The National tribune., 1903-06-04

The manner in which the Post Office in
vestigation is reaching out into the high
ways and byways is rather startling. JUS
where trouble will break out next is moi
knowH, but it is said that the worst is
over" 1t is bad enough in all conscience.
Up TO date the investigation has in
volved the following:
George w. Beavers, Chief of the D:vi-
sion of Salaries and Allowances; resigned.
James n. Tyner. Assistant Attorney
General for the Department; summarily
dismissed.
George A. C. Christiancy, Assistant At
torney; suspended from duty.
Daniel V. Miller, Assistant Attorney;
dismissed and arrested on charges of
bribery in connection with the Get-rich-
quick concern of John J. Ryan & Co.
Joseph NJ. Johns, Rockville, Ind ar
rested on charges of conspiracy in the
above case.
August W. Machen, Superintendent of
Free Delivery; dismissed and arrested on
charges of bribery, in connection with a
patent mail-boX fastener supplied to the
Government by Croft Brothers, Of Wash
ington.
Diller B. Croft. real estate agent, ar
above case.
Samuel A. Croft. arrested on similar
charges; member of Washington Police
Department; suspended from duty.
The Post Office is having troubles of
various kinds, but never in all its history
has it had a case Of ''malfeasance' in
office like that at Leedy. Okla. The Post
master, Amos Leedy, quite an old man, has
,I,rab 10 loft
ters were found in the waste paper, and
he acknowledges that he threw them
there. They had been untampered with,
however, as could be plainly seen. They
held valuable evidence in a prominent
land case that was on trial, but had
tumbled round in the shoe-box post office
for some time, and, nobody calling for
them, Mr.. Leedy concluded to have
housecleaning and threw the uncalled-for
letters away. The non-appearance of the
evidence caused an investigation, with the
result as told. The Postmaster was let off
with slight fine. as he was simply is-
norant of his duties.
How will this strike our foreign
friends? Col. Bingham, who is credited
with being asked to resign as Superintend-
ent of Public Buildings and Grounds, be-
cause he did not approve of the manner
in which Architect McKim was butcher
ing the Executive Mansion and grounds,
is now back in the Engineer Corps, where
he will make name and achieve fame.
His first suggestion staggers even his firm
est friends. He proposes to dam the
Niagara River at point where Lake
Erie empties into it, with the idea of
raising the level of the Great Lakes,
which for years has been falling, until it
is reported to-day that there is ar extreme
variation of five feet.
The only feasible plan for raising the
level of the lakes is to dam the Niagara
at its source-a project which the Gov
ernments of the United States and Great
Britain are now discussing.
The Bureau of American Republics is
to have a home of its own. This was de-
cided at meeting of the representatives
Of all the countries having a membership
in the Bureau. 1t will be commenced
within a year. 1t will be three stories in
hight and conform to the style Of the
Government buildings.
The Cuban treaty has been signed, the
Platt amendment, which has been making
the signing hang fire, has been agreed to,
and Cuba is now a tub standing on its
own bottom. The new treaty marks
distinct milestone in Cuba's progress
toward auoDnomy and nationality. Her
international status is now regarded as
permanent and fixed. The United States
now formally withdraws its protectorate,
which has been held ever since the expul-
sion of Spain from the island, and leaves
Cuba to seek security and happiness IN
civil order in her own way.
.
The Platt amendment simply gives US
the right of Intervention in time Of trouble
down there. 1t is simply menace to any
meddlesome half baked nation which
might try to take a sneak into Cuba and
conquer her. Cuba did not want us to
have even this much hold ON her, but we
retain it, thanks to Senator Platt.
Arkansas has for a Governor "Jeff
Davis" who seems to be one of the kind
of men who are described out West as
having the 'foot-andmouth" disease.
From the reports of him he must be one
of those misfits who mistake notoriety for
fame. His name is against him, but he
seems to have got it into his brain that he
will make pretty good substitute in the
United States Senate for the incumbent,
Senator Berry, the one-legged Confederate
veteran who is growing gray in the serv-
ice of Arkansas. Senator Berry is a
gentleman. 1t would be a pity to send
sombody here from Arkansas to rattle
around lii the senatorial cnalr.
y
The President likes "jingle" music,
something that you can keep time to and
that makes you want to pat juber," and
sets your feet a-gOing- Garry Owen" is
one OF his favorites, and he dotes on rag
time He likes all the patriotic airs,
probably because they are nearly all the
kind of music that makes good marching
time.
What the President will do to one Post
master when he gets back to Washington
will be q plenty. The chap who runs the
post Office at Seattle, Wash, must be a
defective" While the President was in
that burg n lot of mail came for him, ard
the newspapers got the conceit that it
would be nice thing to say that for the
time that the President was in the city it
was the seat of the Government" Then
the papers proceeded to comment on the
letters to the President-the addresses on
them, rather. The only way for the. re-
porter to know about these letters was for
the Postmaster to violate his oath of Of