Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 April 1896 — BLAST FROM MORGAN [ARTICLE]

BLAST FROM MORGAN

MINORITY REPORT ON THE PACIFIC RAILWAY BILL. Says the Proceeding Proposed by the Committee Is One of Bargain and Sale in Disposing of the Property and Kights of the Government. Substitute Bill Offered. The views of Senator Morgan on the Pacific Railway refunding bill were submitted to the Senate Tuesday by Senator Pugh, in behalf of his colleague, who was called out of the eity. The Senator takes a position decidedly antagonistic to the bill reported, and begins by sharply criticising the joint meetings of the sub-committees of the two houses for the formulation of the bill. He characterizes this concerted action as a breach of duty and privilege. Such action is, he says, calculated to bring the pressure of outside influence of the most serious character to bear directly upon the action of the Senate and to its free judgment upon the measure before it. The added burden of the adjudication by a committee of the House is calculated to “smother out” the minority. Taking up the bill, the Senator says the proceeding proposed is one of bargain and sale in disposing of the property and rights of the Government, and is novel because hitherto Congress has not engaged in that line of business. Senator Morgan says an examination of Mr. Huntington's testimony before the Senate committee on Pacific roads “will disclose a most extraordinary condition of affairs relating to the Central and Southern Pacific railroads and other roads connected with them,” and continues: “Without attempting, in this paper, to array the evidence of fraud and ■peculhtion which Huntington's testimony vainly attempts to conceal, attention is drawn to the fact that his evasions of the truth, as it is thoroughly established, are his main reliance for misleading Congress in his effort to capture the Central Pacific Railway, after it has made him and his three or four associates enormously rich, on the plea that his pride impels him to save this road from bankruptcy, to which his fraudulent dealing seems to have driven it.” . DEFENSE OF PRESBYTERY. Rev. Mr. Cleveland DiemiHsed in the Interest of Harmony. The statements of Rev. William N. Cleveland, the President's brother, regarding his trouble at Chaumont, N. Y., have called forth a statement from the St. Lawrence Presbytery in defense of its action in dismissing him from his pastorate. It says: “The church at Chaumont was rent in pieces, and various reasons were assigned by the congregation for the lack of harmony, and counterreasons assigned by Mr. Cleveland. So far as the Presbytery was concerned, by means of a committee it sought to investigate charges made by Mr. Cleveland and counter-charges made by the large majority of his church. It did not find that there was any great or sufficient reason why the church in its majority should dislike Mr. Cleveland, nor did it find that Mr. Cleveland’s charges were substantiated. The Presbytery did what it could to reconcile differences, but the parties proved irreconcilable. It is to a certain extent a necessary piece of church policy that a minister must succeed in preserving unity in his congregation. In this particular case, inasmuch as the President’s brother was involved, it became a matter of national notoriety. In most cases it is not observed, but certainly common sense justifies the action which the Presbytery took.”

CUBANS SENTENCED TO DIE. Condemned as Incendiaries Without Proof of Guilt. Cuban prisoners of war are condemned to death as incendiaries without proof of actual guilt. Evidence that a rebel soldier belonged to a column of the enemy which burned property is sufficient to insure his death. A prisoner's conviction depends on whether he joined the offending band before or after the incendiarism occurred. It is said that nearly a hundred prisoners will be shot as incendiaries within a few days. Nebraska Murderers Get a Stay. Friday was the day fixed by the District Court of Douglas County, Neb., for the legal execution of George Morgan and Claude H. Hoover, both of whom stand convicted of murder in the first degree. The Supreme Court has intervened in both cases and the sentence of the lower court in each case is suspended while the Supreme Court passes upon the application made for new trials. Morgan was convicted of the murder of Ida Gaskill, 13 years old. Hoover was to die for killing Sam Dubois. National League Standing. Following is the standing of the clubs In the National Baseball League: W. L. W. L. Cleveland ...31 Chicago.. ...2 3 Philadelphia .3 1 Cincinnati . .2 3 Pittsburg . . .3 1 Boston 2 3 Washington .3 1 Baltimore . .2 3 St Louis ...32 New York ....1 3 Brooklyn ...22 Louisville ...14 Bimetallists at Brussels. The bimetallic conference, called with the view of paving the way to international negotiations on the subject, assembled in Brussels Monday. Delegates from Germany, the United States, Great Britain, France, Austria, Russia, Belgium, Denmark, Holland and Roumania are present. Mrs. Talcott Dies, Aged 106. Mrs. Emily Robbins Talcott, the oldest woman in Connecticut, died at her home in West Hartford Monday evening. She was born in Wethersfield on Christmas Day, 1790. At the memorial services held on account of Washington’s death, •he sang in the choir. Gustavus Kohn Kills Himself. Gustavus A. Kohn, who had charge of large millinery establishments in London. Paris, St. Paul, Chicago, New York and Richmond, committed suicide in the Reservoir Park, near Richmond, Va. Fatal Philadelphia Blaze. Two firemen were crushed to death and •everal others seriously injured as the result of a fire which destroyed the old depot of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company at Thirty-second and Market streets, Philadelphia, Saturday afternoon, and entailed a loss of about $200,000. Potatoes Bring Little Money. The price of potatoes has been broken •nd a world’s record made. In Columbus, Minn., choice white potatoes are selling at 1% cents a bushel. The starch factories are running and many potatoes are being brought in. Prices at the factories •re larger.

