Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1903-02-13
The Venezuelan Controversy.

President Roosevelt promptly decided
to decline the invitation of the allies that
he act as arbiter on the question of pref
erential treatment of their claims
arIiust Venezuela. and sent through the
state department To the British ambas-
sador 10 refusal of the request. This
means that the preferential question Will
go to The Hague tribunal.
Great Britain's protocol has been for
maly accepted by Minister Bowen for
Venezuela. and the German and Italian
protocols are being drawn. II is con-
fidently excepted that all the prelimina-
Ties for arbitration will be amicably ar
ranged and that the Venezuelan block
AIDE he withdrawn within short time.
The arguments of counsel before the
coal commission are in progress at Phila-
dolphia this week
The resignation of Naval Constructor
Richmond p. Hobson has been accepted
by Secretary Moody.
The president has signed the bill APP
| propr1ting $l,5o00o0 for the construction
of "a new building for the department Of
agriculture in Washington.
! A fire in the government arsenal at
! Rock Island. H., Wednesday night des-
| troyed the principal storehouse a mas
| sive building three stories high, and its
contents valued at $l,5oo,0O0.
Sir Thomas Lipton's Shamrock III,
! which will try to lift the Americans cup
I The New York Yacht clubs defender,
| which the Herreshoffs are building, will
! be- named the Republic.
| News comes of a dreadful famine in
Dalmatia, a division of Austria Hun
/ gary from which thousands are dying
daily. Typhus fever has also broken
| out. Medical aid is sadly deficient, i'm
] hai wi a Sfp
tor.
The bill creating a department of com
merce and labor, as agreed upon in con-
| ference of the two branches of Congress,
has passed the House, and will become a
law. The secretary of the new depart
ment will have a seat in the cabinet
The appointment is expected to go to
Mr.. Cortelyou, the Presidents private
secretary.
Besides the statehood and antitrust
bills, and the final enactment of the APP
preparation bills, the principal business
remaining before Congress. against the
final adjournment March T. relates to
the ratification of the three treaties
the Panama Canal treaty, the treaty with
Cuba, and the Alaskan boundary treaty
with Great Britain.
1t has become an accepted fact in
Washington that the statehood fight will
end in a compromise on Senator Quay's
part with an agreement for the ad-
mission at present of only two states
one consisting of Oklahoma. to which
Indian Territory will be added when the
Dawes commission has allotted in sew
crafty all the Indian lands the Other
consisting of Arizona and New Mexico
with a capital located for ten years al
Santa Fe.
David Richards, 80, a catcher in the
Whitaker rolling mills at Wheeling, w
Va, assaulted Joseph Glenn. a rougher
%, with a pair of tongs, badly injuring
him, and then rushed to a steam shear:
and sticking his head between their pom
derous jaws met instant death. Rich
ards was undoubtedly insane He sus
peeted that Glen had been talking about
him and determined to get rid of him
When he hit Glen with the tongs ht
suspected he had killed him and his
suicide followed.
Mr.. Iitteheld of Maine has thus IA