Washington Letter

WASHINGTON, D. C.j Dec.31, l!'4. President Cleveland is the only man who has the authority to cali an extra session of congress, but that little fact, important as it happens to be, is being entirely overlooked by those who have relieved the president of all trouble in the matter and assumed his authority without even saying, by your leave, sir, and who are now busy arranging all the details of the extra session. President Cleveland has not said that he would cali an extra session, but both he and Secretary Carlisle some time ago pointed out to leading democrats that some sort of relief must soon be had for the treasury, and that if this congress failed to provide it, necessity might compel the calling of an extra session. The situation has not changed. The calling of an extra session depends largely upon the action or nonaction of the democrats in the present congress. The republican leaders would regard the calling of an extra session of congress as a great misfortune for their party, although some of the small fry are swaggering around talking about "what we'd do." The leaders know that just as soon as a financial bill is reported to the republican house, a situation not widely differing from that existing in the present house will at once be developed; that the financial differences are quite as marked in their own as in the democratie party; henee their dread of an extra session the year before a presidential campaign. Although a large proportion of the democratie members of the house have returned to Washington, there is nothing in sight uponwhich to predict with any degree of certainty what will be done with the Carlisie currency reform bil 1. In order that there might be no misunderstanding, and that every democratie niember might feel at liberty to propose amendments, President Cleveland has allowed it to be perfectly understood that he is not wedded to any particular plan of currency reform, but is ready to join hands with the democrats in congress upon any plan that can be agreed upon. When the house meets, Wednesday, the discussion of the Carlisie bill will be resumed and continued for the rest of this week. Further than that no definite program has been arranged. It is expected that a democratie caucus to consider the bilí and propose amendments will be called this week and that something will be decided upon. Senator Cameron, of Pa., has just shown ïhat a man may have presidential aspirations - aspirations are all Cameron will ever have - anrl vet not guard his tnngue. That Senator Cameron was pecuniarily interested ín the Mahone lot, and that it was partly throngh him that ex Senator Mahone has for four years been able to prevent the purchase of any other lot as a site for a new government printing office, has long been known in Washington. But that did not prevent general surprise when Senator Cameron made the flat-footed statement that the senate would agree to the purchase of the Mahone lot, and that only. Not very complimentary to the democratie majority of the senate, eh? Secretary Gresham presented the new Austro-Hungarian minister to the president, Saturday afternoon. It having been reported that the new minister was under instructions to demand on behalf of his ment certain tariff concessions with a notice that retaliation upon American producís would follow a refusal on the part of this government, he was seen and asked if the report was true. He stated positively that his government had given him no such instructions, and that it had taken no action whatever concerning the new tariff. He added that he did not anticípate any commercial trouble between his government and the United States on account of the new tariff. Senator Cockrell, of Mo., chairman of the senate committee on appropriations, takes no stock in there being any serious attempt made to defeat the clause in the urgency ap propriation bill appropriating money to meet the expenses of collecting the income tax, notwithstanding reports which pretend to give the details of a combination organized to defeat that appropriation in the senate. Mr. Cockrell says he intends to get the bilí before the senate as soon as possible and that he anticipates no trouble in gettingit passed. Senator Quay is said to be preparing an endless speech which he proposes to make against the bill, and Senator Lodge is also credited with a desire to talk against it. Senator Hill figures in all the rumors about what is being done to defeat this appropriation, but those who know him best do not believe he would defeat the appropriation, if he could, although he would gladly vote to repeal the income tax. Butj voting to repeal a law and voting to ■ wilhhold an appropriation necessary to enforce a law are two very different things. Attorney General 01ney is confident that the attempt to have the income tax declared unconstitutional by the courts will I fail.