The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1902-02-20
Our Washington Letter.
A No. Arson Football Champion-A Native
of Mercer Rural Delivery Names
Busy Delegation.
Special to the REPORTER.


here at unexpected times and often
in unexpected places. The &C.
casion in mind was the annual banquet
of Harvard College alumni of ash
ington, celebrated the other even
ing in the banquet hall of the New
Willard hotel. Some very prominent
people belong to the Washington
Alumni Association of Harvard Col.
lege-President Roosevelt, Secretary
of the Navy John D. Long, Mr.. Justice
Gray, Assistant Secretary of War San.
ger, Ex-Assistant Secretary of the Navy
Frank Hackett, Senators Hoar and
Lodge and long list of distinguished
names. Right in the midst of one of
the bright and sparkling speeches one
of the most popular scientists of the
Capital City, DR.. FL. w. Wiley, chief
chemist of the Agricultural Depart
mept digressed to tell how he made a
pilgrimage all the way from Florida
last fall that he might see Cults, Oliver
Cults of North Arson, Me-, play foot
ball on the gridiron. There were cheers
long and hearty for Cults, the modest
Somerset boy, who used to be a student
at Arson Academy under Prof. e, A.
Stuart and who afterwards went to
Bates College before he decided to
take law course at Harvard. "The
bounding son of the Prairie, for that
is the title by which Prof. Wiley is
known. recited in detail how he saw
that football game and the intense
satisfaction he derived from it.
Frank A. Munsey, the Magazine
publisher and native son of Mercer,
Me-, makes frequent trips to Washing
ton these days to look after his news
paper property, the Washington Times,
for which he has been buying new
presses, mapping out new policies and
doing score of other Things intended
to make newspaper popular. He often
comes down here late in the week
and is the recipient OF many social
honors. Late last week he was a guest
at a dinner given by Representative
and Mrs. Omsted, of Harrisburg, Penn. +,
and sat down to dine with such a well
known man as Attorney General Knox.
Mr.. Munsey likes Maine people as well
as ever and on occasion enjoys recalling
his early experiences in Maine, when he
did not have as much money and other
enjoyments of the world as he now has.
The members of the Maine delegation
in Congress are all very busy now with
the various duties that come to active
and efficient Senators and Representa-
tives. Gov. Burleigh was very earnest
champion of the increased appro-
priations for Rural free delivery, both
that for larger salaries for the carriers
and to make up deficiencies in the
service, which has now become a law
by the Presidents signature, and that
for giving a large appropriation for
the next fiscal year, embodied in the
postoffice bill, recently reported by
Chairman Loud. The third dis.
Jrict representative and Mr.. Loud
are close friends and have diss-
cussed postal matters together
extensively at this session of Congress.
Mr.. Burleigh is pleased at the large
appropriations for rural flee delivery
which Congress is certain to make dur
ing this session, because it increases
the prospects of extending these modern
mail facilities to the farmers, who in
years gone by have very often been neg.
lected in national legislation. He has
been pressing the establishment of
routes in Somerset county, recently hav-
ing made almost record time in having
the new route authorized to begin April
| out of North Arson and extending to
Embden Centre aud Concord. Mr..
Stephen B. NORM of Emblem Centre,
who has climbed the high hills north of
the Sand Pond, the old Dunbar hill, ever
since he could walk and who knows
every inch of the rough and rocky coun-
try in that neck of the woods, has been
designated to carry the mail over this
new route out of North Arson. 1t will
not be surprising if the new route out of
skowhegan to Savage post Office is
authorized before many weeks. Gov.
Bureigh is only waiting for the report
of Special Inspector Boutelle to be pre-
sented, before he goes to Chief Machen
and makes a request for the route to be
put in operation. The large fund now
available for rural routes makes it easier
for Congressman to have the carriers
put to work earlier than has been posi-
BILE heretofore.
The press tor public building legisla-
ton in the house is now very great and
the House committee on public build
ings, of which Gov Burlegh is one of
the leading members, is hearing delega-
tions almost daily. They come from
Virginia, from Indiana, from Vermont
from all over the country, in fact, to tell
of the needs of their own localities
Later ia the session the committee will
have to sort out few of the many pro
jects presented, for favorable action by
the House. To Gov Burleigh will fall
in large part the selection OF pablo
buildings for New England as he has to
deal with that branch of the work and is
chairman of the sub committee, to whom
ia referred all New England bills. Maine
has few projects before the committee
and Gov Burleigh will attend to as
many of those as as is possible for him.
Senator Hale is having very busy
winter, for many duties devOlve upon
him in legislation. He is one of the tri
policy of the Senate, the other two being
Senators Allison and Aldrich, and has
host of duties on such big committees as
the Appropriations, Naval Affairs, of
which he is chairman, and Census, of
which he is one of the ranking members
Probably there is no more careful legis-
lator in the Senate than Mr.. Hale. His
long experience and sple ndid record for
measures thoroughly prepared, give the
-snata i'm mint pau N1ppep in his WORK