The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1901-02-22
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, d. c., February 18th.

WASHINGTON, d. c., February 18th.
Mr.. EpIToR:-The administration is
determined that there shall be an extra
session of the next Congress. That is
now as plain as the nose on your face.
Mr.. Mckinley is talking up a settlement
of the Cuban question as the reason. but
if the Ship Subsidy job had been allowed
to go through he would have probably
discovered that an extra session would
not be necessary to deal with Cuba. But
there are other strings to the extra session
bow, and it would not be surprising if the
republican leaders in Congress so manip-
ulated things that one or more of the big
appropriation bills failed to get through
at this session and then tried to raise
howl that it was the democrats who were
to blame for the extra session that the
failure would make necessary. Neither
would it be surprising if the River and
Harbor bill, which is to be reported to the
Senate this week, also failed to get
through That would reduce the total of
the appropriations made by this Congress
"a total that has thoroughly alarmed the
republican leaders since the press of the
country, regardless of politics, have
opened up on it. Then there is the bill
for the reduction of war taxes, which is
deadlocked in conference and in a fair
way to fail because the House conferees,
encouraged by Secretary Gage and other
members of the administration, refuse to
accept the cut in beer and tobacco taxes
made by the Senate. The Senate is now
considering the oleomargarine bill, but
whether that measure is to be voted on or
merely be used as a club to kill time is
not vet clear. One thing is very certain,
and that is that the intelligent people of
the country know that the democrats will
not be responsible for the failure of any
regular appropriation bill. They have at
all times assisted in disposing Of the ap-
preparation bill as fast as they were ready,
and have repeatedly warned the republi-
cans that they were wasting time on the
Ship Subsidy bill that should have been.
Senator Teller destroyed the last hope
of the hooters in their ability to push the
Ship Subsidy bill through at this session
when he said: "In the interests of public
business desire to give notice that this
Ship Subsidy bill cannot pass" Senator
Aldrich pretended to be much surprised
and said that he lad not before any posi-
tive notice that no vote would be allowed
on the bill Senator Teller spoke of three
republican Senators who ha | gone 10 him
and expressed hope that the bill would
not be voted upon, and then said: There
is strong sentiment anon g the republi.
can Senators, shared by probably half of
them, that this bill ought not to- pass.
am not surprised, for no bill ever pre-
scented to the Senate carried upon its face
such evidences Of jobbery as the Shipping
BILL" Senator Hanna got terribly worked
up while Mr.. Teller and other Senators
were saying things showing the impossi-
bility of passing the Ship Subsidy bill,
and made speech in which he virtually
took the ground that the reelection of
Mr. Mckinley was verdict of the people
in favor of the Ship Subsidy bill and any
other measures he might favor. In plain
words, that he alone had a right to say
what appropriations of public money
should be made. Instead of showing that
the subsidy bill was not looting scheme,
Mr.. Hanna declared that the River and
Harbor bill contained propositions that
would make the Shipping bill look pale"
Representative Babcock's bill to repeal
that section of the Dipgley tariff law i'm
posing duties on such articles as are man
ufactured by the newly-formed Morgan
Steel Trust is not likely to be allowed to
pass by the republican bosses, more's the
pity, but it has stirred up the republicans
in Congress, many of whom are express
ing views worthy of good antitrust demo-
Gratis, for instance, Representative Lands,
of Indiana, said: Il am heartily in favor
of the bill to remove the duty from steel
and iron and kincre products. And the
commend ation that bill will receive from
every nook and corner of the country will
surprise some gentlemen, especially the
magnates who, boldly and in defiance of
public sentiment, have organized the most
gigantic industrial combination in history.
The people will expect this Congress to
teach these ungrateful benetciaries of
their bounty lesson, and if the next ses-
sion of Congress does not do it the people
will send one that will. An anarchist is
not necessarily poor man. A trust that
destroys legitimate competition by brutal
arbitrary power is just as much of an
anarchist as the fellow who destroys a
building with bomb. l am against both
of them
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