The National tribune., 1908-01-16

II
the Department.
This inquiry will be made on the
ground that the Government can OBJ
tain the best service only from men who
are devoting all their energies to their
departmental work. In view of the
agitation for more pay for the Gov
crnment clerks. Mr.. Littlefield wishes to
ascertain whether any of them are now
enjoying outside emoluments.
Another victim of 'newness" that
will crop out in the National legislator
no matter how worldly wise he is was
Representative Graham (Penna.)- who
was assigned to that graveyard of conf
mittees. Ventilation and Acoustics"
All the other committees We're asking
that they might have printing done,
and all that sort Of thing, and Mr..
Graham, in all the glory of his new
Craftsmanship of Committee that he
knew absolutely nothing about arose in
his seat and gravely asked unanimous
consent that his committee be author
lied to do such printing and binding
as the business of the committee re-
quired. OF course a shout went up
from the older members. for they knew
that his little old committee had not
had a meeting in 20 years, and was
designed ,only for a dumping place for
new members like the chairman.
There is a remarkable scene every
day in the United States Senate when
Senator Bryan takes his seat beside
Senator Whyte, of Maryland. Senator
Bryan is 33 years old and the youngest
man to enter the United States Senate.
Senator Whyte is "a. only a few years
short of being three times as old as
Bryan, and who had been a member of
the United States Senate 40 years ago.
or seven years before this kid was
born.
Is Senator LaFollette gutter?
Perish the thought But just the
same he has resigned from the Com
mittee on Military Affairs of the Sem
ate, one of the biggest and most i'm
portant committees of that body. 1t
is true that Senator LaFollette is a
man Of peace does not like war at all,
and does not want to talk about it, but
just the same he should have appre-
ciated the honor of a seat in that COM
mittee Senator LaFollette does not
give any reason for his resignation. but
| it is said that there is politics back of
his movement. He knows that the
Brownsville affair is bound to be a
| political bette noir during the campaign
and his committee has to vote on the
matter very soon. 1t is thought that
he wished to avoid "all entangling al
| Iiances." and so decided that the best
| thing he could do was to leave the COM
mittee before the matter came to a vote
and there you are. That is
"opinion." Senator LaFoIlette has not
spoken.
However, here is something that is
so.
Senator LaFollette has never been
satisfied with his committee assign
ments. Last Congress he served on the
| Claims Committee, for which he had
no better liking than for his new de-
tail to Military Affairs. When Sena-
| tors were requested to file their pref
| erences with the Committee on Com
mittees, at the beginning of this ses-
sion, Mr.. LaFollette expressed a wish
| for appointment on but two commit
tees, namely, Finance and Interstate
Commerce. He got neither, but the
committee thought he would be pleas
| ed to exchange Claims for Military Af-
| fairs, and Senator Fulton left the latter
committee in order to make room for
the Wisconsin Senator
| Mr.. LaFollette continues to hold six
committeeships. Among these, In
dian Affairs is the only one in which
| he takes any degree of interest.
| There was considerable discussion of
the Brownsville case in the Committee
| on Military Affairs last week, and it
was finally agreed that the Committee
should meet on Wednesday next and
examine witnesses to produce evidence
concerning the ammunition in question.
| The expert analyses of the various bull
| lets gathered at Brownsville were sub
mitted to the committee and examined.
1t was decided that certain ordnance
officials of the Army should be called
| before the committee to give informa-
ton concerning the ingredients of Army
| bullets, and the chairman also was di-
rected to summon officials of certain
firms manufacturing cartridges for the
| Government. The committee desires
antimony apears in the Army bullets
examined. although no antimony is
ordered in their makeup,
| Senator Burkett has introduced an
| important measure in the Senate, and
| Col Hepburn, in the House, under the
terms of which the Signal Corps of the
Army is to be placed on an equal foot
ing with the artillery and infantry. and
become a much more efficient branch OF
the service. 1t probably will more
than double the size of the present Sig
nal Corps organization, and is consid-
cred by many to be one of the most
! important steps in the organization OF
the Army that has been contemplated
in years. The Secretary of War and
the department generally have indorsed
the measure, and will urge it's passage
upon Congress.
| Now here's your chance to get in
your work for the restoration of the
motto.
Representative Mckinley, of Illinois
Chairman of the House Committee or
| Coinage, Weights and Measures, has
appointed the following subcommittee
to take up the question of replacing the
motto I'm God we trust upon the
coins: Representative Carlin, of Vir-
| ginia; Representative Wood of New
Jersey, and Representative Pearre, OF
| Maryland. 1t is understood that this
subcommittee will have a meeting al
an early date. 1t will take up the con-
sideration of the bills already intro.
duced in the House on this subject, one
of which was introduced by Repre-.
sentative Sheppard, of Texas. and an.
other by Representative Gaines, OF
4 Tennessee.
Throur the Panama Foreign Office
the Sts Department has been fur
nished h copy of the petition O.
the Pi ma merchants against the
continu of the granting of privi
leges Or he commissary operated b!
the Isthmian Canal Commission on Ger
tain West Indian laborers employed OF
the isthmus. The petition has beer
referred to the Canal Commission, b,
whom a reply will be made