Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1899-02-24
RANKEST DUPLICITY,
TRYING TO FOlST RESPONSIBLE
lTY ON OTHER SHOULDERS


Inc Extra Session Emergency Bothers the Ad.
mlnistration-More of Gar Reeds Obdura
ey-Ths McEnery Resolution Shrewd Pal.
''ative for Ratification of the Treaty-Rep.
rsssntatve Lewis Again EnIshtens the House
Mckinley Trying to Dods. the Financial
lssue--John Sherman Scores the Admins.
tratIon.
From our Regular Correspondent.
/ WASHINGTON, Feb. II, 1899.
Quite as sneaky as it's attacks pom
Gen. Miles, is the attempt of the Adj
ministration to make it appear tn at
DEMOCRATIC Senators are trying TO force
an extra session OF Congress by oppos-
ing legislation for a large standing
army. 1t is the duty of Democratic
Senators to act in accord with the
wishes OF their constituents, and in
resisting hy every constitutional and
parliamentary method known to them
such vicious legislation, they will be
doing exactly that. They have moth
ing to do with calling an extra session
OF Congress; that is strictly Presi-
Dental prerogative.
a feature OF the red-hot debate in the
House on the offering of the Hepburn
Nicaragua Canal bill as an amend.
ment to the Sundry Civil bill was a
short but strong speech in favor of the
bill by Repi esentative Bailey of Texas.
who said he supported the amend
ment because it provided for direct
ownership of the Canal by the Gov
eminent, instead of n partnership
with private corporation. Some
bitter personalities were thrown
around during the debate. Gear
Reed and his henchmen in the House
opposed the amendment, and most of
the Democrats favored it. 1t was
ruled out on point of order, and the
House under the lash OF Gear Reed
sustained the ruling, by a vote OF 127
to l09.
The disposition of the McEnery
joint resolution, which was this week
adopted by the Senate, by a vote of 25
to %, by the House committee on
Foreign Affairs, will speedily snow
whether the resolution was adopted as
part of the game by which suf-
ticient number of votes were obtained
to ratify the treaty, or not. The vote
in the Senate indicates that it was.
The Bacon substitute, which was de.
feated by the vote of the Vice Presi.
dent, the Senate being a tie, really had
meaning; IL pledged the United
States 10 treat the Philippines Just as
it is already pledged to treat Cuba.
The Philippine. could he held forever
and day, as thu saying is. under the
McEnery resolution, if it were q law.
Representative Lewis, of Washing
ton, III the course OF short running
debate on the item of the Sundry
Civil bill which appropriates $2O.OOO,-
OOO to pay Spain for the Philippines,
pointed out the important and in
teresting historical fact that Spain is
the only country on earth that has
ever regulated its treaty obligations.
In 1862, after the English had taken
the Philippines, Spain made a treaty
in which it agreed to pay England an
amount equivalent to $4,000 600 to
regain possession Of the islands.
England gave up the islands under
that treaty; but Spain has never paid
cent of the money promised.
Representative Grosvenor, of Ohio,
chairman Of the Republican caucus,
this week named the committee OF
members of the next House who are,
in obedience to caucus direction, to
prepare financial bill to be presented
TO caucus of the Republicans of the
House. in the next Congress. The
makeup the committee leaves no
doubt that the bill it will prepare will
be whatever sort of bill Mr.. Mckinley
may wish to have damned through.
One of the shrewdest men in political
life said OF the probable work of this
committee: &" MY prediction is that
the financial bill that is likely to be-
come a law at the first session of the
next Congress, whether that be an
extra session closely following the
close of the present session or the
regular session next winter, will not
meet the wishes of Secretary Gage and
other extreme single gold standard
advocates. Next year will be presi-
dental year and Mr.. Mckinley is a
very willy politician. In my opinion
he will try to make that financial bill
dodger, and he will have plenty OF
assistance from the members of the
House who have q strong silver ele-
ment in their districts" The average
Democrat in Congress would much
prefer that Secretary Cages ideas be
followed in the financial bill, because
that would leave no room for lodging
the issue in the next campaign. But
it is always the policy of the polite
ians to prevent fair stand-up fight on
plain issue, il there is any possible |
way in which it can be avoided.
Ex-Secretary John Sherman didn't
mince words when he spoke about the
attempt OF the War Commissions re-
port to whitewash Alger and his gang
and to blacken Gen. Miles. Mr.. |
Sherman said: eff Mckinley were up
for election today he would get in
Ohio but an uncomfortable number of |
votes. From all that l can learn
there is little enthusiasm for him |
there, and but very few newspap ers are
supporting him. There is no doubt
that such condition has been brought
about by just such attacks as are be-
ing made upon Gen. Miles. What has
Gen. Miles done to the President and
Secretary OF War that he should be
treated so? He has not stood in their |
way. l suppose jealously is at the
bottom OF it ALL" Mr.. Sherman may
be very sore-headed-he has reason
to be-but that does not prevent his
being able to tell the truth. The
snow blockade prevented the assemb-
ling of the embalmed beef Military |
Court Of Inquiry this week, as Or
dered. Dem.