Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1912-04-10
WASHINGTON LETTER
Weekly Letter From Our Special
Correspondent.
Grief Items of Interest to Iowa PeO-
pie, Written by an Iowa
Man.
Washington, D. c., April s, 1912.


q What is know as the ''phossy jaw"
bill, to tax the white phosphorus
Smatch industry out of existence, has
passed both Houses.
In Speaker Clark has cinched the
] Indian vote by having moving pic
.N lures taken of himself leading a band
of braves up the capitol steps.
IA BY a vote of 1S9 to 92 the Lerlo-
cratic wool bill has passed the House,
4 twenty progressive republicans, in
cluding Haugen and Hubbard of
Iowa, voting for it.
The Borah-Peters bill creating
childrens' bureau in the Department
of Commerce and Labor has passed
both Houses and now lacks only the
signature of the president to make
Rat a law -
kNl Twenty-eight representatives, each
Yjthe author of goou roads bill, have
Hunited in an endorsement of the
W. measure introduced by Representa-
N tive Shackelford of Missouri, and
4
A Senator Shelby NJ. Cullom has dis
covered a new avenue to the heart
of the voter. His expense account,
q just filed with the Senate in accord
ance with the campaign publicity
law, includes an item of $11.50 paid
for apples.
Within short time after Presi-
dent Taft had sent a special mes
sage to Congress calling attention to
the damage being done by floods in
the Mississippi valley, Congress pass
ed bill appropriating $350,000 for
\ the relief of the sufferers.
A census of the wells of the coun-
try compiled by the Department of
Agriculture shows that marked de-
crease in the water level has taken
place since the first settlement of
the country, the average shrinkage
being about a foot and half
decade.
The antitrust laws of Missouri
were upheld and the states action in
ousting the Standard Oil Company
OF Indiana and the Republic Oil
Company of New York from the
state, and fining each $4,000 was
approved in decision handed down
by the Supreme Court on Monday.
Secretary Fisher of the Depart
ment of the Interior is planning a
trip to Honolulu for the purpose of
investigating charges brought against
Walter F. Frear, governor of Hawaii,
by Delegate Kalanianaole. Charges
were filed last December to the ef-
feet that the governor was not in
sympathy with the Hawaiian people,
but had leanings toward the sugar
trust and other special interests,
To set at rest unofficial reports
that Japan is seeking to obtain
foothold at Magdalena Bay, Mexico,
and ascertaining all the facts so far
as may be in possession of the gov
ernment, Senator Lodge has intro
duced resolution calling upon the
= president to furnish, IF not incom-
patible with the public interest"
any informationDrelatin ting to the pur-
chase of land by the Japanese gov
ernment or by a Japanese company
that may be available.
The four new Senators from New
Mexico and Arizona took the oath Cf
Office April I'd, and, in accordance
with custom in such cases, drew lots
to deter mine which should have the
long and which the short terms. The
slips emitting the lucky holders 70
the long terms were drawn by Mr..
Ashurst of Arizona and Mr.. Catron
of New Mexico.
The army appropriation bill, as
reports to the Senate by the COM
mittee on military affairs, calls for
an increase of nearly eight million
dollars over the sum appropriated
by the bill as it passed the House.
The principal increases are: Pay of
officers of the line, $S06,792 ad-
ditional for length of service, S243,-
200; pay of enlisted men of the line,
$400,954; additional for length of
service, $10O,000 foreign service
pay of officers, S266,000; same for
enlisted men, $4,000.
A bill is pending before the House
interstate commerce committee
which has for its object the preven-
tion of interstate shipment of live
calves under six weeks of age un-
less accompanied by their mothers.
In advocacy of the bill charges are
made by members of the American
Humane Society that instances are
known where calves few weeks old
have been carried on trains for so