Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1904-01-28
Our Washington Letter.


WASHINGTON, d. c., Jan. %, 1904.
After months OF merciless pum-
melting from the Democrats, the Re-
publican Senators have at last put
forward one Of the very weakest of
their number to parry the attack
Senator Platt OF Connections. The
Nutmeg State is now almost nnre-
presented in Congress. In the
House its members are OF littlec onse-
quence, and scarcely known by
name outside of their own neighbor-
hood. while, in the Senate, Gen.
Hawley is paralytic and confined
to his home and Plat is aged and
feeble. 1T is a disgrace to the
Senate, he faltered, that our Pre-
sident should be charged here with
entering into q conspiracy to incite
rebellion in Panama" There was
moments interruption as Senator
Teller replied 1T is a disgrace to
the country that thecharge is true. ="
Mr.. Plat contradicted the assertion,
then he spent an hour TO prove what
nobody has ever denied, that the
President has o constitutional right
TO send the navy to any part of the
world where Americans are attack
ed. This he repeated, in every
form he could think of; but he dodg-
ed the question which he was urged
to answer: Had the President a
right, legal or moral, to order our
naval officers to Panama to prevent
the landing of Colombian troops
within fifty miles of the railroad,
when their object was to enforce
law and maintain order in Colon
bia' IS own territory? Yes, we will
answer that by and by" is the only
reply this question has yet received
in the Senate.
The administration is in O heap of
trouble about q terrible Panama
scandal reported from Paris, and
involving Bunau- Varilla. the gar
rulous minister from Panama. 1t
is to the effect that this man swind.
led the French Panama canal COM
pany by means OF false reports of
excavations made by which he re-
ceived some half o million dollars in
q corrupt "rake-off. The Presi-
dent is greatly worried and the
Panama patriot has been called to
hurried consultations.
For Democratic candidate, the
names oftenest heard are German,
Parker, Hearst, and Olney, in their
order; but there is a strong under
tow for Lieutenant General Miles.
Is he organs dark horse? He
is entirely acceptable to all wings
of the party and q warm friend of
both Cleveland and Bryan. His
adoption by the Iroquois Club of
Chicago gave new impetus to the
movement today. and Miles's name
is likely to be spoken in any con-
versation on the coming selection.
While not ward heeler or o SPELL
binder in any sense. his friends
hold that no candidate possesses
more attractive qualities or more
qualities calculated TO win. Is not
Roots fulsome eulogy OF General
Young, recently retired. in sharp
contrast tothe curtand insolent order
retiring General Miles few months
ago?
The bill in Congress toadmit New
Mexico and Arizona as one state
causes considerable adverse CON-
ment in Congress. Attention is
called 70 the fact that il would take
a railroad train as long to go through
that state from east to west as to 90
from st. Louis to Boston. There
are only about q quarter as many
people in Arizona as there are In the
city Of Washington.
-
IL not a scandal, the condition OF
the Red Cross Society comes peril
ously near it. For more than a
generation Miss Clara Barton and
her Official associates have been dis
bursting its funds without making
any proper account TO the public
that furnished the money. Your
correspondents warned Miss Barton
ten years ago that trouble would
grow cut Of this negligence, but she