The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1910-06-21
Wa sbin9ton

Confronted by the probability that
Congress will adjourn without taking
any steps TO increase the commits
stoned personnel of the army, the Sec
rotary Of War has
Chance For ordered that wher
Retired officers. ever possible officers
be restored to their
line duties, including those now de.
tailed to staff duty, work on the Pan
anna Canal, at educational institu-
tions, etc. This will not greatly affect
the work on the Panama Canal, for
the reason that most of the officers ON
duty in the canal zone are there by
express provision of law, but it Will
mean that many of the officers now
at military schools, ETC., will be re-
turned to their regiments and their
places filled with retired officers
found competent for the work. The
order will probably affect officers on
duty with the quartermaster-g general,
the commissioning general, in the medi-
cal corps, etc. Secretary Dickinson
has also urged Congress Immediately
to pass the bill designed to place the
general staff on the same plane as
other staff bureaus, so that vacancies
made by the assignment of officers to
the general staff may be filled by pro-
motion until the vacancy at the foot
of the line is filed by the commission
ing of second lieutenant. The Sec
rotary frankly expresses his regret
that it should be necessary to replace
officers at the military schools with
retired officers, but he believes this
step is imperative.
A development which promises to
make greatly for the popularity of
the Taft administration is the INSTALL
alton of Charles D. Norton as secre-
tary to the President. 1t
Norton, is no exaggeration to say
Secretary. that the whole atmos-
phere of the White House
changed with the appearance of Mr..
Norton on the scene, Those who had
appointments with the President
found that they were received on
time. Newspaper correspondents
had no difficulty in obtaining salts
factory information regarding the
news of the White House and fol-
lowing the conference with the rail-
road presidents, larger number saw
the President than at any previous
time since his inauguration. Every
thing moved with snap and an or
der which augur we'll for the future.
and predictions of the success of the
new secretary were heard on all
sides. 1t is betraying no confidence
to say that one of the weak spots of
this administration has been the con-
veying of news to the press-not, of
course, those matters which should
not be made public, but those which
should. Mr. Norton begins his work
with realization of the Importance
of this phase of his numerous duties,
and there is reason to believe that he
will be successful in the performance
of this delicate and highly important
task.
The Committee on Claims reported
to the Senate a bill granting $773,-
647.25 to the Southern Pacific Rail-
road for the work it did to check the
Salton Sink and save the
Uncle Sam Imperial Valley from per-
Poor Pay. manent inundation. The
amount spent for this
work by the Southern Pacific, which
was carried in the bin introduced by
Senator Flint, was 81 1893, 40, and
! the payment was strongly recon-
mended by President Roosevelt in q
special message to Congress on Jan
uary ~, 1907. OF course, the rail
road cannot compel the United States
to pay more than it chooses for this
work, which was done without any
contract, and Congress appears to
think it will be doing it's full duty by
passing the bill reported. although il
carries considerably less than half the
amount spent to remedy the break in
the Colorado River and save the val
ley, which is occupied by between
5000 and 10000 settlers.
A prominent New Yorker recently
in Washington is authority for the
statement that no man has grown SC
rapidly in public life as George w
Wickersham, Attorney
Understands General in President
Growth. Taft's Cabinet. This
authority asserted that
Wall Street was confident when Mr.
Wickersham was chosen for this re-
sponsible post that it would find in
him quick and ready sympathizer
but that now that it has come to re-
alization of the fact that Mr.. Wicker.
sham is acting with full apprecia
ton of the fact that he has the entire
American people for his clients and
is showing remarkable ability in the
conduct of the business of the nation
Wall Streets admiration and conf
dence have turned to hatred, and
there is nothing too bitter for it tC
say of Mr.. Wickersham. To this keer
disappointment are attributed some
of the recent attacks on the Attorney
General, but in proportion as certain
class of business men are turning
against the Acknowledgement the
great mass of the people are turning
to him, and since he initiated the in
junction proceedings which brough
the Western railroads to the Whit,
House as suppliants for peace at an!
price, and the ultimate effect of which
was to protect the people from gen
eral advance in freight rates. the con
viction of the West that Mr. Taft
Attorney-Ge is really grea
man can hardlysbe shaken.