Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-07-12

and then settled down for its period OF
summer dullness.
"A stranger standing in one of the
railroad stations might well have be
lieved himself in city stricken with
the plague, from which its inhabitants
were in-eager flight Every outgoing
train was crowded to it's capacity. Few
alighted from trains incoming. Presi
dent Roosevelt set an example by leav
Ing the city within a few hours after
the falling gavels on Capitol Hill had
marked the end of the session. All
who could went in the Presidents
wake.
On the American continent there is
no other city like Washington in this
respect. Possibly there is none like il
in the world. From busy, busting
capital, it becomes almost in night
to all outward appearances, like a
sleepy country town.
Yet Washington is not so dead as it
would seem. It is true the capitol nc
longer resounds with the noise of the
nations law-sivers; the White House
is closed, and its, inmates gone; the
hotel corridors are deserted and seem
lonely places Yet the wheels of I'm
Gle Sans great machine Of government
continue to revolve. The department
clerks are still with us, and will be
here. Even the heads Of the depart
ments are not yet at liberty to follow
their chief out Of the heated city.
The fact is that the recent session
Of congress enormously increased the
Several of the departments will be
~ o1, Nct y,n
organization because of the enactments
of congress. Especially heavy is the
work which the Department of Agri
culture is compelled to do. The meat
inspection law and the. pure food law
are the responsible measures in this
instance Under each law the organi
cation of large inspection force viii
be required, and to put these vast ma
chimes into successful operation will
keep Secretary Wilson and his assist
ants busy until the snow flies. In the
Department Of Commerce and Labor
there also is a good deal of reorgani
cation to be accomplished, and Score
tary Metcalf has postponed his vaca
ton until an indefinite day.
Nor will there be much doing in the
vacation line for Secretary Taft. The
final decision by congress on the type
of Panama canal to be constructed re
moved the last excuse for delay in that
undertaking, and the country expects
that from now on the canal work will
be pushed as it never has been pushed
before. This means, Of course, that the
head Of the War department will not
have a chance to get far away from
base
Attorney General Moody also has q
strenuous summers work cut out fol
him. Mr.. Moody has remained in the
cabinet at5the solicitation of President
Roosevelt for the express purpose o.
prosecuting the Standard Oil and Other
TRUSTS; srrld il s.ttihe execution in this en-
terprise is to measure up to the prom
1se, there is no rest Immediately ahead
Of the attorney general.
Secretary Of State Root is the first
cabinet member to get away from
Washington but his trip to South
America is not wholly one Of pleasure
though going and coming he will have
ample time to rest and recuperate
Notwithstanding this, Mr. Root is en-
We'd by his colleagues. 1t will be mid
winter in South America while he il
there, and that is much to be preferred
to midsummer in Washington.
1t is given out that Mr. Roosevelt i!
to have summer of real rest, and tina
a quarantine against visitors has beer
established at Oyster Bay. Sagamort
hill will be as hard to approach as thu
inside of German fort. Whoever de
sires to see the President must hav,
business of such tremendous import
ance that it cannot be handled by tn,
department heads in Washington no
yet by Secretary Loeb at the temper
airy executive Offices in Oyster Ba.
town. Instances of such vitality import
ant business, it is believed, will be few
and far between
Mr. Roosevelt admitted, just befor,
he left Washington, that the recen
session of congress had gotten on hi
nerves" and he feels he is entitled to
long rest, something he has not hat
In more than four years There is NJ
disposition in any quarter to deny thi
Presidents due
The suggestion is made, however
that more than likely MI Roosevelt
also "got on the nerves" of congress
He certainly gave the capitol Hill
statesmen busy winter and kept then
pretty well in state of guessing from
December until July Yet the member
Of congress have no chance to seel
rest in seclusion-at least the grea
majority Of them have not. The coun
try must be saved again this year, ant
in the mind of the average congress
man its salvation depends in no small
degree upon his reelection.
Sunny Jim" Griggs, of Georgia
chairman of the democratic congress
ional committee, is already hard a
work in his efforts to capture the mex
house of representatives for the demoe
racy. The committee had headqual
tiers open, in fact, month before cor
gress adjourned, but campaign wor
began in earnest last Monday morning
MINUTE CHATS