Middletown transcript., 1900-03-31
WASHINGTON LETTER
Commissioner of Patents Greeley
Has Resigned His Position.
GRANTS MEMORIAL
Proposes to Treat Porto Rico Better
Than any of the Territories in the
United States-A Senator is
Congratulated.
WASHINGTON. March 26th, 1900,

WASHINGTON, March Goth, 1900.
A bill appropriating $4,000 to pay
the expenses of ACQUIRING a proper de
sign for memorial to General Grant
to be erected in Washington, was pass
ed by the House without dissenting
vote.
The Senate carried out one of Presi
dent McKinley's recommendations
when it passed the bill authorizing the
appointment by the President of a Com.
mission to visit Asia and study ard re-
port upon the best methods for increas-
ing American Commerce with China
and Japan.
Senator Foraker frankly stated, when
he asked that his Porto Rico Bill, to
which the House Bill had been at
tached, be sent back to committee, that
it was desired to have his bill remain
in committee until the Senate was
given an opportunity to vote on the
House Bill alone, which deals with
nothing but the tariff. Mr.. Foraker
believes the House Bill will be passed.
Chairman Hit, Of the House Com
mittee on foreign affairs, agreed few
days ago for that Committee to make
an investigation of the charge made by
Ex-Consul Macrum, that official mail
from Washington, to the United States
Consulate at Pretoria, had been held up
and opened by British m ilitary officers,
without the adoption of a formal reso
lntion by the House, and the investiga-
tion will be started this week.
Secretary Roots answer to the Sen.
ate resolution asking if he had given
any exclusive permit for dredging the
gold,bearIng sands of the ocean off the
Alaska coast shows that no exclusive
permits have been issued for such
dredging, but that under authority of
law, as interpreted by Mr.. Root and
every member of the Cabinet, permits
have been issued to several applicants
to dredge the ocean ted from the line
of low water outwards off the Alaskan
coast, when it may be done without
interfering with navigation, and will
be issued to others who may apply for
them. Inasmuch as these permits have
been issned to all applicants, there is
nothing exclusive about them. Thus,
another mares nest is disposed of.
The past week marked the retire.
ment from public service of the ablest
and best equipped man that has ever
acted and served as Commissioner of |
Patents, Hon. P. Greeley. His resig-
nation emphasizes the utter inadequaey
of the salaries of the Commissioner of
Patents and his staff of expert exam,
iners. Mr.. Greeley, though only 50
years old, is writer on patent law.
He leaves office to practice in WASH
ington, where he will make speciality
of trademarks and foreign patents.
The loss to the public service of such
man is irreparable, and the govern
ment would better pay the head of the
Patent Office the salary of a member
of the Cabinet than have man like
Greeley resign.
Senator Spooner has been the recip'
lent of many congratulations on the
able manDer in which he got the best
of Senator Tillman in the extended col
loquy between them, which began on
the Porto Rico question, but took in a
number of other things, including the
method adopted to secure white supre-
macy in South Carolina, methods
which Mr.. Tillman frankly acknowl-
edged and said he was glad were adopt
ed. Mr.. Spooner at no time lost his
temper, although Mr.. Tillman did sew.
eral times, and endeavored TO anger
Mr.. Spooner by taatalizing remarks.
This is not the frst oratorical victory
won by Senator Spooner, who has long
been known as one of the stro Bgest
men in the Senate in running debate.
Senator Gallinger, who is a memter
Of the Committee on Porto Rico, in a
speech advocating the Is per cent. duty
On Porto Rico products other than cof,
fee, which, by the way, constitutes
four-fifths of the islands exports, said:
'sWe are proposing to treat Porto Rico
better than we treat any territory of
The United States. We collect internal
revenue taxes in Oklahoma, New
Mexico, Indian Territory and Arizona, ,
and every dollar of it goes into The
United States Treasury. We shall col {
ect internal revenue taxes in Porto /
Rico, too, but every dollar so collected
will be returned to the Porto Ricans ,
ind be used for their benefit" OF the
connection of trusts with the question d
ind then alleged control of Republican Q
policy, Mr.. Gallinger said: 1--WE heard n
he same when Hawaii was annexed
md free entry to our ports was given =
Hawaiian sugar. Now it is raised
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