Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1899-02-04
Straps and faets.

gives the president authority to reduce
this number to $4,000 men if he feels
that necessity does not require larger
army.
- There is a very strong probability
that the volunteer troops will soon be
withdrawn from Cuba and mustered
out of the service. The Hull army
reorganization bill, which will proba-
bly, soon become law, provides for
100000 regular troops and these will
take the place of the volunteers.
- Moving a 100 by IS feet 6ve-story
brick building was successfully accom-
plished recently in New York city.
The building had an estimated weight
of 5000 tons, and was moved Is feet
south and 35 feet east, $50 jack-screws
being employed to furnish the power.
Timber ways and shoes fabricated with
soap were used, and the movement at
each turn of the jack-screws was
three-sixteenths of an inch. The
greatest distance which the building
was moved in one days work was 9
feet 8 inches, and the whole movement
of rs feet to the south was accom-
plished in II days. From the begin
ming of the work, only five weeks
elapsed until the building was jacked
up ready to receive the new founda-
tions, and force of about 20 men &C
complished the entire work. The con.
tract price for the work was $4,000.
There seems to be no end to the
school book scandals that are now
figuring in the papers. One of the
latest comes in an Omaha, Nebraska,
dispatch of January 81: Formal
charges against the members of the
Omaha school board and other officers
in connection with dealings with the
American Book trust were filed today.
They were sworn to by James Van
Glider, o member of the board. The
charges allege that the board entered
into a contract to pay the trust 70
cents a volume more for 10000 geo.
graphies than the books could have
been obtained for from other compa-
nies. Superintendent Carroll 6. Pierce,
ofthe Omaha schools, is alleged to have
been in the employ of the trust at
the time the books were contracted
for, having been employed to write
supplement to the biographies. Van
Glider charges that the expenses of J.
c. Moore, a member Of the board, were
paid by the trust through B. F. Thom-
as, when he was candidate for elec-
ton. Thomas admits having given
Moore the money to pay his expenses.
but says the money was not furnished
by the trust. Superintendent Pierce
admits that the trust hired him to write
part of the geography, but denies that
there was anything wrong in the mat
ter.
- Robert P. Porter, the representa-
tive of President Mckinley, and Senor
Gonzales, the Cuban commissioner,
who recently left Washington on a
special mission to Cuba, started at 6
O'Clock this morning for Caibarien,
province of Santa Clara, in order to
see General Maxine Gomez, says
Havana dispatch of Tuesday. Mr..
Porter's mission to General Gomez is
of a two-fold character-to discuss
with him fully the position of the Gu
ban army and to invite him to Havana.
The Washington administration desires
an immediate aud friendly settlement
of the Cuban army question. AS the
military chiefs derisively refused to
accept $3,OO0,000 in complete satisfac-
ton of the claims Of the soldiery,
Washington has determined, it is un-
derstood, to offer much larger sum,
even as high as SIS, 100000, if less will
not be accepted. Whatever is agreed
upon is to be charge upon the reve-
nues of the islands until it is paid.
The Cubaps here are in state OF ex-
element. The business classes are
pleased at the prospect of settlement.
Merchants for a fortnight have been
afraid to place large orders, being un-
certain of the future. Shares on the
local bourse rose from to 8 points to-
day, which is generally attributed to
the probability that the Cuban SOL
diery will be disbanded and will return
to work.
- General NJ. c. Butler was given
hearing by the senate committee on
military affairs few days ago in re-
gard to affairs in Havana, where he
has been recently stationed as one of
the evacuation commission. He gave
a detailed account of the recent clash
in that city between the Spanish SOL
diers and the Cubans. He expressed
the opinion that General Brooke's Or
der forbidding participation in the
evacuation ceremonies by the Cubans
was a necessary precaution, and that
if it had not been issued there would
have been trouble. The Spanish resi-
dents were exceedingly nervous. At
the same time he thought the Cubans
should be treated literally and allowed
to participate to a considerable extent
in the conduct of public affairs. He
believed that the Cuban soldiers could
be utilized, and that if there were an
organized force of such soldiers under
American command, they could be util-
lied in maintaining order even among
the Cubans. He dwelt at some length
upon the excessive taxes imposed un-
der the old system. General Butler
expressed the opinion that in time the
Cuban people would be capable of self
government but that they should be
given an opportunity to quiet down
and get used to more liberal admin
istration than they had ever known.