The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1907-02-08
NOTES FROM WASHINGTON
Especial Correspondence.) }

! ing as one committee, the McCumber
| service pension bill was favorably re-
ported TO the house the other day.
The bill provides that all veterans of
the Mexican war or the war OF 1861
who are So yeaSs old may have a
pension of sl2 month. Veterans 20
years old are to have SIS a month
and $40 a month is TO be granted TO
all veterans over 75 years old.
More Money to Study Buss-By a
heavily favorable vote. the house in
committee of the whole on the agri-
cultural appropriation bill has in
creased the appropriation for the bu-
reau OF entomology from $4,000 10
! S11S,800, in order that scientific in
vestigations may be made Of the
white fly pest of Florida, the gypsy
moth Of Massachusetts, thrips that
attack cherry trees Of California and
the tobacco insect of Kentucky and
! Tennessee.
Free Seeds Saved-The house has
| passed the senate bill increasing the
| board Of customs appraisers in New
! York from 10 to u. The agricultural
| appropriation bill occupied attention
| most OF Tuesday, and as usual when
the amendment striking out the free
distribution of seeds was reached,
the members from the farming dis
tricts outvoted those from the cities;
reversed a ruling of the chair by
vote Of 1876 to S5 and restored the
paragraph providing for the distribu-
ton. The recommendations of the
committee on agriculture 10 increase
| salaries Of the chief forester, Clifford
Pinchot. and the chief of the bureau
Of chemistry, DR.. II. ~ Wiley, from
$4,000 to $500, went out on points of
order. An important amendment was
adopted, to the effect that no part of
the money appropriated for expenses
in the enforcement of the national
pure food law should be paid TO any
state, city or district official the
amendment being based on the the
ory that the states should execute
their own pure food laws and the fed
eral government do the same.
DR.. W.ey on Cold Storage-Dr.
Harvey w. Wiley, pure food expert,
gave interesting testimony on the de-
torioration Of foodstuffs in cold stor-
age before the house committee on
agriculture, whose hearings on the
agricultural appropriation bill have
just been made public. Milk begins
TO deteriorate right away, and so does
cream" said DR.. Wiley. Eggs also
begin to deteriorate Immediately.
Fruit is improved and sometimes con-
tinues to improve for three months.
Meat improves up to about six or
eight weeks, but after three months
for meat you can see that it has
reached the maximum and then it be-
gins to go down, | do not care how
hard it is frozen" Dr. Wiley said he
was a thorough believer in cold stor-
age, and believed most foods i'm
proved when properly kept for a short
time. He said oysters opened and
shipped in buckets should be pre-
vented from entering into interstate
commerce, as they were dead. IAN
oyster is dead an hour after it is
opened" said DR. Wiley, "ard is not
good. 1t loses it's flavor" AS to
freezing oysters, DIR. Wiley said, "Oh,
they ought not TO be frozen. That
ruins them, and as soon as they thaw
they are dangerous"
Canal Contract Not Award ed-The
following statement was made public
recently at the White House by Sec
retary Loeb: Reports in the papers
seem 10 indicate a belief that the
canal contract has been conditionally
awarded TO Mr.. Oliver. This is not
so. No decision has been made even
that the contract will be awarded to
any of the bidders. Mr. divers bid
was so hopelessly defective that it
could not be even considered, and
time was given him to complete it in
shape that will enable il to receive
consideration. If it is put into such
shape il will be considered together
the Gillespie Macarthur combination,
which may itself be altered, and then
whichever bid. after the most careful
examination. seems most advantage
Gus may be taken, or both bids re
jected. and the canal be constructed
under the direct supervision of the
government In such case the gov.
ernment would. wherever it chose,
use contractors simply as agents. The
real object in contracting the work
is to have assembled large number
of the best specialists in each class OF
work. and the prime consideration
will be the ability and fitness shown
in a variety Of directions by the men
making the bid. The president and
the commission would not even con.
slider a bid of merely one or two men.
The work is already going well. Over
half a million cubic yards were taken
out of the Culebra cut in January.
and the amount being taken out is
steadily increasing.