Jasper County Democrat, Volume 10, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 May 1907 — WASHINGTON LETTER. [ARTICLE]

WASHINGTON LETTER.

Political and Oenaral Ooa*ip of the National Capital. Special Correspondence to The Democrat, m These be bed times for diplomat in Washington to all appearances. Scarcely was the exoitement over about the sheriff shooting at'the secretary of the German Embassy oh the>Conduit road outside the oity when another secretary of legation was stabbed and almost killed by a prominent Washington politician. The case of the German aeoretary, Count von Radowitz, was not serious. He wa§ speeding his automobile along the Conduit road, on the outskirts of Washington when he was ordered to halt by the sheriff for violating tbe speed limit. He refused tb stop, and the sheriff, after obasiog him on a bicycle, dismounted and shot at' the tires of the machine. This brought the diplomat up short, very angry and insulted, and bis feelings were not soothed by being placed under arrest and threatened with a 150 fine by the mayor of Glen Eohe, the little hamlet whose regulations he had violated. Of course the country sheriff did not know who the German was and had no right to arrest him, as diplomats, no matter what their offenses, are immune from arrest in the country to which they are accredited. Formal oomfilaint [about the affair has been odged at the State Department by the German Embassador, and it will result in some sort of a call down for the Glen Echo officials. At the'same time it is likely that a counter oomplaint will be made by the State department to several of the ministers and embassadors, as their attaches are very much in of depending on their diplomatic immunity to violate all sorts of small police regulation. This is especially true in the matter of speeding their automomobiles. Many of the younger attaches of the diplomatic corpe seem to delight in violating this law and even going so far as to “sass” the policeman who has the temority to stop them. Of course all the Washington police understand about the inviolability of a diplomat from arrest, and they simply have to grin and bear it. The stabbing case was muoh more seriou|. Col. Edwards disappeared for two dsjys, but was afterwards arrested on charge of deadly assault. If the affray had

been between local oitizens, it would have been simply a common cutting scrape. But in the present instance it assumes the proportions of an international incident beoause the man who suffered was Alexandro Garland, secretary of the Peruvian Legation. The affair occurred at night on the stfeet in front of a prominent apartment house. The cause of the discussion was a woman, and the aggressor in the enoounter was “Charlie” Edwards, a well-known Texas correspondent and now secretary of the Democratic Congressional Committee. Eye witnesses of the affair are scarce, but it appears that Garland was seriously stabbed and is still lying unable to be moved from the house of a doctor in the neighborhood where he was taken for treatment. Edwards disappeared for the time being. A prosecution will be apt to bring to light many unpleasant things. The affair is likely to have a deterrent effect for some time on some of the younger legation men who are very much in the habit of making themselves obvious on the horizon and who have in a number of instances in the past gotton into local trouble over similar cases. There could be a good many stories told of similar rows, some of them of Tenderloin origin and some involving Washington girls. An under-secretary of the Mexican Legation before the mission was raised to an embassy, polled a pistol on the secretary of a congressman one night, but never got a chance to shoot him. There was a brief but fervid mix up and the legationer was an Emergency Hospital case for two weeks. There was another case when four of the “Black and Tans,” as the South American contingent are sometimes slightingly referred to, were having a very noisy supper in the oafe of a prominent hotel here. They were discussing Washington women in Spanish in none too complimentary terms. Sitting at the next table there was a yonng American mining engineer with considerable interests in Chili. Naturally he understood Spanish, but he paid no attention to the diplomatic party until the names of several girls be knew were pointedly brought into the conversation. At that he walked over to the other party audgave them a dressing down i i pure Castilian that they would be apt to remember, and then, for fear it had not soaked in deep enough, he tipped over the table with the

young attaches underneath it, dropped hie card into the midst of tbs wreckage, and calmly went back to finish bis supper. Strangely or otherwise, none of the sufferer! ever demanded Batisfaoans| either for their feelings or their druse suite, both of whioh were considerably hark ttt Politics, mostly of a Republican sort, Are still simmering in Washington. There are no eigne of a trace in Ohio, though it is said that if the President and Representative Burton would let them Taft and Foraker would probably get together. But it is claimed that the President wants to eliminate Foraker from politics for a long time if not for all time, and that he is at the bottom of the implaoable warfare againat the veteran Ohio Benator, There has been a story going the ronnda that Secretary Cortelyon was secretly in the rape for the nomination, and was doing all he could to undermine the Taft boom. Mr Cortelyon has not even taken the trouble to deny the story, but it oan easily be understood that it ia entirely false. Mr. Cortelyon ie not in the Presidential race this time. ttt Commissioner of Patents Allen has vacated his office to the satisfaction ot everyone Who has had to do business with the Patent Office in recent years. During his long administration he has proved one of the weakest and most incompetent commissioners with whom the country has ever been afflicted. The work of the office has been allowed to fall into arrears as has never been the oase \before, and there have been more questionable practices among the lowest class of patent attorneys that have ever before been permitted. The Patent Offioe is in need of as thorough a cleaning out as is now going on in the Land Office, and it is to be much hoped that it will get it under the new commissioner, Mr. Moore.