Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1912-08-28
WASHINGTON LETTER
Weekly Letter From Our Special
Correspondent.
NEWS FROM THE CAPITAL
pie, Written by an Iowa
Man.

washington, ID. u, august 20, l9lZ.
The reforming craze is going to
strike snag when it tries to improve
the physicians penmanship.
If George Washington really did
use great big d" on his Senate,
his remarks on the present body
would probably be unprintable.
The Chicago minister who said that
all women cannot hope to marry be-
cause their sex exceeds in number
must have had Washington in mind
So successful has been the money
laundering experiment of the treas
uly department that it is likely that
the secretary will enlarge the plant
and take in washing from the nation
al banks.
During the quarter ending March
81, of this year, 1883 persons were
killed and 20,499 injured by the rail-
roads of the country, according to a
bulletin issued by the Interstate Com
1utICt SOliuliSSlou III Train oCSi-
dents, 267 persons were killed and
4,7S5 injured. OF the 1888 fatali-
ties, 1,116 were suffered by trespas-
sers.
The house has passed the bill in
troduced by Representative Sherley
of Kentucky which makes more dras-
tic the pure food and drug law as ap-
piled to patent and proprietary med
icines. The bill would prohibit the
publishing of claims for "cure-alls'
that cannot be substantiated or which
have no foundation in fact.
So enervating is Washington
summer climate and so soporific is
the atmosphere of the two halls OF
congress that the superintendent OF
the capitol will install new system
of ventilation and refrigeration, by
which chilled air will be forced into
The chambers and the members liven-
ed up into semblance of energy. BY
this means it is believed congression-
al business will be greatly expedited
and the annual embarrassment to the
chautauqua circuit obviated.
For the second time the house pas
sed over the presidents veto the leg
islative, executive and judicial appro-
priation bill. The vote was 154 to
SO, and the republicans voting for
the measure included Towner and
Woods of lbwa. The senate, howev-
er, failed to pass the bill, the vote
being "a to 27. and as result the
house amended it to provide con-
tinuous appropriation for the objec-
tiona5le Commerce Court until March
4, 1919, and sent the amended meas
ure back to the senate.
The senate is considering the bill
to prohibit corporations from making
contributions in connection with po-
litical elections and to limit the
amount of such contributions by indi'
viduals. The bill forbids any nat
ional bank or other corporation or
ganized under authority of federal
statute from giving money or any
thing of value to influence any con
vention, primary, or election, and nc
individual may contribute more thar
$4,000 to any campaign fund.
Postmaster General Hitchcock has
taken stand in favor of the adoption
by congress of the Lewis compromise
on parcels post in preference to the
Bourne plan. The Lewis compromise
has been adopted by the house as
substitute for the Bourne plan, which
latter included only fourth-class mai
matter and excluded agriculture
products and books, made no proyis
ion for C. o. ID. privileges and denied
the right of indemnification by iasur
ance concerns for injured or los
shipments. All these rights are ac
cepted under the Lewis compromise
With forty-nine democrats and on
republican holding out against evel
one new battleship. the house, by
vote of 151 to so, adopted the con
terence agreement on the naval ap
preparation bill, which provides TO
the building of a plus-ultra-super
dreadnought The senate has alread,
adopted the agreement, which repre-
sents compromise between the sen
ate and the house on one new battle
ship, and the bill will now go to tn
president for signature. The bill a
passed carries $123,220,707, an in
crease of approximately $4,6O0,OO'
over the measure as it passed th'
house. The secretary has named tn
projected battleship the "Pennsylvan
la" and the armored cruiser OF tina
name will probably be rechristene'
Harrisburg"
Representative Gilbert N. Haugen
of the Fourth Iowa district, has bee