SHORT LINE OF MARCH. Grand Army Men Pleased at the Decision of the Committees. Advices received at the headquarters of the Grand Army of the Republic indicate that there is general satisfaction among the comrades throughout the country at the decision of the joint local and executive committees to limit the length of the route of the parade to take place in connection with the national encampment at St. Paul next September to one and eighttenths miles. At previous encampments, notably those at Boston and Pittsburg, there was considerable complaint among the veterans over the amount of ground they were required to cover on parade day, and thousands of them were compelled to drop out of line before the dispersing point was reached. This year, however, even the most feeble will be able to go over the course from start to finish. Moreover, the reviewing stand will be located about three-quarters of a mile from the starting point, so that in the event of extreme heat, rain or unfavorable conditions the parade can disband without going over the entire distance. The route adopted is paved with asphalt from one end to. the other, and this will enable the veterans to march with military tread. MANGLED AND SLAIN. Two Killed and Eight Badly Injured at Grosse Point. With an explosion that shook the country for miles around one of the buildings of the Chicago Fireworks Company at Grosse Point blew up about 8 o’clock Wednesday morning, killing two persons, fatally wounding two and terribly injuring six others. The employes, most of whom were girls under age, had scarcely been at work an hour when the accident occurred. What caused the explosion is not and probably never will be known. The girls were working briskly and merrily chatting with one another, when suddenly a terrible roar was heard, and the walls of the building, which is one of twelve similar ones, fell outward, while the roof came careening down, crushing the poor victims to the floor. A minute later another explosion followed, which mercifully raised the roof from the dying and fainting, and with feeble limbs and agonizing cries the wounded crawled out, some of them, forgetful of their own awful plight, dragging the more helpless ones with them. The work for the season at the establishment began but a few weeks ago, and only two of the twelve buildings were in use. TALK OF BOLT BY DELEGATES. White Metal Democrats Will Ineiat on a Free Coinage Plank. The Rocky Mountain News of Denver, Colo., says editorially that the representatives of Colorado in the national gathering of the Democratic party will walk out of the hall and out of the party unless the platform contains an unqualified declaration for free coinage and the candidate is suited to the platform. The Hon. Allen W. Thurman, of Ohio, sent a message to the Democratic State convention of Colorado predicting a victory for silver at Chicago if the Democrats from the Western States are united and determined and declaring that the prospect “ought to awaken in the breast of every true Democrat such feelings of exultation and courage that even were he threescore years and ten yet would he feel it was his duty to be in the front.”

DISASTER AT PEORIA. Two Dead, Two Fatally Hurt, and Others Seriously Injured. At 2:15 o’clock Friday morning a converter at the lower sugar works at Peoria, 111., exploded, filling an immense building with steam. At least two men ■j’ere killed outright, and it is feared that many more have met the same fate. Several were badly injured. The known dead: Barnes, John Hoey. Those known to be most seriously injured are: John Dooley, Mat. Connolly, John Wilson. The converter was on the fourth story of the building, in which about one hundred men were at work. There was the wildest excitement, and many thrilling escapes occurred. The explosion was plainly heard in all parts of the city. Reciprocity with Canada. In response to an invitation, Edward Farrer, one of the leaders of the Liberal party in Canada, has submitted to the House Ways and Means sub-committee the Liberal view of a reciprocity arrange-' ment between the United States and Canada. Mr. Farrer gives a history of the commercial relations between the two countries down to the reciprocity treaty with Newfoundland, negotiated in 1890 by Mr. Blaine, which was pigeon-holed by Lord Salisbury, he alleges, because of the jealousy of the dominion authorities. Mr. Farrer holds that it contained the principles upon which a treaty might now be framed that would be acceptable to the Liberals in Canada, seeking, as they do, to secure the commercial independence of the dominion and to be relieved from the necessity of consulting England in treatymaking and of the hampering requirement of conceding to England the best terms offered to any foreign country. Woman Thief Is Placarded. Mayor Nichols, of Wilkesbarre, Pa., sent an annual message of forty-six pages to the City Council Tuesday night, which that body received and filed without a page being opened. Wednesday he did something which, if rumor is true, the Council will not ignore. The first intimation of this new “freak,” as some call it, of the Mayor’s was the appearance on the street in the afternoon of a woman walking around, wearing upon her back a big white card, on which was printed in big black letters the 'words: “I am a shoe thief! Look out.” A big policeman followed close behind her to prevent her displacing the sign or running away, and thus she was obliged to walk through all the principal streets. The woman is Mrs. Sarah Jones and is a professional thief, having been before the Mayor several times for petty thefts. Nevertheless, her punishment is declared to be outrageous, and several members of the Council threaten to endeavor to impeach the Mayor. American Flour Not Fairly Treated. Charles C. Bovey and John Crosby, of Minneapolis, representing the National Millers’ Association, say flour inspectors of London are greatly exercised over what they hold to be a discrimination against American flour./ Flour from America enters London docks and is subjected to a landing charge of 18 cents per ton. French flour and American wheat escape this charge. Parliament has enacted that no charge whatsoever shall be made on goods landing at these docks, but the steamship companies, it is stated, issued to American millers a bill of lading containing a clause subjecting flour to the above rate. Holmes Has Been Baptized. At Philadelphia, H. H. Holmes was baptized and received into the Roman Catholic Church Thursday morning. The ceremony was performed by Rev. P. J. Dailey, pastor of the Church of the Annunciation, in Holmes’ cell. Russia Buys More Engines. The Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia closed a contract to build sixty-four locomotives for the Russian Government. This makes 134 locomotives ordered by Russia in eighteen months. Enemy of Cigarettes. Congressman Woodman, of Chicago, has offered a bill in the House to raise the

