The Worthington advance., 1901-02-01
IRhI REORGANIZATION,
Volunteers to Be Brought Home
and New Recruits to Take
Their Places. -
SOVEREIGNTY IN the PHILIPPINES.
uged with Bils-The Shipping
Bill Now In Hand-What That
Measure Will Insure to the Amer
=
lean Producer.
Especial Correspondence.1


Washington, D. c., Jan. 81.
The army reorganization bill will be care
ully considered in conference, within few
lays, and immediate action will probably be
aiken by each branch of congress to con-
irm the action of the conferees. The ad-
ninistration has been very greatly en-
by the delay in the perfection Of
This measure. and time is the most important
If all the factors at this time. The volun-
;eers are to be brought home and newly re-
,ruited regulars enlisted in their places, and
the transfer to occur before the middle Of
the present year. This being so there is not
a moment to lose, and it is gratifying that
matters are reaching point of fnality. As
was expected from the start, the plan of
the administration is upheld, and the pres
dents hands will be free to do as he deems
,est to crush the insurrection in the Philip
pines and establish law. and order.
The senate has disposed of the treaty with
Spain, whereby the latter nation relinquishes
to the United States sovereignty over the
islands of Sibutu and Cagayan, which are
really part Of the Philippine group, but
which, through an unfortunate geographical
designation in the first treaty describing the
area within which the Philippines were stu
ated, left out these two islands from formal
inclusion. This error costs the United States
$l00, 900, and with it's payment by the United
States, practically assured by the ratifca-
ton of the treaty, this last incident in the
acquisition of sovereignty in the entire Phil;
ippine group is closed.
The house is rushing work through with
its accustomed celerity, and the senate COM
mittees are being deluged with their bills,
although but few appropriation measures
have as yet found lodgment in the senate end
Of the capitol. With the disposal of the
legislative appropriation bill the senate, as
had been expected, resumed consideration of
the shipping BILL As this is being written
certain amendments have been prepared
and submitted, it is said by Senator McMil-
ian acting for three or four other republic
an senators, demanding that the compensa-
ton for vessels of high speed. shall be linn
tied to those of Is knots speed and over.
This is in Difference to the clamor for slow
steamships, and to the op-
position to high speed steamships, which the
opposition to the shipping bill has very care
fully fostered.
Nothing so clearly proves the influence
of the foreign shipping interests in the shap-'
ing of American shipping legislation, as this
concession to the clamor it's agents haye
raised. The opposition to the pending ship
ping bill has been concentrated upon the
only line under the American flag in the
transatlantic trade, and this concentration
is due to the fact that the opposition lines,
under foreign flags, are most anxious to
cripple if not ruin their only rival under the
American flag in the carrying of American
imports and exports. There is one thing
that the people of the country must never
forget, in this connection, and that is that
the assured protracted reduction in ocean
freight rates whenever the shipping bill be-
comes law, and because of the increase in
the number Of ships Offering for cargoes,
will be of the greatest direct benefit to
those who produce the things the surplus
of which is sent abroad. -
Senator Vest last week brushed up his
adjectives and having carefully examined
his vocabulary of invectives, proceeded to
inveigh against the shipping bill, offering as
an alternative his amendment to make a
free ship bill as the sole remedy for our de-
clining shipping in the foreign trade. There
has never yet been free ship advocate who
could point out any American citizen who
would put foreign built ships under Ameri-
can register if he were privileged to do 50,
unless the government would give him a SUBJ
sidy for running them in competition with
foreign ships sufficient to make good the ex-
ira cost of operating ships under the Amer
lean as compared with other flags.
The president has been most careful dur
ing his somewhat prolonged weakness result:
ing from his attack of the grip. He has
avoided seeing delegations, and has limited
his consideration of public matters entirely
to those of the most pressing and important
character. He has entirely tabooed social
functions for the present, and it begins to
look as though the white house would not
see many receptions or other social pleasan-
tries, so dear to those on pleasure bent, dur
ing the present session. The president can
not be too circumspect in outstanding his
strength, and avoiding all taxes upon it that
are either fatiguiDg or unnecessary.
DAll talk that the president is disinter-
ested regarding the shipping bill is untrue
Each annual message he has sent to con-
gress has urged the passage of just such q
measure as that now pending.
DWhen the army reorganization bill has
been finally disposed of the president will be
fortified, as never before, to concentrate the
military forces upon the -subjugatisn of the
insurgents in the Philippines.
DThe people are far more concerned in
the president preserving his strength than
in his yielding to the opportunities of the
"smart set" who desire the resumption of
social functions at the white houes.
UOne of the most important questions to
Washingtonians, toward the close If each
short session of congress, is whether there
is to be an extra session or not. It means a
difference of many thousands of dollars daily
20 the merchants of this city whether con
gress is in session or recess.
DThe chances for the passage of the ship
ping bill grow brighter daily. The en- emies
of the bill are exhausting their resources of
misrepresentation and vilifcation, inspired
by the foreign steamship owners. The peo-
pie are beginning to see that the real ques.
tions involved are, whether American ships
ut reduced freight rates shall supersede for
eign ships and higher freight rates, in the
carrying of our imports and exports.