Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1905-10-06
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Prom our Regular correspondent

dSnllRtOu, -. VI. Sepb. OF "A ~
important change has been made III
the administration of the State De.
parlment by which The handling Of
cipher dispatches has been taken out
of the Chief Clerks Office anG turned
over to the chief of the Bureau Of Ap
polntments, Chas. r. Dean. The
switch was made on the initiate of
acting Secretary LOOmis. Mr.. LOOMS
alleged reason for making the change
is that there has been serious leak.
age in the departments secrets. 1t is
said, however, that while it is probably
true that there has been a leakage the
real reason back of the change is the
personal hostility of Secretary LOOMS
to Col. Michael, the chief clerk. 1t Is
known that Col. Michael inclined to
the side of Minister Bowen in the re-
cent LoOmiS-BOwen controversy and
that this is one way in which Mr..
LOOMS is getting back. However.
that may be. the action is hard blow
at the chief clerk, who has held his
present post under two administrations
and is generally regarded as an upright
and trustworthy man. 1t is also known
to those on the inside that the codes of
nearly all the great powers are IN the
hands of their rivals 30 that it is not
remarkable if some of the State De-
parJments kilograms have been deci-
phered where they should not have
been. The question of leakage has
been raised several times before but it
was found once that Secretary Hay
himself had inadvertently let out some
news that should have been kept secret
and on another occasion Secretary
Olney had done the same thing. 1t is
possible that in view of the present dis
turbance in the usually placid current
of State Department affairs that the
government will get new code, which
it has been thinking of doing for some
years.
There has been considerable satis-
faction in the War Department over
the action of the conference of army
surgeons who recently recommended
the re- establishment of the army Can
teen. The canteen in the army was
abolished some years back, as will be
remembered, by act of Congress. The
congressman who passed the bill did
not believe in it, but they did not have
the moral courage to stand out against
the pressure that was brought to bear
on them by great many good but mis-
taken people who were earnest advo
Gates of temperance and who did not
think that the United States had any
business to sell liquor. About the
same time the same INF. uence was used
to prohibit the selling of liquor at the
House and Senate resteraCnts in the
Capitol. Now both restaurants are
nominally dry. But anyone who has
the combination can get any sort of
liquor they want served to them in a
teacup with a spoon. 1t was a good
deal more serious with the army posts.
They did not have congressman among
their patrons, and they abolished the
sale of beer and light wines to the en-
listed men. The officers in charge of
the posts knew just what would hap
pen, for they knew the peril of 1.-The
Blue Goose" That is the army name
for the groggeries that spring up on the
outskirts OF every army post where
there is no canteen. The soldiers,
when they had the canteen spent their
money for drinks there. They got pure
drinks and there was about rs per cent
profit in it. This profit went to the
mess fund.- and the men were able to
buy themselves things to eat that were
not On the regular ration list of the
army. But as soon as the canteen was
abolished, the Blue Goose sprang up
again. The soldiers had no place of
meeting and they bought vile liquor
and got none of the profits. The re-
cent conference of army surgeons de-
clared fatty that the bulk of the dis
ease and desertion i'll the army could
be traced directly to the abolition of
the canteen and they urged its re-estab-
lishment. Army officers, after three
years experience of doing without the
canteen, hope that the recommendation
of the surgeons will be Needed. But
there will be a great howl from the
temperance advocates if 1t is.
There is some talk of appointing ex
President Grover Cleveland us Tue head
OF the American delegation to the new
Hague conference. 1t is said that be
will be appointed If he cau be induced
to serve and great many people no
admire his sturdy personality Irrespec.
tive of politics, hope that he Will cuu-
sent to act.