The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1898-01-13
WASHINGTON.
From our Regular Correspondent.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 9TH, 1898.

the antl-ClVl SeTVlCe republicans IN
the House into keeping quiet, by
promising that he would modify the
civil service rules as soon as the agi-
tation ceased, was fiat failure. The
fight on civil service began as soon as
Congress reassembled. Gen. Gros-
venor even lett his friend, Boss
Hanna, who is fighting for his life at
Columbus, in order to be in Washing
ton to lead the assault on the civil
service fort. And the ants are not
confning themselves to talk. They
have introduced bill in the House
providing that only those government
employees with salaries from 5000 to
$500, inclusive, and in places where
there are twenty-five or more Federal
employees shall be under the civil SER
vice law. The answers of three men,
bers of the abinet,-Sherman, Gage
and Wilson-to Senate resolution
are also in the nature of a fulisade
into Mr.. McKinley's rear, as they
each say that the rules ought to be
so modified as to exclude number
of places in each of their departments.
The silver men in the Senate are
showing signs of an intention to take
the aggressive. In line with that in
tention was a resolution offered by
Senator Teller, declaring that all
u. S. bonds are payable in silver
dollars, at the option of the govern
ment. This is not a new idea. The
resolution offered by Mr.. Teller is
identically the same that was offered
in the Senate nearly twenty years ago
by the late Stanley Matthews, of
Ohio, and at that time adopted The
Finance Committee, to which this
resolution was referred, will be sure
to report it back, as majority of the
Committee are silver men.
The administration having succeed
ed in whipping all the republican
Senators into the support of annexa-
ton, Senator Davis has given notice
that the Hawaiian treaty would be
taken up next week.
Representative Benton, of Mo,
thus gives his opinion of that alleged
Monetary Commission and its report:
speaking after the fashion of our
plain western people, think the COM
mission and its report combine
stupendous exhibition of gall. Who
made the commission The Indian
apolis monetary convention. And by
what authority What act passed by
any law making body gave life to
this convention or its progeny, the
Commission ? For whom do they
speak ? OF y hom is this Commission
composed ? Is there practical cot
ton-planter on it ? No; yet we rails
ed in 81 $27s,ooo,ooo worth OF cot
ton at the lowest prices for many
years. What representative wheat
raiser is on the Commission to repre-
sent the makers of 53o,ooo,ooo
bushels of wheat ? Is there to be
found representative cattle and hog
raiser on this Commission Is there
a practical miner of coal, iron, lead
or zinc on it :? No. Who on this
commission represents the carpenter,
mason and other mechanics? Nobody,
well, if this vast army of people repre-
senting more than thousand million
dollars of production annually and
sixty millions of people have no mem
ber to speak for them by authority,
who do these eminently able and
respectable gentlemen represent ?
Simply money, stocks and bonds,
owned and controlled by few thou
sand persons, who have by aid of leg.
islatfon cornered four-hfths of our
national wealth, and insist on future
Legislation being enacted to suit their
condihon." MIR. Benton says further
that the legislation recommended by
the Commission is for the purpose of
making money scarcer turning over
the paper money to the keeping of
those they represent, and enabling
them to control markets and buy pro-
ducts at their own prices, adding in
conclusion "In my view, the whole
report of this commission, when boil
ed down, means "We want the law
so charged that every bond, every
dollar of silver and paper must be re.
deemed in gold, and that National
banks shall alone be empowered to
omit paper, and more, to have the
restrictions now on the Statute books
removed so that the banks will be
responsible to no one by law"
Some of the shrewdest political OBJ
servers in Washington, members of
all parties, agree that Gov. Bushnell
and the anti-Hanna republicans OF the
Ohio legislation have made it certain
that neither Mr.. Mckinley nor any
other Ohio man will head the republi-