Gilpin observer., 1902-04-17
LATE WASHINGTON NEWS AND
CONGRESSIONAL PROCEEDINGS

The house committee on pensions
made favorable report on the Senate
bill granting pension of 5000 per
annum to the widow of the late Presi-
dent Mckinley.
President Roosevelt has signed the
bill repeating the war revenue taxes.
The pen with which the bill was signed
was presented to Representative Bar
tholdt of Missouri.
The largest quarterly receipts in the
history of the postal service are re
corded for the three months ended jan
uary 1St last, figures for which have
just been completed. The receipts
We're $32OO5621; expenditures, $780,
947 ,131 !; excess of receipts over expend-
itures, $1,O5S,4 400.
Senator Teller's bill granting Colora-
do Springs the right to purchase 1000
acres of forest reserve and public
lands in the vicinity of Seven lakes
has been reported favorably to the Sem
ate by the committee on public lands.
These lands are desired by Colorado
Springs for the completion of her wa
ter system.
The authoritative statement is made
luuI OHlteu suites AIllDdSSduOT Oldy-
ton has explained fully and to the sat
isfaction of both the President and Sec
retary Hay all the charges that have
been made against him. Mr.. Clayton
will return to his post at the City of
Mexico after brief holiday spent in
Washington with his daughter.
Senator Depew of New York appear
ed before the special House committee
investigating charges in connection
with the Danish West Indies negotia-
tions. He did not know Christmas and
never had seen him as far as he was
aware, although he met thousands of
people, and could not say just who he
had seen. But as to this Danish island
question he never had had discussion
with any one on the subject.
The Senate committee on poStOffices
agreed to recommend that the postoffice
appropriation bill should be amended
by the addition of a provision for pneu-
matte tubes and to that end accepted
the bill which has been reported in the
house. which will be Incorporated in
the appropriation bill when the latter
is reported to the Senate. This bill
makes an appropriation for the next
fiscal year of $5O0.O00, and limits the
expenditure after that time to $780, 900
per annum.
The House committee on mines and
mining has reported favorably the bill
recently passed by the Senate to pro-
vide for the repayment of uneXpended
moneys deposited to cover the costs of
plating and office work in connection
with mining claims. The law is made
necessary by decision of the secretary
of the interior to the effect that there
is no authority of law for returning
moneys deposited for plating surveys
of mining claims which is in excess of
the amount required for that purpose.
1t is stated on what is claimed as
the authority of member of the Inter-
state Comerce Commission that the de-
partment of justice has been moving
against the beef trust. 1t is useless to
attempt to get any confirmation from
the attorney general, or any of his as
sistants, because they refuse to discuss
such matters, but the information
comes without reservation and is to
be accepted as true. What form the
first public step of the department Of
justice will take is a matter of sur
mise.
In his testimony before the Senate
committee General Schofield said: Il
would make one general at the head Of
the army, and l would have three lieu
tenant generals, and then the proper
number of officers in the grades under
that. The Confederates, during the
Civil War, were n great deal wiser
than we were in that respect. They
We're better soldiers and better educat-
ed and knew more about it. They car
ried off the greater proportion of the
best blood that we had, to tell the
truth, and the organized their army sci
entifically."
Senator Patterson of Colorado pre-
sented memorial signed by over 300
American citizens residing in Hawaii
praying the enactment of legislation
completely excluding Chinese and jap
anese from any American territory
and providing that all labor of every
description performed for the federal
government shall be done only by cit
iZens of the United States. The petit
toners say that seventy-five per cent.
of the labor in Hawaii is performed by
Orientals. to the exclusion of Ameri-
can labor. and they call attention to
the fact that $1,000 Of the 10000 pop
ulation of the islands are from China
and Japan.
In the hearing by the Senate commit
teee on the Philippine archipelago,
Senator Culberson, one of the Demo-
cratic members of the committee, took
occasion to call attention to the omis-
sion of the report of the civil governor
of one of the Philippine provinces
from the records Of Governor Taft's
testimony. This is the report referred
to in the correspondence between Gen.
eral Miles and Secretary Root, of
which the secretary said: "The refer
ence in the memorandum to the letter
of Governor Taft to the secretary Of
war, dated. February .. 1901, transmit
ting, for the purpose OF an investlga-