Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1903-09-23
FROM WASHINGTON
Special Correspondence of the counrrp.

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ming to strike in places close to the
throne. Beavers, who has given
himself up voluntarily after the
police seemed to be unable to oct
him, has had Postmaster General
Payne subpoensed to appear as q
witness in his case, and the Z. NJ.
IT, PROMPTLY repudiates the sub
poena and refuses to appear. He
says he is sick, and must perforce
spend few weeks down at Vir-
ginia Hot Springs to recuperate
his health. He probably knows
too much of the doings of his pri-
vate secretary, Mr.. III. III. Rand.
in connection with Beavers and
Machen's industry in the grating
game in the Postoffice Department,
and does not desire to be question
ed under oath. In fact, he is doing
all in his power to stop the public
ity of details of the Postoffice De
partment scandal, and now he gives
it out that the end is in sight and
that there will be nothing more do
ing after the first of October. He
knows full Well that there are too
many members of Congress and
republican leaders mixed up in the
matter who must protect the loot
ers, and some of them too much
dread an investigation to allow the
matter to proceed further. Such
a competent machine politician as
the p. NJ. G.. knows that the re-
publican party cannot receive any
more such hard knocks as it has
received by even a small part of
the scandal thus exposed to public
view, and survive the treatment.
How the republican party leaders
are praying that something will
turn up TO distract the minds of
public from this nasty mess. See
how the Beirut incident was seized
upon TO take the minds of the peo-
pie from the scandals cropping out
in the administration of the affairs
of government. The Panama Canal
affair is also being used to get the
minds of the people from the rot
tenness of the departments as adj
ministered 10y the republican party,
but all in vain. Those little Incl
dents are but the wonder of an
hour, and the minds of the people
wander back To their muttons. the
scandals in the departments at
Washington. Like Banquo's
ghost, they will not down. but re-
turn with perplexing persistency
to plague an administration that is
rotten to the core. The people
have specific for this cancer on
the body polite if they will go to
the polls and administer it. 1t is
up to them.
The trusts are still in the saddle.
The anthracite coal trust is adj
Vancing the price of coal again,
though it is reported to have min
ed and stored some millions of tons
more than can be sold this year.
and yet this trust has such mo-
nopoly that it can put up prices as
IT pleaseS. The meat trust also
files notice that it intends to raise
the price of its products TO level
more in accord with the times and
permissive of the garnering of
larger profits. Congress, last win
ter, when the coal trust was a live
issue, appropriated a special fund
of $500, 600 for the Department of
Justice To use to prosecute trusts.
Congress also provided for a num-
Der Of assistant Attorneys General
to prepare cases against the trusts.
Many months has elapsed since
this money and attorneys were
placed at the disposal of the adj
ministration, but no action has
been begun. There is on file with
the Attorney General more than
one case against the trusts, prepar-
ed by private enterprise, such as
the case against the coal trust pre-
pared by William r. Hearst, and
the case against the tobacco trust
has been on file for over two years,
but it has reposed in pegieon-
hole in the department, and even
the extra money and the extra help
have been unable to drag it into
court.
There seems to be nothing that
can stop this Unsuitable greed of
bloated trusts, except business de-
preston. That with its resultant
reduction in the peoples purchas-
mo mower. will nrove the only