The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-06-14
THE REPU BLIC.


"Thd Democratic party has never denied the
general policy of removals. On the contrary, when
it has ban temporarily defeated, and again return
ing to pswer after brief interval, and finding the
enemies of its measures and policy in possession of
the m3ortant and influential offices of the Govern
ment, has acted upon that policy. 1t believes
that an Administration which has well-defned
system of principles, and well-matured set of
measures founded upon those principles, to carry
out, should employ agents for that purpose who are
favorable to those principles and measures, and will
take an interest in their faithful execution"
This admission, taken in connection with
the TACT that, for twenty years, with the
brief interval of month, the proscriptive
party, which never does things by halves,
has been in power, will give the reader an
idea Of the condition of the public Offices
whichlgreeted General Taylor on the day
Of his Inauguration. He might have look
ed in vain into all the custom-houses of
the Union, from Texas to Maine, into all
the post-offices of the cities of the United
States, to find Wing collector or deputy
post master. He might have examined
the land-otices, diplomatic corps, marshal's
offices, and the public bureaus, with like
disappointment. The party which had
Just triumphed had been for fifth of a
century repulsed from offices of honor and
trust, and even for that length of time held
as aliens in their own country, in SO far as
official promotion was concerned. This
proscriptive spirit had been carried to such
extreme lengths, that, out of some score
and a-hslf generals selected from the citi-
zens at large to lead our armies in for
eign war, not a Wing in this wide land was
found worthy Of an appointment; though
amongs: the rank and file, and amongst
the subordinate militia officers, there were
men OF that faith on the field of battle fit
to be intrusted with the fate of empires
We would ask any fair thinking man,
what would be the duty of President,
even if he were elected to s'proscribe pro-
scriptioI," and though his banner had been
borne through the canvass with that in
scription alone upon it, on finding such a
condition of things' Should he continue
the prescriptions Should he keep great
party, comprising in its ranks moiety of
the voters Of the Union, in Punishment
from the fountains of honor1 Should he
say to the people who elected him, ''you
have been spurned from high places by
my predecessors, and used despitefully for
twenty years, and ought to be reconciled to
it by this time ~ Or, should he at once
address himself to the duty of equalizing
the distribution of office, and pause not
till the party of his own faith had equal JUS
tice done them in this behalf
If, forsooth, the Administration adopt
the construction contended for by the party
of the spoils, prescription will be pro-
scribed by keeping the Wing Republican
party prescribed forever. Against this
method of putting down a system, by fee
ing with salaries the very men who estab-
lished it, and who boast it part of their
political religion, we protest now and al
ways. This is not the way to crush a
practice, however pernicious it may be
deemed, if indeed it can be crushed at all.
The most liberal, nay, the most magnani-
nous, construction of the anti-proscriptive
doctrine demands an equal division of the
Offices. Until this point is reached, pro-
scription is as much in force against the
Wing party as it was under the late Ad-
ministration. When the dominant party
has had justice done it, it will be time
enough to consider in how far the practice
of the defunct Administration of employ
ing public officers "as agents to carry
out well-defned system of measures"
brought them Gin conflict with the freedom
of election" or disqualifes them for the
task of faithfully performing the public
business under change of government.
1t may be that the obligations of their APP.
pointment may interfere with the duties
assigned them by law; but this need not
be looked into just yet
THE FREE SOIL AND DEMOCRATIC
COALITION.