A New Postoffice

Washington, D. C, May 29, 1894. It now seems self-evident that instead of leaving iron ore on the free list, as was at first expected, the majority in the United State Senate will pass the tariff bilí with a duty of 40 cents per ton on that product, in which Michigan is so largely interested. In making a vigorous fight for 75 cents instead of 40, Senator McMillan recently made his second speech of the past fewweeks. What he said was not intended as a set speech, but he made a strong argument in favor of his claim that the tariff agitation of the past year and a half, had seriously crippled that great industry - in fact had almost stopped it for the time being. The Senator made a strong plea that the rate of duty might be fixed at 75 cents, the rate in the present McKinley law. Those in charge of the aill could not see it in the light he saw it, and decided that 40 cents was high enough, and there it will remain in all probability. In his recent annual report, Labor Commissioner Morse, of Michigan, devoted a chapter to Michigan iron mines and miners, and that chapter Senator McMillan incorporated into lis speech as published in the Congressional Record. As before stated ín this corresDondence, the house committee on imblic buildings and grounds some time ago assured Congressman Gorman that if it was decided to pass any public building bilis during :his congress, his bilí for a building at Ann Arbor should have precedence over all the other bilis of ax similar sort for Michigan cities. For a'.l the months of the sesson, nothïng has been done by the committee, at least not a single bilí for a yailding in any state, has been acted upon and reported. Word was given out that Uncle Sam was out of money and hard up, and that until his finances picked up a bit, the building of public buildings could be considered as having gone into "innoxious desuetude," or words to that effect. Recently the committee has begun reporting bilis again. This fact is very gratifying to Mr. Gorman, for it indicates that the powers that be intend to pass a few of those bilis during this congress. If so, Michigan will surely be given at least one building, and, under the understanding, Mr. Gorman believes that one will more than likely be his Ann Arbor building. He surely has strong hopes that his confidence has not been betrayed, and that he may live to see a fine building erected at the university city by the government. Of course all the other members of the delegation, most of whom have from one to three similar bilis before the committee, will kick vigorously against the claim that Ann Arbor is more deserving than their cities, but luck has been coming Mr. Gorman's way of late, and he believes it will not desert him now. For years an effort has been repeatedly made to secure an appropriation for the construction of a steam fog-signal and pier head light and steam fog-signal station at Ludington, such a safe-guard against the loss of lives and property having long been a great necessity there. In fact at no point on the great lakes is one needed more than at Ludington. All efforts have, however, failed, and possibly may fail again, but it now looks as though Congressman Moon is about to succeed in his efforts to secure such an improvement for his district. Some months ago he introduced a bilí appropriating $5,500 for the establishment and erectiön of the fog-signal and $4,500 for the station. The committee on commerce, having the bill in charge, has now reported it favorably and without aniendment, and it is very likely to pass both houses long before the close of the present session. It is true that many bilis are favorably reported and then fail to pass, but Mr. Moon has good reasons to believe this will not be one of that kind. At least three of Michigan's democratie congressmen are of the opinión that the democratie state committee made a bad mistake when they called the state convention for such an unusually early date. Mr. Whiting is yet under the physician's care, and so his opinión can not be had, but as Chairman Campau was here and had several conferences with him, it is reasonable to suppose that he preferred an early convention, and helped to fix upon the date chosen. In conversation today Congressman Gorman said to the writer hereof: "Messrs. Richardson, Weadock and myself have talked it over, and we are of the opinión that the convention has been called too early. It is evident that the tariff and other important pending legislation will not be closed up and out of the way during June, and so we shall not be in a condition to submit to the people the best and wisest platform, because we shall not know just what will be done before congress ffnally completes its work and adjourns. Such an early convention will make the campaign unnecessarily long, and long campaigns are always tedious as well as expensive to all parties concerned, and no advantage is ever gained by such long ones as a June convention will give us."