The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1901-08-23
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
WAsHINGToN, ID. c., August 10Th

OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, d. c., August 10Th
MIR. EDIToR:-Rear Admiral Schley,
| who has been in Washington for several
days and will probably remain until the
close of the Court of Inquiry, looks like Il
| man who knows he is right and is abso
lutely certain of winning. He spends
much time with his counsel, giving them
pointers in the preparation of the pro-
gram that will be followed by them during
the inquiry. To-day all three of his coun-
sel-Judge jeremiah NJ. Wilson, Hon.
Isidor Rayncr, Attorney General of Mary
| land, and Capt. Parker-made a formal
| call on Assistant Secretary Hackett for
the purpose of presenting Schley's supple
mentary list of witnesses to be ordered
| before the Court, and to ask for list of
the Navy Department witnesses. Acting
Secretary Hackett has promised that Adj
| miral Schley will be furnished list of the
Department witnesses as soon as it is COM
| to abandon his purpose of accompanying
| the Washington Knights Templars to the
Louisville Conclave, but he feels that it
| would not be good taste for him to do so
under the circum stances; that it might be
| thought that he was seeking to be lioniZed
! by his fellow Tcmplars for effect. When
| he promised to go with the Washington
Commandery, of which he is a member,
| he had no idea that he would, at this time,
| be preparing to appear before Il Court Of
| Inquiry.
| There are reasons other than the out
rageous treatment of Rear Admiral Schley
| why a courageous and fair minded Con-
gressional Committee could do the coun-
| try a real service by thoroughly investi
eating all branches of the Navy Depart
ment One of them may be found closely
connected with the cruiser Columbia.
which cost $5000,G0 less than ten years
ago, and which was allowed to rust at the
League Island Navy Yard until in danger
| of sinking, with no carctakcr other than
a single Waterman, and which was lately
sent to the Brooklyn Navy Yard to be
used as receiving ship. Although luilt
for speed and regarded by outsiders as one
of the finest ships of its class, the Bureau
| of Navigation has from the day it was
| first put in commission assigned the
Columbia to obscure tasks. The reason
| ascribed for this would appear ridiculous
| if it were not so obviously true. The
Columbia was designed by Rear Admiral
Hichborn, who has always been an out
spoken friend of Admiral Schlcy, and has
| in consequence been constantly opposed
| by the Bureau of Navigation. The coun-
| try certainly has right to know whether
| there was any other reason than spite or
envy for the deliberate plans of the Bureau
of Navigation to lay up $4,000, 900
cruiser in order that neglect might make
it useless, and a Congressional Committee
| could find out, if it went about it the right
| way.
| The low grade clerk in the Postoffice
| Department. who was discovered working
on the night force of the Census Bureau,
was compelled to resign the latter place
because Director Merriam could not coun-
tenance the drawing Of two government
| salaries by one man-after 1t had been
made public. The heads of ether govern
ment bureaus do, however, countenance
the drawing Of two salaries by one man.
| Here are some prominent cases that are
well known: Major William p. Huxford
draws 50, 100 a year as Il retired Captain
in the Army, and about the same amount
as Clerk of the Senate Committee on Mill
tary Affairs; Charles E. Morse draws
2,100 year as retired Army Captain,
and 81 600 year as Disbursing Clerk of
the L. S. Bureau of Labor; Herbert
Schreiner draws $2,100 as a retired
Captain, and $4,000 as clerk in The office
of Commissioner of Railroads. There are
others, but these examples are sufficient
to show that the law against the drawing
of two government salaries is dead let
ter, whenever the man who wishes to do
the drawing has pull enough. In addition
to two salaries, the officials mentioned
above enjoy, as retired army officers, the
privilege of purchasing all their family
supplies from the U. S. Quartcrmastcr's
Department at the wholesale price which
the government pays for them, quite a
valuable privilege to the man who pur-
chascs the supplies of large house
Another petty thief in the government
service has come to grief For long
time small sums of money have from time
to time been stolen from tie Patent Office
mail and the thief not detected These
funds have, as rule, belonged to inven-
tors. A few days ago an envelope con
tanning $500, which was placed in The
custody of the Chief Clerk, disappeared.
| Commissioner Allen made an investigation
and was satisfied by the evidence that it
was stolen by Edward V. Shepard, who
had been Chief Clerk of the Office for a
little more than three years, and he was,
accordingly, dismissed from office there
is seldom any delay in knocking out the
little official thieves. 1t is rot known
whether criminal prosecution will fol-
low, but as Shepards wife has big social
pull-that was what go. him bis iob--it is
doubtful
Nor,cr TO tprn,rons