Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1903-05-01
A FAIRBANKS BOOM
is CAUSING SOME CIRCULATION
TO TEDDY.


Inefficient Officer - A Scandal in the Alas
kan Military Servce-The Porto Rican Scam
dial VIII Not Down at the Bidding Of the
Attorney General.
tFrom our regular correspondent
WASHINGTON, April 90, 1908.
That the Presidential boom of Sen
ator Fairbanks of Indiana is causing
grave concern to the President and his
supporters has been Enthusiastically
shown during the past week. The Civil
Service Commissioner Foulke is going
to throw himself into the breach, re-
sign from his present position and go
out to Indiana to try to win the Hoos-
ier support for Mr.. Roosevelt. 1t is
well known that as long ago as the
Republican Convention which nomi-
mated Mr.. Roosevelt there was a COM
pact made between Senators Hanna
and Fairbanks binding the latter to
support the former in case he desired
to succeed Mr.. Mckinley and Mr..
Hanna to support Mr.. Fairbanks in
the event that the former did not wish
to enter the race. Senator Hanna
now appears to believe that the best
chances OF Republican success lie in
the nomination of Mr.. Roosevelt, new.
ertheless he is bound to support the
Indiana statesman if the latter calls
upon him to redeem his promise and
Mr.. Hanna is not the man to go back
on political promise.
A report has reached Washington to
the effect that DIR. w. Godfrey Hunter,
ex-Minister to Guatemala and a prom
inent Republican leader of Kentucky,
has become an active Fairbanks man.
ager in that State and is working TO
secure a solid delegation pledged to
the Indiana Senator in the next con-
vention. Some prominent Kentucky
Republicans say that DIR. Hunter will
not be able TO " deliver the goods" but
the mere fact that he has been author
lied to make the attempt is most sig
nificant. North Carolina Republicans
would, it is stated on excellent author
ity, gladly vote for Mr.. Fairbanks in
preference to Mr.. Roosevelt and prac.
tically all OF the Southern States will
follow the lead OF Senator Hanna who
is the idol of the Republican party in
the South. Meanwhile the split be-
tween Senator Plat and Governor
Odell in New York is an occasion OF
serious anxiety and it is held, not
without reason, that the President will
be unable to carry his own State. In
fact, Mr.. Lou Payn, a long acknowl-
edged Republican oracle in New York
State, says the Democrats will carry
the State by 1000 votes.
Notwithstanding Postmaster General
Payne's statement that no Congress
sional influence is being brought to
bear to hush the postofiice scandal and
save the real rascals from exposure, a
surprising number OF Congressman are
calling daily at the Department and
are spending hours with the Postmas-
ter General. Senators Aldrich, Stew
art, Spooner and number of others,
usually absent from Washington at
this time of the year, have had long
conferences with Mr.. Payne and Rep
resentative Babcock has come to Wash.
ington to stay a month and has al.
ready had his first interview with the
Postmaster General. First Assistant
Postmaster General Wynne and
soto o., u
Bris,ow continue to receive charges of
malieasance and dishonesty although
Mr.. Payne tells the newspaper cores
pondents each night that he knows Of
no new developments. One charge,
mentioned in these letters week ago,
has proven so grave o violation of the
law that the Postmaster General, with
out waiting for further investigation,
has been compelled to take action.
The NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS." who
travelled about the country on pretense
OF repairing the cancelling machines in
use in large postOffices, have been or
dered to return to their desks in tn o
various postoffices to which they are
charged. A 81, 900 clerk, a negro, who
was charged to the city postoffice in
Washington, but who had been detailed
to act as his special messenger by SUI
perintendent Beavers, has already
been required to return 10 the work for
which he was employed.
Accidents in the navy continue to
multiply and Secretary Moody, while
resisting the influence exerted to pro.
cure a general investigation, appears
to be entirely helpless in the premises.
What has long been known to those
in close touch with the Navy Depart
ment is now becoming generally
known, viz: That Senator Lodge
played scurvy trick on his friend, the
President, when he persuaded him to
appoint Mr.. Moody to the head of that
department. Senator Lodge had but
one object in view, the securing of
seat in Congress for his son.in.law, Mr..
Gardiner of Massachusetts,. To &C.
complish this end he induced the
President to award the naval portfolio
to Mr.. Moody, then Representative OF
Mr.. GARDENERS district and, with Mr..
Moody out OF the way, secured Gardi-
ner's election. Now the entire Navy
Department is suffering the conse.
quences of having a weak man at its
head. This condition of affairs the
President hopes to remedy by securing
authority from Congress to establish a
navy general staff.
A scandal OF no small proportions
has just come to light in connection
with the administration Of army at.
fairs in Alaska. A number of army
officers, all of those in fact who were
on duty at Skagway about a year ago,
are to be tried by court martial for
selling commissary stores to civilians
and pocketing the proceeds. Another
officer who had been on duty for some
time in Alaska is to be tried for short
age just discovered in his accounts.
He claims that his safe was looted but
that he will have to prove.
Meanwhile the Porto Rican scandal,
| invOlvinU q numher of naval and arp,y