Senator Burton has dismissed his private secretary, because there was nothing for him to do. There is also very little for poor Burton to do unless it is “doing time.”—_Princeton (Ky.) Chronicle._ * * * * * The Congressman, who, with his wife, aunts, and mother-in-law, franks their clothes home once a week to be washed, is going to be the loser by the investigation of the Congressional franking privilege pending.—_Delton (Mich.) Graphic._ * * * * * Tom Watson wants to know if Bryan will try to buy the throne of Peter the Great or the second-hand coat of Peter the Great. Mr. Bryan set the entire Japanese nation against him when he tried to buy the “war chair” that Togo had sat in, and the Watson inquiries suggest nothing more out of place than this foolish and very improper episode.—_Rushville (Ind.) American._ * * * * * The reply of Thomas E. Watson to Clark Howell is such a long letter that we cannot get it in this issue of the Rambler, but will give it Tuesday. The weakest of all the weak things that Howell’s advisers have let him do is the stirring up of Watson.—_Cordele (Ga.) Rambler._ * * * * * And so “I am a Democrat, D. B. Hill” has also been receiving a large sum of money ($5,000) each year for a long time from the Equitable Life Insurance Company. Mr. Hill says his salary was for his services as a lawyer and not for his political influence. Mr. Hill may have thought so, made himself think so. But to a man up a tree the salaries the insurance companies paid Hill, Depew and other men of great political influence were to make friends of them so that the graft of the insurance officers could continue. We presume most of the men of great political influence in the ruling parties are on the pay roll of one or more of the big grafting corporations. A list of the congressmen, governors, etc., who are getting salaries as attorneys for the railroads, trusts, etc., would be very interesting reading.—_Missouri World._ * * * * * The Georgia gubernatorial campaign has reached the letter-writing stage, apparently, though it must be confessed that the man who sprung the trigger isn’t profiting very much by the result of his action. The secret of the Sibley correspondence was carefully guarded until the Columbus debate, and then thrown upon the public in the form of a bombshell, the expectation being that Mr. Smith would be swept from his feet by the explosion. The result was anything but what was anticipated. While Mr. Smith knew nothing of what was coming, he did exactly as he has done in the face of all the charges that have been brought against him—made no explanation whatever, because he had nothing to explain.