The times., 1899-03-28
GENERAL WASHINGTON
NEWS AND GOSSIP.


Alger will not be member of Mr.. Mckin-
ieys Cabinet for any length of time. His
Gays as Cabinet officer are practically
numbered. There have been many reports
of Mr.. Alger' ssinpending withdrawal from
the Cabinet for some time past and the
TACT that MIR. Alger has continued to hold
on has created the impression that his pull
was all powerful and that no matter what
| might happen he would not be disturbed.
There can be no doubt that Mr.. Alger's in
huence with Mr. Mckinley has been very
potential up to the present time. This is
obvious as had it been otherwise Mr.. AL
ger would have been retired to private life
many moons ago. However. history dis
closes the fact that there never has been
political pull in Washington that could
! run on forever. New combinations and
new conditions are constantly arising that
| completely upset and disarrange the best
| laid political plans. The future historian
Will probably be compelled to acknowledge
! the fact that the Alger ring had the most
| powerful influence of any political comb
| nation that ever established itself at the
National Capital. The ramiications Of this
| particular set extend right up to the
| threshold of the White House and there
| are some people who assert that they even
| invade the sacred precincts OF that venera
| BILE mansion But it is apparent to those
on the inside as to what is going on today
| that no influence that can be brought to
| bear now can save Alger from practical
expulsion from the Cabinet.
His retirement has become a political
| necessity.
/ Mr. McKinley's second-term prospects
are involved. If Aiger stays in the Cab
met the chances are that Mr.. Mckinley
will not even be renominated by his party.
| Therefore it has been decreed that Mr.
Alger must be sacrificed. Your Uncle Mark
| Hanna has said it. and what your Uncle
Mark says goes at the White House.
Mr.. Hanna has never been accused of being
a sentimentalist. When the occasion seems
| to demand il he can be as cold and unfeel-
ing as an iceberg. Probably il he can find
a more available man than Mr.. McKin-
| ley between now and the meeting of the
| Republican National Convention next year
| he would drop the President and take up
with the other at once.
1t was pointed out yesterday that per-
haps Mr.. Alger might refuse to yield grace
| fully and would endeavor to get square By
| revealing unpleasant secrets IL forced to
| the>wall against his will. 1t is understood
that the members of the Administration
| circle have had this contingency in mind
| and have weighed the matter carefully
| They are convinced that, even If Mr. Al
| ger turns himself loose, he can do less
harm TO the Administration and the party
| than would result if he remained at the
head of the War Department
There is not likely to be any very lolg
delay at the White House. Apparently the
! Alger case has reached crisis. The Pres
| ident will be urged to remove Mr.. Algsr
| before he returns from Cuba and he may
decide to act upon this advice. According
to the inside gossip, General Horace Por-
ter, of New York, our present Ambassador
| at Paris, is booked to succeed Mr.. Aiger
as Secretary. of War General Porter is
| perhaps as unobjectionable man from
many pointsyof view as could be selected.
He has a fairly good military record. never
resigned in disgrace from the army under
charges of cowardice; has an amp'e for
| tune and clean, business record. In ad-
dition, he has good many personal quail
/ tiles that attract men to him. He would
certainly be- an improvement on Alger.
| General Wheeler for the Philip
pines.-The President is being urged by
army officers and others TO send Gen. joe
| Wheeler to Manila. From all accounts the
war in the Philippines is likely to be long
| drawn out and to degenerate into guerril-
la or bushwhacking campaign. General
Wheeler has the best record in the United
| States in conducting this kind of mil
! tary campaign. He is believed by military
men to have been the equal If not the su-
| perior N this respect of Gen. Stonewall
| Jackson or any officer in the Confederate
| army.
THE Administration, said an army
| officer yesterday, made a serious mistake
| in not sending General Wheeler to the
| Philippines at the start If Wheeler had
/ been on the ground am satisfied that the
l Philippine insurgents would have been
| licked to a standstill by this time: that
Aguinaldo would either have been killed.
| a prisoner, or a fugitive in the Jungle
| stripped of his followers and rendered
| harmless Fighting Joe Wheeler would
be right at home in handling the Filipinos
/ in the jungle. He ought TO be there now
/ but as he is not. the Administration should
! at least waste no time in starting him on
| the way. 1t could not make a wiser move
or one that would be received with more
| general approval by the people of the
! United States. As soon as the President
returns today | understand that recon-
| mendation TO send General Wheeler to the
| Philippines will be submitted to him If
| the President wishes to end the Philippine
war forthwith he will give heed TO the rec
| ommendation."
The Joint High Comm mission.-The
Joint II gh Commission, VIII ch was appoint
ed to settle all pending disputes between
Canada and this country and to arrange
new commercial treaty from a reciprocity
| point of view, came to a deadlock few
| weeks ago, as the Commissioners for the
| United States could not agree with the
| representatives of Canada and Great Brit
ain over the Alaska boundary. The Com
missioners adjourned to meet again some
| time in August or September, but the pre-
diction has been freely made that no agree
| ment would be likely to be reached then
However, some of the American Commits
sioners are still hopeful, it is said, of get
| ting the negotiations to a point where all
of the high contracting parties can arrive
at an understanding. Senator Fairbanks,
of Indiana, who was member of the
Commission, is making preparations to
visit Alaska and personally inspect the
boundary lines. He will start. it is said
about May 1, and will probably be accom-
panied by one or two other members of the
| Commission. The report of the Fairbanks
party will. it is believed, go a long way
| toward breaking the deadlock in the Com
mission
NEW TJnDADTa