shall he paid within
six months after the interchange OF ratification
Of the treaty between the two governments;
also that the treaty shall be ratified within six
months from the datr it was Sgt ed. It is tx-
pectct that the Senate will ratity the treaty at
this session, but both Senate and House will
have TO pass 4 bill approprIating the money.
II the present House fails to pass the appro-
priatlon, an extra session u. the next Congress
will have 10 bt called to get within the time