The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1899-05-31
PREPARING FOR
A BIG ARMY.
Scraps Of Interesting Polltl'
cal Gossip From Wash,
ingtOG.

| Washington, May ~ -Inere IS
something decidedly suspicious in
the news from the Philippines. Not
line OF press news can be cabIed
from Manila until it has been approx.
ed by the United States military
censor, and it is not likely that he
Would approve anything the ad-
minist1ation did not wish made
public. Hence the publication
of the statement that it would
be impossible for Gen. Otis
to conquer even the entire island of
Luzon, not to mention the remainder
of the group, so that it would stay
conquered, without a large increase
in his army, was allowed to pass the
censor for purpose. Not being in
the confidence of the administration
few persons, even among the most
prominent republicans. are-it can
not be positively stated what that
purpose is. but the inference is that
it is intended to pave the way for
one of two things cali for volun.
teers to reinforce OTIS, or to make
the people of this country satisfied
with some dicker that is about to be
made with the Filipinos, and which
they would naturally be inclined to
be dissatisfied with The preponder.
ance of oninion in Washington is
that it means more volunteers.
Orders have been sent to the civilian
| members of the Philippine commits.
sion that they must do nothing to
interfere with the military plans of
Gen. Otis, which is confirmation of
the reported wrangles in the COM
mission.
After holding it back for many
months, Mr.. Mckinley has issued
his much advertised order modifying
the civil service rules 1t doesn't
appear to please anybody overmuch
1t excepts total of somewhere in
the neighborhood of four thousand
places from the operation of the civil
service rule. but as most OF those
places are already filed by republl-
cans, it will make comparatively
little new patronage for the repub'i-
can leaders. 1t doesn't touch the
government printing Office, which SO
many republicans have been trying
so hard to get thrown open to them
So far as the party workers are con
cerned, the order is likely to do more
harm than good to the republican
party.
Representative DaIzell, of Penn
sylvania, who stands about as much
show as Payne, the New York anti
Plstt candidate, dropped into Wash
ington day or two ago and
announced that be was candidate
for speaker. He could not control
three votes in the Pennsylvania dele
CATION, counting his own, to save HE
| neck Bingham is the dummy can.
didate of the Pennsylvania delega
ton, and will remain such until Quay
decides who shall get these votes.
No surprise was caused in Wash
ington by Senator Platt's fat-footed
declaration that Mckinley aud Ho-
bart would be renomineeed. So far
as Mckinley is concerned, Piatt has
been mor;gaged since early in the
present administration his endorse
ment of Hobart means that if be
ever had any idea of helping 10 get
Roosevelt second place on the ticket,
it has been abandoned, but whether
because he wasn't pleased with
Roosevelt or whether the latter
wasn't pleased with the idea OF
second place, is matter OF conjec
ture, but the former is more likely to
be true. The declaration of Senator
Penrose, who is Boss Quay's man
and mouth piece, in favor of McKin
ley's denomination is nothing more
than a bid for administration help for
Quay in his contest to get his seat
in the senate This was doubtless
pleasing to Mr.. Mckinley. whether
he means to help Quay or not, as be
found Quay decidedly "uppish' to.
wards the administration while he
was in the senate.
The administration was very par
ticular to have the widest circulation
given to the report of the beef court
of inquiry, but it has now discovered
that all of the $2O0,O 900 set aside to
pay for the inquiry has been used up,
aud has ordered work stopped on the
printing of the testimony, upon
which that report was supposed to be
based, after it had all been pu: in
type. 1t has all along been contend
ed by many that the administration
never intended to make the testimo
ny public, and this action makes it
look as though that contention was
correct
Secretary Alger has been putting
bis foot in it again. Several days