March 1.—Senator Foraker in the Senate yesterday made a speech, lasting three hours, in which he attacked the Hepburn railroad rate bill. For several hours last evening the city of Springfield, Ohio, was in the hands of a mob which burned two houses and partly destroyed a dozen others. All of these houses were inhabited by negroes. Hundreds of negroes have fled from the city. The annual report of the Pennsylvania Railroad shows a net income for the year 1905 of more than $38,000,000, an increase of about $10,000,000 as compared with 1904. The operating expenses were reduced and traffic increased. At the annual meeting of the Equitable Life Assurance Society yesterday the directors were informed that counsel of the society were definitely engaged in working out a plan of mutualization. Richard A. McCurdy, former president of the Mutual Life Insurance Company sails for Europe today for an indefinite stay abroad. William Nelson Cromwell reappeared yesterday before the Senate Committee of Interoceanic Canals and admitted that he drew the monetary agreement entered into between the Republic of Panama and Secretary of War Taft. This agreement caused criticism in the Senate recently because in fact it was a treaty made without consulting that body. At Washington the Foreign Relations Committee finished its work on the Santo Domingo treaty and reported it to the Senate. The Republicans voted solidly for the report and the Democrats against it. The Independence League of New York State has decided to perfect an organization in every assembly district in the State of New York. In William R. Hearst’s address at Albany he said: “The fundamental idea of the Independence League is independence of boss control, of corporate control and of any party subject to boss rule and corporation control.” Yesterday the Senate in executive session ratified the treaty between the United States and Japan relating to copyrights of works of literature and art. March 2.—It is reported from Washington that the President has been conferring with Senators, Representatives, members of the Interstate Commerce Commission and members of his Cabinet on the question of the Hepburn railroad rate bill, and he is willing to accept three or four amendments of the bill if they will strengthen it for trial before the courts. At Springfield, Ohio, the state militia charged the mob and dispersed it. The members of the Commercial Club of that city met to take action for the enforcement of the law, and said in speeches that the present conditions were due to politicians catering to negroes and low whites, and lax police and court methods.