The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1909-05-27
Letter From Washington.

Maine Fisheries Have Senator Hale's Atten-
tion-Representative Burleigh at the Pen
sion Office. The Pulp and Paper Inter-
ests.
Correspondence of The Journal
WASHINGTON, D. c., May "a. The fishing in
terests of Maine are figuring somewhat in the
tariff bill before the Senate. The fish schedule
as a whole is of minor revenue importance
compared with many others, but the industry
along the Maine Coast is of Importance and
several items have been put into the bill since it
left the House, nearly all at the instance of
Senator Hale, that will be of help to the fisher
men and to those dealing in fish products along
the coast of the Pine Tree State.
One incident of these amendments pertained
to sod oil. 1t is a red looking substance, which
comes from the dressing of chamos skins.
When Senator Lodge one day rose from his seat
in the Senate and asked that sod oil be requir-
ed to pay duty of 8 cents, along with herring oil
and other like products, hardly anyone within
the sound of his voice knew what sod oil was.
There is only one channels skin tannery in the
United States and the product of sod oil from
that tannery is not very large. The sod oil is
used further for dressing leather.
Only Senator Lodge and one or two others
knew that he was asking for duty upon sod
oil at the request of Senator Hale of Maine.
The latter had been advised of the danger that
sod oil might come into competition with cod
oil, which is produced in some quantities from
the Goldfish caught along the Maine coast. So
sod oil went into the bill. The Senate accept
ed the amendment without discussion or in
quiry.
In the same quiet way Senator Hale has
stood for the protection of herring. There had
been pressure from some quarters for lowering
the duties on some forms of herring that might
come into competition with the Maine fish,.
Senator Hale has resisted this lowering of
duties on herring and expects when the bill is
completed and becomes law that the Maine
fishermen will have as large protection, and
in some instances higher protection, than
under the present Dingley law. He has insisted
on stringent provisions, indeed, than
Senator Lodge, who is the champion of the
fishing interests on the Massachusetts coast
Representative Burleigh has been spending
several days the past week at the Pension Of
fee At table in one of the corner offices on
the second floor he has been going over the
papers of considerable number of veterans
residing in the Third District who for one
reason and another, have been unable to get
their claims for pensions adjusted. Every
month or so he goes to the Pension Office to
clear up, as far as he can, the inquiries of SOL
der constituents who write to him, and gener-
ally succeeds in accelerating action on num-
Der of these pending Maine claims. AS the
law now provides service pension for all
Civil War soldiers, every old soldier who ap-
plies is sure of pension sooner or later, dat
ing from the time of his application. But he
must submit proofs of his service in accepta-
BILE form. Very many soldiers do not conform
entirely to these requirements and can not un-
derstand why their claims are not more speed
lily settled Gov. Burleigh goes over the papers
to ascertain what is lacking, and informs the
old soldier what the trouble is, with the result
that very often notice comes from the Pension
Office within month that the claim has been
adjusted and the pension granted.
Then, as the soldiers grow older, many of
them are applicants for pensions at rates high
er than the service law allows. Such claims
are adjusted more slowly than claims for ser
vice pensions. The law naturally must be
strict about requirements. Many little hitch
es occur. The Pension Office is not very ag-
gressive about ascertaining what can be done
to tbo n of 1,;v
member of Congress comes, as many do, to
demonstrate a personal interest and to exam
inc the papers, the Pension Commissioner or
one of his deputies generally takes the matter
in immediate charge and case that otherwise
might remain in the files for a year or two is
cleared up and adjusted within a month or two.
The pension business from the third district is
very large as, in fact, it is from all the Maine
Congressional districts. The advancing years
of the veterans bring flood of requests to all
the Maine Congressman, and all the Maine
congressman are familiar visitors to the Pen
sion Office.
Quiet has come in the campaign here for
duties on ground wood pulp and print paper, in
which Maine industries are greatly interested.
For while it was one of the big things one
heard about daily around the Capitol. There
were men coming and going constantly on err
rands connected with that campaign. Finally
very thorough canvass of the Senate was
made, showing probable majority for the
duties. The margin was none too much, but
would suffice, and on that showing the advo-
Gates of the duties have been resting, seeking
rather to hold what they have than to gain
new converts. There will be considerable I'M
easiness, however, right up to the time that
the vote is taken, and that probably will not be
for two or three weeks The Senate is now
occupied with other schedules, talking about
iron ore and glass and white lead. There have
been days and days of debate on all these items
and the friends of duty upon ground wood
pulp and print paper were content that atten-
ton should be diverted from them for bit.
There will undoubtedly be big debate upon
these duties, which the Finance Committee has
agreed upon but has not reported. The west
ern Republicans are preparing for big on
sault. They will insist that the New England
pulp mills can make pulp at smaller cost
than the Canadian mills and that the help that
the New England mills get is largely from
Canada any way. The Maine and New Hamp-