Jasper County Democrat, Volume 9, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 February 1907 — WASHINGTON LETTER. [ARTICLE]

WASHINGTON LETTER.

Political and General Gossip of the National Capital. Special Correspondence to The Democrat. Another chapter in the rather stormy history of the Panama canal commences with the retirement of Chairman Shonts from the Panama canal commission and his succession by John F. Stevens, now the chief engineer of the canal. Mr. Shonts last week gave up his $30,000 job as the president of the commission, to accept something which is reported to be between $60,000 and SIOO,OOO, for the management of the New York subway, the Belmont-Ryan institution, which can afford to pay any sum it chooses to get a suitable man. The severance of Mr. Shont’s connection with the canal enterprise was not marked by any of the unpleasant accompaniments, such as were made public when Chairman Wallace resigned the same position about a year ago. Chairman Shont’s letter of resignation was sent to the president and was accepted in an entirely friendly spirit and he was given the good wishes of the administration in his coming work. John F. Stevens, the present chief engineer of the canal, has succeeded Mr. Shonts as the head of the canal commission. It is generally understood that both the president and Secretary Taft consider Mr. Stevens fully equipped in every respect to carry on the work and an effort will be made in the nea r future to reduce the number of the canal commissioners to three, possibly even making it a one-man power concern, with Mr. Stevens in entire charge. t tt

Considerable scandal has been created by the publication in Washington of the fact that the navy has maintained an effective lobby here this winter for the passage of the personal bill. There are a number of executive orders against government employes of any sort lobbying in favor of a bill which affects their own department, and there is a particular order that any petitions of naval officers either for or against legislation affecting their service shall be transmitted to congress through the secretary of the navy. This procedure has not been followed in the case of the personnel bill. It might also be news to the war department to learn that similar lobbies have been maintained this winter in favor of the'artillery bill and the medical bill, both of which are now pending, for the war department, In fact, it is said, in case of the artillery bill that personal requests were circulated from high officers in the service to all of their subordinates asking them to bring whatever pressure they are able to bear on both senators and representatives favoring the passage of this bill. t t t There is a standing rule in the treasury department, one of the most strictly enforced rules in the'

service by the way, against any employee of the treasury acseptIng presents or favors of any sort from the financial institutions with which the treasury has to deal. This matter was brought into prominence last week by the action of Treasurer Treat in demanding the resignation of Samuel Terry, and Edgar Lee of the New York sub-treasury on account of their having accepted presents from some of the New York-banks or trust companies. A good deal of mystery is thrown over the action of the department in these two cases and it is specifically stated that nothing was found wrong in the accounts of either of these two employes, but they have violated one of the cardinal rules of the treasury department and they were made to suffer for it immediately. ttt There was received at the headquarters of the secret service in the treasury department this week a big roll of counterfeit bills whose disappearance has kept the officers of the Planter’s bank in Richmond in a state of semi-panic since 1891. There was passed in that year a law against the retention by banks throughout the United States of any counterfeit money. Prior to that time banks had been in the habit of keeping specimen counterfeits for the instruction of their employes. When the law was passed all of the banks were compelled to tujn in these counterfeits to the treasury department, and a large collection of very fine but spurious bills were sent by the Planter’s bank at Richmond. They never reached the treasury department, however, and it was only last week in cleaning out an old safe in the Richmond bank that the missing bills were discovered. They have been sent on to the treasury department and a number of them will be preserved in the .extensive collection qf the secret service because they are said to be some of the finest specimens of such work in existence. They are the creation of “Baldy” Smith, a member of the famous Brookaway gang and a one-time employee of the American Bank Note conapany. He was making some plates of bank bills and took the precaution of making duplicate plates for his own use in denominations of $lO, SSO and SIOO. The notes, it is said, are so good that it is difficult even for bank experts to pick any flaw in them, ttt There will be a river and harjbor bill passed at the present session, it having been favorably reported to the house last week from the committee on rivers and harbors. Its aggregate amount is considerably in excess of any similar bill heretofore passed. The total is $83,466,138. Of this amount over $34,500,000 will be available between July Ist, 1907, and July Ist, 1908, while the remainder, $48,834,526, is authorized in continuing existing contracts with no time limit as to its expenditure.