Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1902-06-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
n IOIlI O11I I'VE u1.'r
WASHINGTON. June %, 1902

methods of figuring which the Secretary
could command, the total now aggregates
$40, 1926, $50. These figures, large as they
are, do not however, tell the whole story.
Mr.. Root, of course, makes no mention OF
the $40, 900, 900 originally paid to Spain,
nor has he any way of figuring that portion
of the cost which has been incurred by the
Navy Department and which is not small.
Last May, however, the Secretary of the
Navy threw some light on the situation by
sending to Congress statement the total
of which aggregated, in round numbers,
$40, 600, 900. 1t may, therefore, be safely
stated that the Philippine Islands have
cost this country, up to date, $210, 100000
which would mean, exclusive of the pur-
chase price, an annual expenditure of
$50, 000,000 So stupendous are these
figures that they convey but little to the
mind of the average man, but when it is
calculated that the islands have cost every
man, woman and child in the United States
So, or, to the bread winner who has five
mouths to feed, SIS, some conception of the
expense of being world power" can be
rived at.
1t is quite part of the irony of fate
that the Republican party, which INDUCED
in so much gratuitous leyity at the lack of
harmony in the Democratic ranks, at the
beginning of the Fifty-seventh Congress,
should find itself at the close of the first
session of that Congress more hopelessly
divided than were ever the Democrats
The message of President Roosevelt urging
the Republican Senators to get together on
his policy of Cuban reciprocity accom-
plished nothing, and the two conferences
which have followed have served no pur-
pose, put to more clearly demonstrate to
the country the hopeless division of the
party. 1t is worthy of remark that at
neither meeting of the Senators was there
any suggestion of promoting harmony by
the sacrifice of the trusts and the natural
result was deadlock between the adher-
ants of the Sugar Trust and the Beet Sugar
Trust respectively, from which, in the
words of Senator Hanna, 'our party will
suffer at the polls in the coming election. :"
While, at the eleventh hour, Mr.. Hanna
came to the rescue of the policy of the
administration, it has for some time been
an open secret at the Capitol that, had the
Senator from Ohio thrown his influence, as
Chairman of the National Committee, into
the balance and worked for reciprocity in
stead of indulging in much quiet enjoy
ment at the discontinue of the President
the result would have been different. As
it is, all hope of any action looking to the
relief of Cuba at the present session has
| been abandoned.
On Thursday the Senate adopted the
Spooner substitute for the Nicaraguan
Canal bill and, >if the Panama Canal Com
pany have been correct in their representa-
tions of their ability to furnish clear
title to their property, and if the Colon
bian government has been sincere in its
promises to make the necessary concessions
TO the United States, the isthmian canal
will be built along the Panama-Colon
route. In view of the extravagant raid on
the treasury which has been perpetrated by
the present Congress, Senator Fairbanks
found it necessary to attach to the bill
an amendment whereby the government is
authorized to issue interest bearing gold
bonds to the amount of $130, 600, 600 to de-
fray the expense of the construction of the
canal. The canal bill as passed is now in
the hands of the conferees of the Senate
and the House, but it is expected that the
House will finally agree to the Spooner
substitute.
The Senate has passed upon all the
appropriation bills with the exception of
the General Deficiency bill, and the only
measure of Importance which is likely to
receive consideration by that body during
the remaining hours of the session is the
Omnibus Territorial bill which the repre-
sentatives of the territories still believe to
have fighting chance, as Senator Bate will
make an effort to secure consideration of
the bill during the coming week. That he
can succeed, 1 do not feel as confident as do
Messrs Rodney, Flynn and Smith, the
territorial delegates. A story which is
interesting, if true, is circulating at the
Capitol 1t is to the effect that Delegate
Flynn was approached by Senator Bever-
idge, Chairman of the Committee on Ter
ritories with proposition to change the
| name of Oklahoma to "Beveridge" and
chat Mr.. Flynn's refusal to do SC resulted
in the defeat of the measure in Mr..
Beveridge's committee.
On Thursday the House took up the
Philippine bill, and an earnest debate is
beng conducted by both sides. 1t now
appears that the House will insist upon
the Senate's concurring in the adoption of
the measure reported by the House Com
niteee on Insular Affairs. This measure
grants certain form of self government to
The Filippinos and, although imperialistic
IN it's purport, is a shade better than the
publicans will vigorously fight the adoption
)f the silver standard in the islands Ac-
cording to Republican tenets a gold stand
ard is the only proper standard for any
nation, and the adoption of silver stand
ard for the Philippines will be an absolute
qualification of Republican dogma The
anxiety of the members to adjourn will be
in favor of the Senate conferees, but numer-
that would not prove sufficient to induce
| them to yield. Only a deadlock on the
bill will prevent adjournment on July g.
The effort of the House Committee on
Commerce to increase the period of un-
broken travel for cattle being shipped by
rail, from % to 40 hours, and to accom-
| plish which the committee has reported a
DILL changing the present law, promises to
be stoutly contested by the Humane So
cieties of the country. Already Mr.. c. A.
| Snow, President of the Washington HUI
name Society, has forwarded to the COM
mittee letter which reads in part as fol-
| lows ''The passage Of this bill will be
| distinctly inhumane and retrogressive act
to which / hope the American Congress
will not commit the American people
| These animals, vertebrates like ourselves
uaVe unerTmg appetlteS anu bnlrsu, ana
twenty-eight hours, as under the present
bill, is far too long, especially under trying
transportation conditions, to make them go
without food and water. To increase the
time to forty hours will involve an added
torture which, if reduced to Ineligible
expression, would shock the conscience of
the world. How outrageously mean and
cowardy to treat these noble, gentle beings
this way, only because they are voteless,
voiceless, defenceless They give their
lives that we may live more abundantly
and now an avaricious cattle interest pur-
poses, through the sanction of Congress, to
add torture to sacrifice
The American voter has learned that a
high protective tariff has never benefited