Daily Kennebec journal., 1913-08-06
Democrats Will Have Full
Responsibility fort TaIiffDi||.
Every Amendment Voted Down
Indifference TO Argument.
The ColIectorship, Some Postmast.
erships and Other Patronage.

Washington, d. c., Aug. 5-(SpeciaD.
Maine is having a decidedly quiet
summer at the federal Capital. This
is not a session of Congress, when
local matters are being considered, be-
yond the fact that tariff revision is
bound to be somewhat local, and the
session is doing practically nothing
but tariff. There are some Maine
matters of legislation ahead, some
public building legislation and the
like but very little will be heard
of it till after next December
when the regular session of Con-
gress shall have assembled. Some new
Democrats of the House have been
agitating for a few public building APP
fropriations, in completion of projects
.lready authorized, but it is not en-
tirely clear whether they will get these
before next winter. There are two or
three such projects in Maine and the
state would like to have the appro-
priations for that purpose which hap
pen to be in prospect.
Representative Sparkman of Florida,
chairman Of the House committee on
rivers and harbers, says he wants to
go to Maine this summer and look
over waterway projects in contempla-
ton there. These are not very large
but comprise a number of cases where
continuing appropriations are being
made or where surveys have favored
appropriations. The Massachusetts
land ard harbor commission has been
making a fuss about getting Mr.
Sparkman into their state and he will
go but he said he was quite as much
t,,fa
ing to Massachusetts.
Considerable fruitage is rpening on
the tree of patronage and some of ii
pertains to Maine. For instance there
is the co1lectorship of internal revenue
which Senator Johnson has been try
ing to get for Cyrus Davis and which
the New Hampshire Democrats say
shall never. never. by the great horn
spoon, go to any other than a New
Hampshire Democrat. Internal reve-
nue. collectors hold an indefinite COM
mission so that the President with en-
tire consistency can replace them at
any time. but it has been thought for
weeks that the President would Sc
lect the collector for the Maine, New
Hampshire and Vermont district. He
desisted. in good part, perhaps, be-
cause of the contention between the
Maine and New Hampshire Demo- |
Gratis. Nowadays. however, he is
nominating many collectors of inter |
nal revenue. Thus far he has named |
20 odd. out of total of 66 such Off |
cials and it is presumed he will pretty |
nearly clean the slate before the ad-
journment of the extra session of
Congress. 1t is almost certain that he |
will name the collector who has his |
office at Portsmouth, n. II. 1t seems
that lately the New Hampshire Dem
ocrats in Congress have been making
some progress toward agreement upon
q name and it is conceded they have
the inside track. If Senator johnson
gets away with the plum under those
circumstances he will be doing very
well indeed.
Practically all the vacant postmast-
erships for Maine, which means the
offices where Republican encumbents
have served four years, are now filled
with Democrats. A few of these
Maine nominations are hanging for
confirmation but it is only a ques-
tion Of a few days before the Senate
will pass upon them. The unconfirm-
ed are Joseph E. Brooks at Biddeford:
Albert r. Donigan at Bingham; and
Arthur L. Newton, at Buckfield. These
three were nominated but the other
day and there has not been time for
the usual routine which attends con-
firmation of nomination. Oscar r.
Wish has been confirmed at Portland.
action having been taken with eXpe-
dition, in contrast with the long de-
lay in getting his nomination through.
In all President Wilson has now
nominated 20 postmasters for Maine,
which is going quite well. This has
made up for the earlier delays in get
ting nominations of postmasters
through Dexter and Foxcroft offices
will probably be filled with Democrats
before the extra session of Congress
ends. During the next four or five
months, however, more commissions
will expire and there will be some
postofiice plums to bestow when Con-
gress convenes again next December.
Otherwise Maine Democrats are not
getting much and have little in pros
pect Most of the good places down
here at Washington are filled and if
there were disposition to take care
of such a prominent Democrat as ex-
Gov Plaisted, it is difficult to see how
he could be provided for at this late
Continued on Page Five.)