Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-08-05

sion has been denounced as an unWar-
ranted attempt at interference BY the
State with an affair of purely religious
concern. Criticism is also made Of
several other references to religious
matters in Porto Rico, the Catholic
papers applying such epithets as big
oted' and .intolerant" to the report.
In this connection it is interesting to
observe that the administration ex-
pansion policy has not so far COM
mended itself to the Catholic press.
The Irish World, to quote an instance,
which has always been a strong Cup
porter of Republican candidates, has
turned tooth and nail against the Pres
ident's Philippine policy, and is fight
ing imperialism both in this country
and England in behalf of the principles
of liberty and self-government, which
it desires to see applied alike to Ire
land and the Philippines. The opposi-
ton of the Catholic press to expansion
is a political straw which may well
alarm the administration.
The insular commission
HAS ALSO JARED BADLY
at the hands of Attorney-General
Griggs, who has given death-blow to
its recommendation thht franchises OF
various sorts be granted in Porto Rico
by the War Department, holding that
the Secretary Of War has no power to
grant franchises. In his opinion the
Attorney General says: by the Con-
stitution the power to dispose OF and
make all needful rules and regulations
respecting the territory or other prop
erty belonging to the United States is
vested in Congress. Congress has con-
ferred no authority of this nature up
on the executive" This bit of sound
law disposes of the insular commits
sion's ridiculous theory that Porto
Rico is not part of the territory Of the
United States, as well as the dangerous
corollary that the island ought to be-
come a military satrapy under the sole
jurisdiction of the President. By the
same reasoning the President has no
power to impose a code of laws upon
Porto Rico by military decree, and the
insuiar commission might as well sus-
pend labor on the code it is framing
and quit drawing salaries.
THE CURRENCY FAMINE
reported in certain parts of the coun-
try proves once more that the Ameri-
can people will not use metallic money
to any great extent in their daily trans
actions. There has been considerable
increase in gold money during the past
wear, but most of it is locked up, and
the banks are anxious to exchange it
for paper money, which the treasury
cannot do because the volume of paper
money is fixed and cannot under the
present laws be increased. An excep-
ton exists in the case of national bank
notes, the circulation of which could
be enlarged, but the national banks
lave conspicuously failed to rise to the
emergency. 1t is obvious that some
thing is radically wrong with cur
rency system which cannot meet the
necessities of the country, and the
present situation is fresh evidence that
the money question is with us to stay
until it is settled.
One form of our paper money is dis
appearing, namely, the treasury notes
of 1890, which are being redeemed and
retired as the silver bullion against
which they were issued is coined into
dollars. The treasury statement OF
money in circulation therefore shows
a decrease in the treasury notes and
an increase in the number of silver
dollars as we'll as of their paper repre-
sentatives, the silver certificates.
MACKAY.
Ac1 voy,r paiphhnrs whose bread thew