The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1906-01-11
Letter from Washington.

| Mrs. Burlelgn OI INC tHIIu MaiHo uiStflct
were among the early arrivals here this
week for the reassembling of Congress.
They opened again their apartments at the
| Richmond and the Governor has taken up
his tasks both in the House and before the
| Departments. During their absence from
Washington the President and Mrs. Roose-
welt had sent them invitations to attend the
diplomatic reception for Thursday evening
of this week. 1t is one of the first official
functions at the White House after the
New Years reception. They have also been
invited to attend dinner and reception to
be given by Elk Senator and Mrs. Hender-
son to meet Speaker Cannon and his daugh-
ter, Miss Helen Cannon. The HendersOns
have the finest private residence in Wash
ington. It is known as 1.-THE CASTLE and
is situated on the highlands on Sixteenth
street and Florida avenue.
One of the first things Gov. Burleigh has
undertaken is to secure copies of about 800
public building bills, which have been in
troduced since the beginning of Congress.
These are all before his committee on pub
lie buildings and grounds. 1t falls on him
to 20 over those bills carefully, consult with
the Treasury officials and also with Speaker
Cannon to determine where the public
money can be spent to the greatest advan-
tage in erecting new public buildings and
then work to frame an omnibus public build
ing bill which will conform to these re-
quirements. Speaker Cannon has decided
during the last two weeks that there must
be an omnibus public building bill. AS
there are only two or three experienced
members On the committee, among them
Gov Burleigh, the Speaker places much re-
lance upon the Maine man in drawing up
the measure.
One of the Governors annual tasks also
is starting the rural free delivery appropr-
ations along with the post office approprla-
ton committee While that committee is
generous in granting such appropriations,
the governor always puts his shoulder to
wheel and helps along an appropriation
that will warrant the creation OF many new
routes and the enlargement of the service.
This week, too, he has taken up anew his
work before the pension bureau. The
statistics show that the mortality rate
among the old soldiers the last two months
has been unusually high Appeals from the
veterans in his district to help their cases
along before the bureau strike home to the
governor He has always made a speciality
of facilitating their applications before the
bureau and has been spending more time at
that work this year than ever before. Mrs.
Burleigh takes lively interest in this
feature of Gov Burleigh's congressional
work and aids in keeping record in big
book of the requests that come in and OF
the progress made before the pension
bureau She is an expert in keeping books
on these pension claims OF soldiers from
the Third Maine district. When the Govern
or wants to know just how much he has ac-
complished with a given clam-there are
hundreds of them so that it would be i'm
possible to carry all of them in ones mind
he simply turns to the record and is able to
start anew intelligentIy.
The time for distributing the quota of
Congressional seeds will soon be at hand.
The big bundles of franks will come up
from the Government Printing Office, the
along next May people in the third district
will be receiving the packages OF seeds for
the garden and for the flower beds which
the government bestoWs through members
of Congress.
The daily mail which a member of Con-
gresS must handle is quite factor. Gov.
Bureigh is one of those who make it a
point to answer all letters as promptly as
possible 1t is no light task to write from
twenty to 100 letters ii day, especially when
many of these letters mean an inquiry by
telephone or even trip to some OF the De-
partments
Senator Hale commented today about a
movement on foot in the House of Repre-
sentatives to reorganize the customs service
of the country, to abolish many of the Old
districts, where comparatively small collec-
lions are taken in, as is the case with many
Maine districts, and substitute inspectors
in place of collectors and deputies. The
plan has been put forward by Representa-
tive Tawney OF Minnesota, now chairman
of the Committee on Appropriations.
"Why, all that is very DID," said Senator
Hale. 1ney nave DeeH Trying W w tHdt,
at intervals, for many years but we have
never had difficulty in defeating it, for the
present system is generally satisfactory and
is not expensive. Our customs service in
Maine has been very efficient. am sure it
will be conceded that the appointments
have been good. Representative men in
their respec tive communities have been
app ointed as collectors. Their remunera-
ton has been small in all but two or three
of the Maine customs districts, but their
good standing has given the service dignity
and under such conditions smuggling has
been much less than it would have been had
the government only kept inspectors on
guard. The collectors in Maine have had,
in each case, a deputy or two when needed
and these have been capable men. The
result is, that while the annual collections
have been SMALL: except at such ports as
Bangor and Portland, the collections at Bos-
ton and other ports have been much larger
than they would have been with less
efficient service at the various points over
Maine.
81 do not anticipate any difficulty in de-
feating such plan as Mr. Tawney proposes,
even should it ever pass the House" added
the senior Maine Senator "The Maine
customs officials have no reason to be dis
turbed.''
Ex-Gov Burlegh observed today that he
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