The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1902-10-24
WASHINGTON LETTER.
(From Our Regular Correspondent. J

uhCAo VIII ACtuiu W WOTk tniS week.
Some apprehension is felt over the
situation resulting from the employ
ment of new men to take the place
of the strikers. 1t is estimated that
about 1,700 such men are now at
work and, unless the operators make
. special effort, they will be com>
PEELED to leave similar number Of
the strikers without employment.
Prof. David T. Day, chief of the
Division of Mineral Resources of
the Geological Survey, said that he
lid net believe it would be possible
for the coal output during the first
swo weeks to exceed $4,000 tons and
the supply would not be normal be-
fore February:
As if to mitigate the relief occa
stoned by the settlement of the coal
strike, the news comes from New
Jersey of the incorporation, under
the laws of that State, of the beef
trust, under the name of the United
States Packing Company, with .
capital cf 81, 900, 900, which amount,
it is anticipated, will be shortly in,
creased to $5, 100000. The articles
Of incorporation provide for the
adoption of ,sll tho methods usual
with similar corporations, including
the purchase and maintenance Of
retail butcher shops. As usual, the
stockholders are dummies" clerks y
in the Office of the trust company
which procures the charter.
The Secretary of the Treasury has
finally resorted to the purchase of
bonds with . view to relieving the
money stringency. Only week ago
the secretary was deploring the scar
city of bonds on which the banks
could base an extensive issue of cur.
rency. Now he is buying them up
and thus further diminishing the
supply. His course is similar to
that pursued by Secretary Gage and
oilers of his predecessors and is doubt
less rendered necessary by the ext
gsncies of the situation, but it serves
to again emphasize the deplorabls
ineongruities of our financial system,
incongruities which, in a country Of
fewer natural resources, must have
resulted in, serious panics and loss,
ere now.
Bresident Roosevelt recently is
seek timely warning to the mem
bers of his cabiuet, in the form of q
circular letter calling their attention
to the lavish use of money and print
ers ink in the preparation of govern
mont publications. lie states his
belief that "there is much useless
matter and q large number of unne-
cessary;and expensive illustrations in
cluded in many Of the reports and
documents published While all
that Mr.. Roosevelt says is true, he
fails to call attention to the root of
the evil which is found in congress-
ional orders for the printing Of large
editions Of handsomely printed pub
lications 50 that members of Congress
may have abundant handsome me-
mentos to send to their constituents.
The whole practice has degenerated
into a dishonest scheme for making
the government pay q large share Of
the campaign expenses of aspirants
for reelection.
As q result of the combined army
and navy maneuvers, the Engineers
Bureau Of the War Department will
now turn its attention to the develop
ment of q more adequste system of
coast defense. The maneuvers
demonstrated the fact that, while it
would be impossible for an enemy to
approach any important point along
the northern Atlantic coast by day
light, without the knowledge of the
military forces charged with the coast
defense, at night the feat is possible
Of accomplishment. Every effort
will now be made to establish a sys-
tenn of search lights, electric signals
and batteries which will make such
night attack impossible. Such q
system is new installed, but the recent
maneuvers demonstrated that it
contained many defects which the
engineers will seek to remedy.