The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-07-26

could the Board of Commissioners have ffaudu-
lentv preferred one claim without the in
dignant denuncation of all. We cannot see
how they could, if they had been so disposed,
have promoted themselves or their party by
preferring claim which was in itself good, or
by exposing themselves to a suspicion of injus-
tice for allowing claim suspected to be bad.
But howsoever improbable it may be that
the Board of Commissioners could have been
influenced to prefer a political friend as the
advocate of a claim before them, it is plain
that they Were not more liable to the imputa-
ton than any other judicial tribunal would have
been.
Yet that no imputation might attach to the
abuse of his official influence as member of the
Senate, to have released all future or contingent
interest in the claim. referred to. According to
the Union, his interest was taken at valua-
ton. He went into the Cabinet, then, with no
interest, direct or contingent, in the adjudica-
ton of the claim. We, therefore, repeat that
the claim was not pending before the Senate
whilst Mr. CoRwIN was member; nor did he
have any interest in the claim whilst he was
a member of the Cabinet.
We are at loss, therefore, to see how his
political influence promoted his interests, or
why the parties should have allowed him to
retire with liberal valuation just at the period
when his influence would have been supposed
more valuable than when he was in the Senate.
Whilst, however, there may be nothing in
the prosecution of a claim by Senator before
judicial tribunal inconsistent with propriety,
there is another practice more deserving of re-
probation To this we propose to call the at
tention of the Union, with the hope that il
may bestow upon the practice the reproba-
ton which it deserves. The practice to which
we refer is the prosecution of claims by mem
bers of the National Legislature before the
Departments. This is practice which is said
to prevail to large extent, and to have sprung
up rather more than ''two years" since. 1t ia
evidently inconsistent with the duties of the
Representative, because in the result of fail
ure before the Departments the demand may
come before the National Legislature itself for
allowance.
Now, suppose we submit to the Union an
instance in which an individual high in official
station has received compensation out of a claim
allowed by Department of the Government
Department whose officers were appointed by
the e'chief of the political party' to which the
distinguished individual belonged; suppose we
show that the distinguished attorney was a
member of the representative body to which
this claim might have been referred upon an
appeal from the decision of the Department, and
| that its allowance might thus have been made
TO depend upon the vote of the distinguished
Individual himself,
Suppose it should appear that the distin-
-guished individual was Democrat, the head OF
the Department Democrat, and that majority
of the Legislative Department to which the dis
tinguished individual belonged were Democrat
ic, still we should never charge that the consid-
Grafton moving the claimants in employing
the distinguished individual alluded to implied
bargain and sale of his political influence
Our contemporary will find that the irreguiari-
ties to which ave have referred have neither
arisen within the last "two years." nor are
they confined to one of the great political
| parties Of the country. For ourselves, we
could neither be the defenders of wrong nor
of ng-doers 1t would neither comport
with our political principles nor personal incli-
nations We belong to that Whig school
which resisted dictaton in JACKSON and yenal-
ity in his successor. We denounced defalca-
ton when Democratic orators, organs, and Of
fice-holders defended it.
With the Wings it is emphatically prin-
ciple to condemn any abuse of political infu-
ence for pecuniary consideration. With those
who indicated Mr.. VAN buren, and apollo
gized for the leniency of Mr.. WOODBURY., the
case may be different.
We are much gratlfed with the earnestness
which the Union now evinces against the EN-.
ployment of political influence for the advance
ment of personal interest. We hope it will
persevere until every attempt to bring political
influence to bear in the promotion of private in
terest, whether in claims before the judicial tri-
bunas of the country or before Congress itself,
whether by members of the Senate or others,
shall be defeated and exposed. If the Union
will do so, honestly, impartially, consistently,
| with no vindictive purpose to expose only those
abuses of political influence which may injure
the Wing party, it will constitute some
atonement for the errors of the past we
will then pledge our cordial aid in every
movement which proposes retrenchment and
reform, or the investigation of any alleged
abuse in the executive, Legislative, or judicial
departments of the Government.
Special Mail to Rio and Valparaiso.
We learn that the Pacific mail steamship
(toL0Ie,l (yaIe will he desDatched from New