Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-04-20
CAPITAL CHAT.
A Famous Maine Soldier As
An Inventor.
Senator Hale's Success in Handling
Important Bills.
The Hawaiian BiII-What Maine Men in Con
gress Are Doing.

| Washington, ID. G., April l?.-lSpeciiil
|-General Henry c. Merriam Of the reg
| ular army. who came from Houltoh,
| Maine. and who is about to be retired
having reached the age limit. is the in
| vcntor of new knapsack, which prom
| Uses to yield him a very comfortable
| fortune in his declining years. The KNAPP
/ sack has recently been accepted by the
| war department for the use of the army,
| and eventually it is expected that fully
| one hundred thousand of these KNAPP
| sacks will be purchased. AS the KNAPP
| sack is patented. General Merriam re-
| ceived a royalty of seventy-fivc cents on
| every one Of them made. 1t is easy to
| see how within few years he may re-
| alize a very comfortable fortune out of
it.
| In the field of invention General Mcrri-
am is far more fortunate tnan the aver
age army and navy officer. Scores of
| these men have invented articles useful
in warfare. only to find them appropriate
| cd by the government without any com
pensation whatever. The claims commit
| tees of Congress have many hundreds of
| claims for inventions made by army ana
navy officers for which the government
never paid one cent. Repeated efforts
have been made to pass through Con
gress bills appropriating money TO pay
for the use of such inventions, but ii is
very rare that such bills become law.
Senator Hale recently passed in the Sen
ate bill to assure compensation for ma
val officers who make inventions. but it
remains to be seen whether that bill will
become law.
Senator Hale made an excellent record
for himself here the other day. or rather
established anew his wcll-known rcputa-
ton in passing the Pacific cable bill
through the Senate in about three hours
These dispatches have referred time ana
again To Senator HaIc's wonderful fcatS
in passing appropriation bills. As III
member Of the appropriations committee.
ranking next to Senator Allison, the
senior senator from Maine, is undoubt-
cdly feared more or less for the power
which he Is able to wicld. He has, nrN-
CrthCiCsS, i great deal Of tact, and his
dDllltE to aEoIt aniagonlZinE senators
contributes much to The celebrity with
which lie accumpliShcs legislation. The
passage of the Pacific cable bill WAS ui-
most unprecedented. III the recent his
tory of the senate. At least. II WAS Il
subject that could have been debated aI-
most indefinitely. perhaps days ANA days.
if certain senators had been given the
least proVoCdtiun. There WIS little upua-
Sition. however. 70 me measure. us Sen
dtur Hale managed it. ana it now goes
70 the House for action. More than all
this recent accomplishment NJ Senator
fI4lr's tcstiiics to the confidence than his
colleagues have in Judgment regarding
wise legislation. Whatever his power
might Dc IN the senate. lc" senators
would trust senator Hale to push
through 50 important measure SU
quickly, diI they MT have absolute CON
tidcnCc in his honesty and in his ability
t. arrive AZ correct conclusions about
-l,.,F
Mr.. Thomas :. Hopkins Of this city.
who used 10 live ut Mt Ncrlnu. Maine,
where ne was born Of an "id Puritan
IaHllH' Is Hiucn ABOUT tn' caption lheSe
it" i IN Ii1Nt I l"I Huh Nf Il Nth III ,n "5
hnri -. .n ,ti..,r;,,.t. IL, r,,r. e'.,it t,li,:
a. ~ ,vb, AZ, Iron. Ii,tt,.,.r. IL, ~,
MIN !" II i''7' III; I'M HI n, /"
" y, ~ = ~, f7io" ~ ~ TIL ~ "
hoNious Clause taken out OF the lia-
Wailan Dill Ihat clause provides that
, Int 37lilpllng Llws Il M '.un'ry 5haa
ships, owned On Puget sound, 4 dlstinci
advantage Tor that period oil tliny' ana
building on the Atlantic ana Pacific
coasts, from engaging in trade with Hon
olulu. The amendment WAS out in the
House. ana Mr. Hopkins is doing his best
to have it stricken out in conference.
senator Frye is also helping him, and
Representative Loren Fletcher ot Mime
apolis; who is also a native Of Mt. Nc'-
non, Maine.
There is another clause il the Ia
Wdiian bill as it passed the House WhiCa
interests Maine people ana which i -
ing dubbed badly here on every occt-
sion. 1t is the clause prohibiting saloons
in Hawaii Representative LittlrIicld
championcd the amendment in the House,
ana made speech in favor of it. The
| amendment was adopted by 4 standing
vote; but NJ roll-call was taken. Al many
q ne republicans ana Democrats, lpr
pcrsoIai reasons Iid MOI want 10 go on
rcc9iu ior l+af 81 onChulhS "ithtr III
nronlpiiioh or ms prrWtry Notc 81 tHIF
ulatl u. ny riirnptia Oh cue
Iii"u9c ~ W. 81 thlrt ullGiI it "'cdsioIl9
since Ms passage n lnt Dill nave rs
fcrrcd faceti0usly To the adoption Of
Maine laws for Hawaii This particular
clause, however, is being antagunizcd ~
the California delegation in the House
as California wants to sell her wines
ana liquors in Honolulu, ana would bc
hindercd to some extent by the prohibit
ton amendment. There is quite a prob
ability that both these clauses the pro-
hibition one ana that which r..atcs to
shipping. will be cut out in the confer
cncc over the Hawaiian bill.
Representative Allen has introduced Il
bill here for strictcr observance OF tn"
SapD1th DAY III me District 81 ro!uGibil
nj mas bcGh lrultlui ana lFr4uchl
IcSiSIdtlNc Theme LOT washington IN
years gone DE, but an efforts nave gen
| orally been unaVdlllnB, as Washington
already mas pretty good Sunday laws.
The objections of many church people are