West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1902-06-19
wAsHlNoToNLETTER.
The Fight Between the President
and the Senate Over Cuban
Reciprocity.

Reciprocity.
The Republicans Get Hard Blow Over
The Philippine Business.
The Secret Ii Now Out About Secretary
Cages Leaving The Treasury
Department.
WASHINGTON June 10Th, 1902.
Cuban reciprocity promises to be
the rock which will inevitably rend
asunder republican harmony and
leave feeling of antagonism be-
tween the party and the chief ex-
ecutive. The beet sugar senators
still adhere to their position and
refuse to permit any measure,
granting reciprocity to Cuba at the
expense of the beet sugar trust, to
pass the Senate while Mr.. Roosevelt
insists that he will veto any measure
which provides for a rebate of the
duties. The testimony of Mr.. F. b.
Thurber that he had received sa,-
500 from Mr.. Havemeyer, president
OF the Sugar Trust. nearly 50, 900
from the War Department and
various sums from other sources to
circulate reciprocity literature will
prove serious obstacle to the eff
forts of the administration.
TIT
While the republican senators are
quarrelling over reciprocity few
who are interested in an isthmian
canal continue the debate in the
Senate chamber but no genuine
interest is manifested in the subject,
except by those senators who have
the project really at heart and the
orators who declaim on the merits
of the respective routes do so to
empty chairs. BY unanimous con-
sent Thursday, June 18TH, has been
set for the final vote number of the
senator's have left Washington for
their summer vacations and others
are making preparations 10 depart,
which proves how little they are
interested in the remaining subjects
for Congressional action.
I / /
On Monday the House passed
the anti-anarchist bill and Tuesday
it defeated the Lacey bill for a
transfer of the care of the Forest
Reserves from the Department OF
the Interior to the Department OF
Agriculture. Representative Cannon
of Illinois, was responsible for the
defeat of this bill. In vigorous
speech, SO vigorous that he removed
his collar and cuffs to facilitate his
eloquence, he denounced the
measure and incidentally ridiculed
scientific work generally. He
produced CONSERVATION among the
Republicans by the announcement,
that already the appropriations fol-
the fiscal year beginning July rst,
promise to exceed the estimated
revenues for that year by S5I, 900,
900 and that without allowing any
thing for an Isthmian canal and
other projected legislation. Mr..
Cannon's claim that the results OF
the bill would be increased annual
expense TO the government was as
ridiculous as it was insincere. The
real animus of the opposition to the
bill was the fact that at present the
Secretary of the Interior has an an
nual fund of $500, 900 which he
distributes to the henchmen and
protegees of Congressman, who are
VIGOROUSLY incompetent. Were the
reserves placed in charge of the
Secretary of Agriculture this would
cease to be the case. Not only
would the expense of caring for the
reserves be materially diminished
but 1t was the intention of the
President to extend the civil service
classification to include these en-
ployes, and the members realized
that vote for the bill would be a
vote to deprive them of a large
amount OF "spoils." For weeks
the members have been deluged
with letters from their appointees
protesting against the passage Of the
bill and many republicans admitted
to me Tuesday that the love of
political patronage defeated the bill /.
The President was a warm advocate
OF the measure but It remains TO be
seen whether he will have the
courage to apply the remedy to the
present conditions and Immediately
extend the classified list to include
the present force in charge Of the
reserves.
II
A staggering blow was delivered
to republican claims in regard to the