Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1903-06-18
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent
WASHINGTON, June Is, 1908.

WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent
WASHINGTON, June 10, 1903.
The post Office investigation still pro
crosses with such speed as the Postmaster
General is unable to prevent. Mr.. Payne
has not yet made public the reply of Fourth
Assistant Postmaster General Bristow tC
the Tulloch charges and meanwhile Perry
Heath has left the country, or has left Salt
Lake City with that intention. An in.
stance of the kind of "irregularityn fol
which Heath stands responsible is furnish
ed by the case of Mrs. Fanny R. Winans
formerly society editor of small paper in
Ohio, and sister-in-law of the publisher
When Senator Hanna was running for the
Senate the support of this paper was re-
garded as more or less essential to his sue.
cess. Accordingly, Hanna asked Heath &c
appoint Mrs. Winans to a position in the
post Office department., and Heath did so,
but Mrs Winans was given no work, her
only duties being to draw her salary. She
seriously objected to the continued drawing
of pay without the performance of any
work in return and '-pestered" Heath until
he told her she was a nuisance" Then
she took her case to Hanna and he wrote
Heath he would have to give Mrs. Winans
something to do, but this he failed to do,
and finally Mrs. Winans, who is an excep-
tionally clever woman, took civil service
examination, and secured an appointment
in the Pension Office, position she now
holds. This is but sample Of the type Of
abuses which under political administration
has long been common. 1t is not possible
to convince Payne that there is anything
improper about this farming of the Govern
ment service for political ends. He be-
longs to the old style of politician who be-
lieves anything is warranted provided it is
done for the success of the party This is
the reason that President Roosevelt is
getting no satisfaction from his Postmaster
General in his efforts to clean out the Post
Office Department.
An instance in the New York post Office
where the postmaster has conferred sine
cure on his son has just come to light.
Because of the difficulty of securing men
with peculiar scientific qualifications for
certain work, President Mckinley issued
an order that in case no man could be
found in the classified service who had the
qualifications necessary to fill any partIcu-
lar vacancy, an outsider could be employed.
Awaiting themselves of this clause, post
master VanCott and Perry Heath fixed IN
the appointment of young VanCott, the
father certifying that no one could be found
to perform the entirely routine work to
which the young man was assigned. Heath
endorsed the certifcation and, President
Mckinley accepted it. Then the Civil
Service Commission made such an urgent
complaint, alleging that VanCott's appoint
ment was a clear evasion of the intent Of
the law, that President Roosevelt repealed
the regulation, but did not have the cour
age to discharge the man whose appoint
ment had necessitated the repeal.
Is Wall Street really opposed to the cleo
ton of President Roosevelt? There is grave
doubt on this question expressed by Demo
cratic politicians who come to Washington
They say that by the appointment of Paynt
and other of Hanna's prot ges to goot
offices, Mr.. Roosevelt secured the friend
ship of the Ohio boss, and then the Senate
permitted it to be understood that he wa
opposed to the President greatly to tn
atter's advantage. Now it is remarked
that there is great cry of the opposition o
Wall Street to President Roosevelt, but i
all emanates from Republican editors.
is beginning to be suspected that this is
shrewd game on the part of the Presiden
and his advisors to gain the support of tn
antitrust element of the voters.
A new republic may be the outgrowth 0
the proposition of the United States to con
struct the Panama canal Reports iron
Bogota, believed to be reliable, are to th
effect that the inhabitants of the States Q
Panama and Cauca are unanimously il
favor of the ratification of the treaty, ant
that if their insistences on this point is dis
regarded by the Columbian Congress the
will secede. These two States are the one
that would profit most by the construction
of the canal. They are almost entirel.
shut off from the rest of Columbia by
mountain chain, and in view of the i'm
poverished condition Of the Columbian
treasury, it is not believed that the mothe
country could effectually oppose secession
The two States would together make
country larger than Costa Rica and tn
annuity of $250,O0O which the United
States is prepared to pay for the use of th'
canal zone would almost maintain til
government, especially as this countr,
would pay bonus of $40, 900, 600 to star
with. While it would be a diplomat
error for the State Department to admit a
much, it is believed that there would b.
great relief if these States could accomplish
a successful revolution.