Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1905-07-20
Washington Letter.
(FRoM Our REGULAR CoRREsPoNDENT.)
Washington, July Is, 1905.

The cotton scandal in the Depart
ment of Agriculture continues to oc-
cupy the attention of the public in
Washington to the exclusion Of practi'
cally all other interests and further de.
velopments are looked for daily. The
president has taken the entire matte r
out Of the hands Of Secretary Wilson
and placed it IN charge Of the Depart
ment of Justice which, with the assist
ance of the Secret Service, is conducting
a dual investigation, one for the pur.
pose of securing sufficient evidence to
secure the indictment by the grand
jury Of Edwin S. Holmes, the dismissed
associate statistician, the other for the
purpose Of ascertaining if there are any
other guilty employees in the Bureau
of States. The utmost secrecy is be.
ing thrown around the Investigation
and few details reach the members Of
the press, apart from the daily assur-
ance that the president has ordered that
the matter be probed to the bottom and
that no guilty man be permitted to es-
cape.
Tue action of the president has been
construed in some quarters to indicate
that he purposes asking fol the resig-
nation of Secretary of Agriculture,
James Wilson, but that construction
does not seem to be warranted. 1t is
possible that this affair may demon
strate to the president that Mr.. Wilson
is less competent to handle men and
conduct the affairs of great depart
ment than he has been popularity sup
posed to be, but it is hardly likely that
the Chief Executive will 60 So far as to
pry the Secretary Of Agriculture loose
from his position, while the president
may do what he pleases and Mr.. Wilson
will never see in the actions Of his prin.
cipal any occasion for resentment, much
less for resignation.
The opinion Of the officials charged
with the investigation is becoming dali
~ stronger that John Hyde, chief Of
the Bureau of States, will be asked to
resign when the investigation is CON-
pleted, not that MIR. Hyde has been
guilty of any improper practice but
merely because he has demonstrated in
q superlatiye degree his incapacity and
his lack of administrative ability.
Those familiar with the inside affairs
Of the bureau declare that an inyestlga-
ton of it's affairs will reveal numerous
instances Of grossly bad judgment on
the part of Mr.. Hyde, instances Of fav.
oritlsm and supine faith in employees
who i'll deserve his confidence. Secre-
tary Wilson appears to be subllmely
unconscious of the gravity of the affair
and of the necessity of parting with Mr.,
Hyde, but the president is keenly alive
to the exigencies Of the situation and
has intimated that he purposes to take
drastic measures to prevent repetition
of the ofense.
Secretary Wilson has devised scheme
which he belieyes will prevent any re-
petition of the scandal and 30 it may for
q time but there is no getting away from
a fact it is impossible to conduct work
of this character without trusting some
officials and the only safeguard against
scandals are Secretary and chief of
division who are sufficiently accurate
judges of men to trust and whom not to.
The appointment of M. White, vice
NJ. Muravieff, as chief Russian plenipo-
Tertiary to the peace conference is the
occasion of the extreme qualification to
everyone interested in the actual accom-.
plishment of peace in the Orient. M.
Nuravieff was not an advocate of peace
and it was expected that his influence
would be derogatory to the negotiation
of the peace treaty, whereas M. Witte
has always been the leader Of the Russ.
ian peace party, was opposed to the pol
icy which precipitated the war and ap-
preciates now the extreme desirability
Of perfecting treaty which will result
in lasting peace between Russia and
Japan. The appointment Of Witte is a
great triumph for the peace party aud
will materially facilitate the efforts of
his conferred.
Arrangements are now practically
complete for the converting Of the peace
conference under what are regarded as
ideal conditions, conditions particularly
ideal because th ey will make it next to
impossible for the newspaper cores
pondents to secure accurate accounts OF
the negotiations. The result ia bound
to be great number of what are called
stink Stories" that is. dispatches writ.
ten wholly from the imagination Of the
correspondents. The meetings Of the