Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1838-07-13

IL LOT th0Se VINO were lam liar win the mo
tives and political currents Of that day, to
account for this. The committee said Of it
The efficiency Of this branch of the
public service Is in condition highly i'm
proved and improving Nv first remark
on this is, that the Post Office Department
passed into the hands of General Jackson
IN healthy and efficient state. A few
years, under his reform, reduced it to chaos
aud insolvency. The details Of its mlslnan
agcmcnt have been long since proved. The
evidence is on file here and in the Senate,
with the reports Of the several committees
appointed to investigate its abuses. refer
gentlemen to the files, and will not dwell
on the various abuses which were designa'
ted aud established. Their enormity, cou.
pied with the fact Of the borrowing money
on public account by the Postmaster Gem
eral, without law or authority, alarmed
the country. But bad as all this was, and
used, as the pecuniarv patronage had been,
TO confer personal benefits on favorites,
until the disorder, and insolvency of the
Department became apparent, still the po-
lItlcal uses which had been made of the ap.
| pointing patronage were not disclosed, and
now never will be. The present Postmas,
ter General, Amos Kendall, tells us in his
account of the late destruction Of that De-
partment by fire. that all the books. papers
and files Of the Department were saved,
except the files Oft appointment office
and these were DESTROYED
In the first six years of General Jacksons
Administration, about 1900 pos,masters
were removed from Office and in most ofthe
| cases, without the assignment Of any cause.
When certain members of the committees
Of the Senate and House, appointed in
| 1884 to investigate the abuses of that
Department, attempted to get at the files
and correspondence of this appointment
office with view to ascertain and report
whether the reasons for these removals
were prompted by high and just public con.
sldcratlous, or by mere party political ex-
pedency. they were denied the right by
the head of the Department and by the
| friends o: the Administration, who compos
| ed ma GRITTY on one Of these communities!
! Was not this inquiry just? ! refer you.
sir, to Mr. Ben,on's famous report and bill
| providing for the disclosure of reasons in
| case OF removal from office. ] refer you.
Mr. Speaker, to your own remarks, aCd to
| those of your friends, IN the debate on Mr.
Saunders resolution, which have already
quoted, But above all, refer you to the
remarks Of the iustrious Madison. unrivaI
led as he was in the knowledge of the let.
ter and spirit of our Constitution and laws.
and in purity and honesty of purpose. As
early as 739, in the memorable debate on
the power Of the Executive to remove from
office, he not only denied the right to exer.
else this power caprIciously, and wihou,
assigning adequate reasons, but he thought
it would be such bold assumption of law.
less power. that he thus expressed himself,
ii own 1t is an abuse of power which ex-
ceeds my imagination, and Of which | can
form no rational conception
But when Mr. Van Buren, and Mr. B nton
both OF whom were on the committee which
reported the bill TO prevent the abuse of
this patronage OF appointment came into
power, this changed their tore, if not their
principles Removals from office immed.
ately followed, and they deny any obIiga
tons to assign reasons! Is it not strange,
too. nay, is it not mysterious. that, in the
conhagratlon ofthe Post Office. the only
papers and files destroyed should be those
relating to the exercise, if NOT the abuse, of
the power OF removal from office-the very
papers which the Postmaster General re.
fused to suffer the Committees of lnves,i-
cation to examine.
| said Mr. Van Buren, changed his tone
on this subject. will a, once prove it.
The journal of the Senate shows that he
was one of the Select Committee who
reported the bill already referred to. He
entered the office Of Secretary of State
with the commencement Of Gen Jackson's
Administration. One of his first otiicia
acts was the removal Of a meritorious clerk
from his office in that ID ,par,ment, and a
positire relusaL TO asst n aay reason for it !
The gentleman removed Is now Mem,
Der of this House, Mr. SIade, of Vermont,
and the voice of the People has sustained
him whom the deapoism of Executive pat.
ronage sought to destroy.
The manner in which this patronage is
abused, and the readiness and almost tele-
graphic despatch with which the wires Of
party machinery are felt throughout and
from the mos, distant parts of the Union
may be imagined after reading this laconc
note, written by Mr. Van Buren, soon after
entering on the dulles of Secretary of
State, to gentleman in Louisiana
WASHINGTON, April 90, 1929.
Ny DEAR SiR-I have the honor of
acknowledging the receipt of your letter
OF the 2lst ul. and of informing you that
the removals and appointments you recon.
mended were made on lie day your letter
was received. With respect, your friend,
&c. NJ. VAN BUREN,
And, so far from being willing to reduce
The number of clerks IN his Department, as
the People were induced to believe would
be done, Mr. Van Barren, when called on
Tor That purpose, saw the whole affair
through new medium, and replied NV
opinion is that there can be no reduction
in the number Of officers employed in the