West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1905-08-03
Yellow Fever al New Orleans, The
Government Trying To Stamp
II Out.
THE GRAND JURY AFTER THE
AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT.
Tho Porto Rice People Raising Howl
About Tho American Way OF
Doing Things
From Our Regular Correspondent

The District Attorney and the
special grand jury that has been
summoned to inquire into the cot
ton leak IN the Agriculture Depart
ment, have both been very busy
and ultra mysterious. OF course
the proceedings of the grand jury
are of Star Chamber breed and no
one wants to pry too closely into
the preliminary testimony on which
an indictment is founded. But the
air of mystery that has been thrown
around the proceedings in this case
is almost as bad as that which ac
companied the proceedings Of the
Keep commission which investigated
the Government Printing Office
scandal. There have been yelled
women and mysterious witnesses
from New York and there is moth.
ing allowed to escape from the grand
jury room but the stern intimation
that an indictment for something
is going to he found against some
body. Meanwhile ex Statistician
Hyde is on his way to Europe to
rest his shattered nerves and dis
missed assistant statisucian Holmes
rides in his automobile and like the
Shut Eye Sentry swears that che
never seen nothm' wrong" Strange
as the ways Of the law may seem TO
outsiders it Is just as possible that
unless the second investigation Of
the Secret Service is more produc.
tive than was the first, there may
not be ground for action anyhow.
Mr.. Holmes puts up the naive
plea that he did not defraud any
body N particular that he merely
took gamblers chance with the
other gamblers and that he was no
worse tnan a man who thinks he
has a good thing and plays it at the
track. This may sound little
strained to ordinarily honest outsi-
ders who do not have chance at
advance cotton information, but
the fact remains that there is no
specific statute against doing Just
what Holmes did. However the
District Attorney thinks he is going
to get evidence enough to Dring
indictments for conspiracy and bri-
berry against some persons whose
names have not yet been divulgcd
Representative Livingston, of
Georgia today authorized long
interview on the subject OF the
Treasury Deficit. He is in favor of
a reimposition Of the stamp taxes
on patent medicines, checks and
stock transactions. He says of
course that the tariff ought to be
revised and that the whole country
would be the gamer, and some
trusts broken up as we'll as the reve-
nues increased if this were done.
AZ the same time ne says that
this probably will be impossible
with the make up Of the present
Congress and the next best thing is
to reimpose the stamp tax on the
people who can afford to pay il.
lie says that the man who buys
bonds is able to pay a tax on them
and that the same is true Of the man
wao has bank account enough to
draw check against. The same
holds good IN futures Of grain or
cotton.
Republican Copgrcssmen on the
other hand will not talk Of tariff
revision but coafnc their energies
tc showing how appropriations can
be cut and expenses reduced to
make up for the shortage in rcve-
nue.. Representative Patterson, Of
Pa, Burton Of Ohio, Senator Hem.
ingway and others an favor reduc.
tons Of appropriations Senator
Hemingway said owe arc appro.
prialing too much money for battle
ships and think We can make
big cut in government expenditures
Of all kinds do not think there
is any doubt that we can catch up
with the deficit in that way and ifI
we cannot then it will be time to
Try some other plan"
The Marine Hospital Service is
making frantic efforts to catch up
with the yellow fever that stole a
march on its officers in New Orleans.
The Surgeon General thinks that
this seasons outbreak is not likely
to be serious, but the wires have
been kent busy with ordere and