Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1904-04-22

-Rsbellious Clerks Quarrel With Their Pie.
man-A Triumph for Hearst in the Anthra.
cite Coal Case-Senator Car mack's Bon Mot
on Depew-Brsvities
tFrom our regular correspondent.
! WASHINGTON, d. c., April 13.
Last week the members of Congress
OF both parties held love-feast more
or less mixed with acrimony and
agreed that there should be suspen.
sion of eloquence in order that the ap-
preparation bill should be hurried
through. They kept the agreement
for one day, the Senate pushing along
the Postoffice bill on Monday with
very few oratorical diversions and the
House making considerable progress
with the Military Academy bill, the
last of the appropriation bills except.
ing the general deficiency bill which is
still on the calendar. Mr.. Robb of
Missouri attacked the Republican
party in Pennsylvania, pleaded for
equal rights for the negro, urging that
the door of hope should not be closed
against him.
But on Tuesday the virtuous agree
ment was smashed to fragments. The
House passed the Military Academy
appropriation bill mem. com. after
which an uncomfortable stream of
partisan defamation burst forth.
General Grosvenor of Ohio in his
most magniloquent manner charged
the Democrats with having no candi.
date and no principles. He declared
that this was the most prudent, far
seeing, just and wise administration
the country had ever seen, and he
challenged the Democrats to come
forward with any kind of tariff amend
ment or reciprocity measure that they
could conceive of and they would be
"swept into oblivion" The Republi-
cans, he said, know what to do and
how to do it, the Democrats are all at
sea. rudderless and a prey to the
waves. Representative De Armand,
Dem., of Missouri, retorted that the
Republicans seemed to have a cut.
and.dried programme. which they were
unable to modify to meet any chang.
ing conditions and said that he never
before heard that it was distinguished
virtue to call a nominating convention
and leave nothing whatever for it to
do. General Grosvenor introduced in
his speech q eulogy Of the President
as "the working-man's friend" de.
claring that he had been the friend OF
the Filipinos by abolishing slavery
there-that when Governor OF New
York he signed bill causing stair
ways to be lighted!" and that he had
recently, in the interests of the labor.
ing man, signed bill exempting from
taxation all libraries, family portraits,
oil paintings, and heirlooms in the
District OF Columbia! Why did he
omit poor mems automobiles and
washerwoman's diamondsf
Congress again recalled its good
resolution yesterday and stump
speeches had the go-by. The fortifica-
tions bill was read at length and con-
sidered item by item in the House and
the Postoffice appropriation bill oc-
cupied almost the en- tire time of the
Senate.
The parapet around the Capitol will
be the last roosting place of old fogy.
ism. A question which has been agi.
tated here for the last many years is
"Shall we let in machineryY Our
streets are still swept in poor way by
men with brooms stirring up the dust
in every direction. Occasionally the
machine street-sweeper is tried, when It
is speedily retired by the howl that it
drives men out Of employment. This
very week the annual "test" is being
made, and the preliminary protest is
going up again that honest labor is
being defrauded. All machinery tha t
can possibly be got along without is
excluded from the departments, and
in the Government Printing Office all
the type is being set by hand accom-.
panied by "the musical click OF the
shining stick" There may be poetry
in it, but there is not economy or a
a decent regard for the progressive
methods of modern life. Whenever
Congress considers the question of su.
perseding hand labor, the huge Typo.
theta here threatens Congressmen
with the dire wrath OF Labor.
The clerks OF Washington are in in
cipient rebellion because they are now
directed to work seven hours a day.
They declare that it is ter rible hard
ship to sit at their desks so long, with
only half an hour for lunch, and from
thirty to sixty days vacation each
year, with pay. A good many have
given notice that they will not work
during the last half hour; that they
"will watch the clock; that, if this is
not sufficient, they will become volun.
tary invalids . portion of the year &C
J as 10 extend their sick leave.