Internal revenue tax on cigarettes from 50 cents to $5 a thousand. If this bill should become a law the manufacturers of cigarettes would have to pay the Government one-half cent for every cigarette manufactured. Last year the production of domestic cigarettes reached tile remarkable number of 3,327,403,780, and at the tax proposed by Mr. Woodman this number would bring to the Government a revenue of nearly $17,000,000 a year. The consumption of cigarettes in the United States is increasing at the rate of 150,000,000 annually, and if this rate of increase was maintained the cigarette revenue under Mr. Woodman’s bill would in a few years become sufficient to pay half the annual expenses of conducting the Government. The Government now imposes a tax of $3 a thousand on imported cigarettes. The importations last year were 1,073.897. The number of American cigarettes exported last year reached 461,859,100, according to the report of the internal revenue bureau. Mr. Woodman also proposes to make the tax on cigars $3 a thousand. The production of cigars and cheroots last year reached 4,165,074,105.

RAINES LAW A TRAVESTY. Sunday in New York Marked by Wild Debauchery. There was more liquor sold in New York Sunday than on any previous Sunday in many years. There was more drunkenness seen upon the streets, more depravity and more dens, of vice wide open than the city knew almost in the worst days of protected viciousness. Three hundred saloons, which had been transferred into so-called hotels during the last week, were wide open all day and night. The proprietors gloated in the evasion of the law and greeted every one with joyous expression. Scenes of drunkenness almost universal on the East Side could have been witnessed in isolated spots all over the city where the subterfuge protection of a hotel license permitted beer to flow freely over the little saving sandwich that is called a meal. The kitchens of the hotel saloons had no stoves, no chefs, no larders. Thin board partitions had been set up to make cubby holes called rooms and' beds were thrown in, but no one slept in them. This is a fair sample of all of New York’s hotel licensed saloons. In Brooklyn there was also the usual amount of drunkenness. Hotel saloons are not numerous in that city and saloon screens were drawn away from the windows, showing empty interiors. But the thirsty knew w’here and how to obtain their beer. GOLD CONTRACTS ILLEGAL. District Judge at Omaha Says He Will Rule Against Them. The question of the legality of what are known as “gold coin contracts” was raised in Omaha. It came up in the case of Chase against Wren, an action to collect payment of a $2,000 mortgage note, on which a default in interest had occurred. The attorney for the defense raised the point in the District Court as to the effect of inserting in a note or contract the words “to pay in gold coin,” or the words “to pay in gold coin or its equivalent,” and argued that in either form the note would be illegal, being in violation of the legal tender law and contrary to public policy. It was further argued by the defense i.iat if not voiding and invalidating the note entirely the section requiring payment in gold was void. During the argument the court said it would not enforce that part of the note contracting to pay in gold; that if it came to a question of holding that if the note was payable in gold coin the contract was illegal and' void, the court would hold that it was illegal and void.

Regarded by Holmes as a Joke. Murderer H. H. Holmes is apparently dividing his last days upon earth in finding a source of merriment in the annoyance he has caused the police of various cities by his startling confession of twenty-odd murders and in seeking in religion atonement for his crimes. He looks upon his confession as a joke. Mrs. Hilliard Asks Alimony. Newton Hilliard, the dashing youth known as Cleveland’s Berry Wall, heir to several fortunes, has been sued for alimony by his wife. Mrs. Hilliard was formerly Miss Madge Taylor, a soubrette in the Baker Opera Company, which Hilliard purchased. To Settle Cuban Trouble. The papal nuncio at Madrid has been instructed to propose the mediation of the pope in order to bring about a settlement of the troubles in Cuba or to urge upon Spain the acceptance of President Cleveland’s reported offer of mediation. Railways Adopt a Novel Rule. The transmissouri committee of the Western Passenger Association decided to place a joint agent at the various tourist terminal points, with whom passengers must deposit the return portion of their tickets until ready to start for home. Seven Miners Killed. At Nlehart, Mont., seven men were instantly killed, six seriously wounded and several others badly bruised and cut by an explosion early Saturday morning of the magazine in the Broadwater mine used for thawing powder. Eva Booth Appointed. Miss Eva Booth, youngest daughter of General Booth, has been appointed commander of the Salvation army in Canada and Newfoundland.