Amador ledger., 1906-03-09
Washington
Letter.

(F'rom Our Regular Correspondent.
The man who few years ago was
known only as clever lawyer and
who has since been secretary of war
and is now secretary of state, will
without, doubt take rank, in fact has
already taken rank, with Seward,
Hay and other great diplomatists
and chancellors. Not week passes
but that his intelligent and expert
influence is felt in the great affairs
of this country. The adjustment of
our strained relations with Germany
during the last week is by no means
the least of his accomplishments. 1t
is true we made in that negotiation
an important concession to German
traders. We did not vary the tariff,
but we did arrange for an apprisal
of German goods at the port of de-
parture beforesthe goods were shipp-
ed. This to the mind of any one who
knows the importing business and
the ways of American appraisers, was
sheer decency, no more. But out of
this concession, the state department
secured an extension of the present
trade agreement with Germany for
sixteen months, and placed US on the
same footing as the European nations
with whom Germany has negotiated
new commercial treaties. 1t was Mr.
Roots first big piece of international
diplomacy. 70 be sure he had pre-
commission and secured the inter
pretation of the old Russian treaty
that came near disrupting the British
Empire. But that was done by active
work as an advocate. The present
triumph was won by sitting still. OF
course Germany might have elected
in the extremity to declare a tariff
war. Possibly secretary Root knew
she would not. Anyhow, he sat still
and let the other man walk the floor.
Baron Won Stern burg came near taking
rooms at the state department in the
last two weeks. He spent a lot of
money in cable tolls to his home
government. And to judge from the
result, the burden on those messages
must have beeu secretary OF state
says, nothing doing" Anyone who
knows secretary Roots placid exter-
ior can imagine his leaning lack be-
hind the broad desk in his office and
saying to the German ambassador,
"Awfully sorry, you know, but you
see yourself how Indifferent the SEN
ate is. | am afraid there is nothing
to be done. Have another cigar. -
And thus was a great y diplomatic
triumph achieved. If the case had
called for different treatment, the
secretary probably would have been
there with the treatment. But the,
result in all probability would have.
been the same.
The senate is having lot of trouble
over the Philippine tariff bill. Mr.
Hathaway who was sent out to the is
lands to make a case against the bill
and notably succeeded, has been fol-
lowed before the senate committee
that is holding the hearings by Mr.
George Bronson Ray, who has. also
made study of sugar conditions on
the ground and who assures the COM
mittee as did governor Wright, that
there is no prospect of the islands
swamping this country with Philip
pine sugar. Mr. Ray assured the
committee that there was neither the
land nor the labor available for any
immense increase in the output, and
that before a great crop of sugar
could be economically grown there
would have to be an influx of Ameri-
can capital and American machinery
such as was decidedly unlikely till
the islands we're at least a decade
more advanced. He said that the
bill as it had been framed was a
necessary and just concession to the
comerciaI necessities of the islands
and there was no harm to be appre-
hended from it to the American beet
sugar or cane sugar industries.
Another move in the current crus-
ade to secure fair and equal treat
ment for all shippers in the United
States, is bill just introduced by
Mr. Rhinock, of Kentucky, to the de-
clare pipe lines common carriers and
subject them to the jurisdiction of
the interstate commerce commission.
If this measure becomes a law, it
ought to afford great relief to the
oil shippers of this country, who have
frequently declared that they are
wholly at the mercy of the pipe lines
that transport their oil. As the case
now stands, there are many localities
where the pipe lines have not even
the nominal competition of the rail.
roads and where they are able to buy
HWY~@~ .