Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1900-01-04
WASHINGTON LETTER.
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WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondence
WASHINGTON, Jan. LIST, 1900
That queer things occur in politics every
body knows, but nobody ever expected to
see Republican members of Congress trying
to get Democratic members to assist them
in resisting what they call an undetermined
attack on the protective tariff system by
the Republican administration. Yet that
is precisely what is being done. Repub-
licans representing sections which produce
articles affected by the several reciprocity
treaties, negotiated under the DiDgley
tariff law, which require the approval OF
the House as we'll as the ratification of the
Senate, are trying to get Democrats to help
them defeat the treaties.
Mr. Mckinley pulled of his New Year
reception without scrap between those
who have been fussing for weeks over
whether Gen. Miles or Admiral Dewey
should be given precedence. Gen Miles
was given precedence under the rule which
has always been followed.
There is another row on between Gen.
Miles and Adiutant General Corbin. 1t
was started by The recommendation of Gen.
Miles that this years West Point class be
graduated in February, instead of June, in
order that the graduates, instead OF civil
appointees, might fill the numerous yacan-
cies in second lieutenancies In the regular
army. For some reason, Gen. Corbin
bitterly antagonizes this recommendation
of course, he, as Adjatant General of the
Army, has no personal interest in the
appointment of civilians to be second lieu
tenants in the regular army. Secretary
Root is said to lean towards Corbin little,
although he has not actually decided the
question yet.
While no one in Washington seriously
believes that the Republican caucus will
dare to indorse the bill of Representative
Orumpacker, of Indiana, which proposes
to reduce the Congressional Representation
and the ELECTORAL votes of number OF
Southern states, Representative Wilson,
of South Carolina, who is an able consti-
tutional lawyer, has gathered number OF
legal decisions showing that Congress has
no constitutional authority to do what Mr..
CTumpacker's bill proposes. even If it had
the inclination, which he doubts. Mr..
Wilson quotes several decisions of the u.
S. Supreme Court, one of which c0ntaiBs
the following plain language The right
to vote is privilege regulated by MUNICH
pal law, and inhering exclusively in the
state.p He also points out that the right
to vote has been denied by large number
of states. For instance, an educational
qualification is required By Maine, Massa
cnusetts, Connecticut, South Carolina,
Mississippi, Louisiana, Colorado and Wy
Omlng, while the payment of certain taxes
is required before citizens can vote, by
Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Delaware.
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Missis-
sippi, Tennessee and Nevada. Mr.. Wilson
says the educational qualifications imposed
by Massachusetts deDars larger number
of citizens than are effected by the consti-
tuition or laws of any Southern state, and
that he feels sure the best sentiment OF the
Country, regardless of politics, sustains the
solution which the suffrage laws of South
Carolina and other Southern states have
secured to the people OF intelligence of
those states.
Secretary Cages expressed willingness
to answer any questions Congress may ask
him, concerning his choice Of New York
bank 10 receive on deposit all moneys col
lected from internal revenue taxes-about
S1,600,O00 a day-and to distribute the
same to banks in all parts of the country,
as may be ordered by the Secretary of the
Treasury, is likely to be put to the test
very soon, as there are several things about
this transaction which mauy Senators and
Representatives would like very much TO
know. For instance, even among those
who concede the legal right of the Secre-
tary of the Treasury to give the free use of
government money to some banks and not
TO others, which many do not, there is
curiosity to know why bank controlled
by one of the biggest and worst of the
trusts-The Standard Oil Company-was
made the distributor of these funds, and
how long that bank is allow ed to retain
the money before distributing it to the
other favored banks, and whether those
banks are given the free use of the money
for any specified time. 1t was this same
New York bank that bought the old Gus
tom House property in New York, and
while questions are in order, Secretary
Gage will be asked to explain the legal
jugglery in delaying the transfer of title
from the government TO the purchaser, by
which the bank has escaped the payment
of city taxes amounting to more than
100000. Boss Hanna was right when he
said that the talk about Secretary Gage
resigning was bOsh. The interests which
put Mr.. Gage III the Cabinet have more
work for him to do for their profit, and
nobody knows it any better than Boss
Hanna. Mr. Gage could not resign, even
If he really wished to. without queering
himself with those interests.