Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1899-09-07
WASHINGTON LETTER.


tfrom oar Regular Correspondent
Washington. Scrt. >. 1899.
If the administration follows its present
method Of shnving its confidence in Gen
cral OILS to it's logical conclusion. there
will toe new commander in the Philip
pines before the fighting campaign opens.
1t began I" show its confidence in Gen'
eral Otis, who had continually declared
that ~ .tOJ men were all he needed. 10y
issuing the necessary orders to max" ,hr
full strength OF the army in the Philip
hines 40 .OON men: then il was decided To
make it 5000. and the orders under
which the ten new regiments are being
recruited will raise the number to t",ooo.
To I've logical the next order should name
a new commander Tor this large amy.
The proceedings in connection with the
order Ia recruit these last ten rc inlents
which. hv the way. will amos: bring the
volunteer army up to Tie limit set ny
cong ess. were an object lesson in the
NipI Nth'N IpI'tI "ili'ii ''liH ""'''i'''''"
liun has SO often adopted. At first il was
positively denied that the order wonld be
issued at all. ,hen it was said HAT the
regiments would I've raised, bnt w"nld
merely I've held as Il reserve, and al last ,
when it could no longer he hidden, il was
acknowledged that arrangements had
, 4. l.,s # nj
Manila about the first OF December,
which means that they will leave SAN
Francisco early in October.
The sending OF a big army to the Phil
ippinrs i, a political play On the part OF
the administration. rhis is recognized
Ly ali close political observers. The
opinion OF Colonel W. f.. Mclean, OF In.
diana, who WAS deputy commissioner of
pensions under the Cleveland admins
tration. and who is now IN Washington,
on his way to the q. \. K. cncampment,
to which he is a delegate at -la,ge, is that
OF thousands, regardless OF politics. lie
said: Zone thing is certain; ii the Phil
/
dental campaign comes on, it is good
bye to President Mckinley. The war
over here is fast growing in unpopnlariy.
The policy OF expansion is opposed by IL
great many western republicans, and the
democrats are nearly unit against it.
Speaking oi politics in his own state
n.,1, 81 I'm
demo c,at who is not for Bryan and the
Chicago platform is Il man without Il
party, and his position is so lonesome
that he almost feels as though he had no
country" Tie colonel knows, as he was
that sor; OF Il democrat himself in 1896
There is a paragraph in an official re-
Sternhe,g from Major John Il. lIofi, chief
surgeon Of the military district OF Porto
Rico, whic! is not calculated to make
new shouters ior imperialism among the
thoughtful. liz considering this very
serious matter, it should not be forgotten
that Porto Rico is the lealthiest of our
{
is almost too plain spoken to be quoted in
Il family paper. Suffice it to say that in
/ it Major lloff speaks Of The alarming
prevalence of private diseases among our
soldiers over there and says the indica :
tons are that It will not be long before Il
! large percentage Of them will be as thor
nj 1uI u mi of lati nn
He also points, out the danger OF return
/ ing soldiers spreading the contamination
at their homes, a danger which Great
! Britain has found to be of the gravcst
proportions in her experience with her
! tropical possessions. Something like this
has been said before, but it was hootcd
down as the talk Of an aurmist. 1t be,
gins to look as though the man who said
"the more you know about the tropics
the less desire you have to live there"
was about right.
According to high republican AUTHORITY,
Alger never was Il real candidate for the
senate and his announcement to that
effect was made after IL full understand
ing with Mr.. Mckinley, solely or the
purpose OF preparing a reason for his res
ignation from the cabinet. This may o,
may not he tru., but the announcement
several DAYS ago bv Mr.. Alger that he
was entirely OF t of politics, seems to beal
out the story. There has been so much
republican thickness in Washington that
one is never surprised to discover some
thing new in that line. The Hanna.
Mckinley crowd seem to prefer doing
even the most simple things in mysteri
Gus way According to the above men.
toned republican authority, "The real
truth is, probably, that the change finally
in the war department was compelled
not so much by the bitter opposition to
General Alger personally as to the neces
sity confronting the administl alton Of in.
iusing new vigor into the war in the
Philippines, which was languishing be
yond the period set for its successful
conclusion"
Volcanic EruptiOns