Gilpin observer., 1902-01-23
LATE WASHINGTON NEWS AND
CONGRESSIONAL PROCEEDINGS

| udu tue new Wur VeSSelS.
The House continued to debate on
the pension appropriation bill and de-
voted much time to the proposition ad-
vanced by Mr.. Rixey Of Virginia to
open the doors Of the Soldiers homes to
ex-Confederate veterans. Two notable
speeches were made in support of the
/, proposition, one by Mr.. Gardner, a
| Michigan Republican,, and the other by
Mr. De Almond, Missouri Democrat.
Mr.. De Almonds eloquence aroused
both sides Of the House. The Republi-
cans, with the exception of Mr.. Card
ner, took no part in the discussion Of
| the Rixey suggestion, which met with
| much opposition on the Democratic
side on the ground that it was utterly
| impracticable.
| Commissioner Jones Of the Indian
Office has sent circular letters of in
structions to all Indian agents direct
| ing them to induce the male Indians
under their charge to desist from wear
ing long hair and to prevent both sexes
from painting their faces and bodies.
Indian dances and feasts are to be
prohibited and wearing citizens cloth
ing instead of Indian costume and
blankets encouraged. Indian students
returning to the dress and customs Of
| Tue tTlDe are W Dc puilSueu ny WILL
holding employment and rations, and
to prevent all undesirable practices by
the Indians agents are directed to use
all means at hand and suspend rations
| and supplies and place young recalci-
| trants in the guard house at hard Ia
Dor. Progress made in suppressing the
evils must be reported by June Both
next.
Secretary Root was heard on the
| question of the friar lands in the Phil
| ipplnes before the House committee
on insular affairs the other day. He
said these land holdings constituted
one of the chief causes of discomfort
among the people; they were the hot
beds of insurrection and had furnished
Aguinaldo his chief appeal to popular
prejudice. The secretary said the re-
| ligious orders SO fully recognized the
bad condition of affairs that they were
disposed to sell out and he urged that
the government take advantage of the
opportunity to remove the chief causes
of discomfort in, the islands. He did not
believe condemnation proceedings
would be necessary, as there were in
dications that fair price could be
agreed upon. A rough estimate of the
value of the lands. he said, was from
$5,OOO,OO0 to $7,500,OOO American
money.
| Orders have been issued by General
Miles involving an extensive move
ment of troops between the United
States and the Philippines. Troops to
the number of about 5,233, stationed in
the United States. are ordered to SER
vice in the Philippines, as follows: Sec
ond squadron. First cavalry; second
squadron, Fifth cavalry; first battalion.
Second infantry; headquarters, band
and companies A, B, Z, +, G, I, X and
l., Seventh infantry; first battalion,
Eighth infantry; headquarters, band
and first battalion. Tenth infantry:
second battalion, Eleventh infantry;
second battalion. Fifteenth infantry;
| company l., Twenty ninth infantry.
The second battalion. Fifteenth infan-
try, and the Twenty ninth infantry are
ordered to San Francisco in time to
embark respectively on transports sail
! ing February 10th and March 1st- 1t
| Is ordered that all these organizations
| be recruited to the maximum and their
| baggage reduced to the lowest possible
limit. Regiments recently relieved
from duty in the Philippines have been
assigned 30 departments as follows:
Fourth infantry to department of Tex
Ak: Seventh infantry to Department OF
the Columbia; Twentieth infantry to
Department of the Lakes; twenty-sec-
ond infantry to Department of the Mis-
souri,; Ninth infantry to Department OF
Dakota. This general movement OF
| troops is for the purpose of replacing
the men who have had long service in
the Philippines with an equal number
of fresh troops from the home stations.
The President has sent to Congress
cfx mil ne t-ovl a
the supplemental report of the Isthmi-
an Canal Commission, in which 1t is
unanimously recommended that the Of
i fer of the new Panama Canal Company
to sell all Of its rights, property and
unfinished work to the United States
for $4O,0OO,OO0 be accepted. The Sen
ate ordered the report printed In the
Record and also as document. After
quoting the correspondence which
passed between the commission and the
officers of the Panama Canal Company
in Paris, the report says: ''The total
ity, without exception, of Its property
and rights on the isthmus," mentioned
in the cablegram Of January 9th, In
cludes the following classes of proper
ty: Lands not built on, buildings,
plant, work done, Panama railroad,
maps, records, etc. The value Of work
done is estimated as follows: Canal
excavation, 21,O20.6S6; Chagres diver
sion, $17S, 1856; Gatun diversion, 81, $685.
456; railroad diversion -four miles),
100000; total, SO, ,S95,O2S. Contin-
gsncies, twenty per cent, $4,5T0,OO5.
Aggregate, $27.474,O53. or the exist
ing shares of the Panama railroad the
canal company will transfer to the Un-
ittd States all but about LOO shares.
1t owns three passenger and freight
steamers Of American registry of ap-
proximately 1000 tons each. For the
past year 1t has operated n line Of char
tered steamers OF American registry
between San Francisco and Panama.