Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1841-1853, 1851-01-09
Appointments to omce.

Office public necessity, not pirate rerard. Faror
fism; ITS miSchierOUS Influence. Three modes IF Il.
Three appointments objected to- Duties Of IT, s. GeOl0-
giSt ORe application only, from Indiana, for that
office. Document regarding the qualifications Of the
applicant. Astronomical obserrer his duties. Under
rhat circumstances filled from Iadi.nG Third count
IN the Indictment. F0irdealing tOrards partisan
editor. company quicklrai a BrOrsrb faiSifed
Relationship ground for faror, for dis
raachisemeat a time TO Keep silence, and time 70
speak.
Office is too commonly thought Of as privilege to be
enoyed II ought to he regarded duty to be per-
formed. We speak Of mems claims to office; we ought
to speak of their fitness for it. Office, under gov
ernment, is not prize reward; 1t is necessity.
No needs Office, in country like ours, in which
moderate talent and industry ensure to every one an
dependencies is wronoed by not obtaining it, But
the people need Office; certain public duties must be per
formed by some one: and the people wronged if any
but the competent called upon perform these
The salary of Office should be fair payment for these
duties, ably and faithfully performed II it is than
this it ought to be reduced If it is more, and if the
duties of Office ably and faithfully performed, the
obligation in this matter, is reciprocal of the man TO
the people, because they him; of the people to
the man, because he them with aithluness and
ability.
These principles, though but the dictates of plain
Judgment and common sense; though freely admitted
in theory daily violated in practice. No wonder
where have been far rasled, TO talk, in this
connections of yctor and the spos that belong to them
In election 10 office by the people, these principles
General Government. still more frequently.
1t will not suffer denial that in every administration
since the days Of Washington iavoritsm has had SIM
lsteT influence public appointments; often setting
aside the competent and prelerrng of inferior quail
lcatons, but iniuentialy connected; and that, very
greatly to the injury of the public service. Whenever
in single instance, this charge of avorsm be fair
ly made against member, it should suffice to exclude
him, for the future, from a seat in Congress.
There are, that know of but three modes in which
member Of Congress may become justly liable to such
imputation.
l. He may procure the creation OF some new Office,
may 10 increase the salary of old one pur-
posey to procure comfortable birth for some relative
or friend BY DOING he increases the public burdens
for the sake of private profit.
2. He may recommend to Office incompetent per-
son. and may press his appointment merely because he
is his reative (Which is just as bad) merely be-
cause he has been his supporter. This is the
commons and the most injurious form of lavortsm 1t
producing at this moment great injury TO the public
service in all its branches
g. He may urge an application made by relative, to
the exclusion oil one made by some other constituent as
competent and deserving This, though the public may
suffer by it by the other forms OF iavortsm, is
yet highly reprehensible.
Now the particular appointments that have Civ
en- occasion for the present article, they are:
l First That of my brother, DIR. Owen, appointed in
May last, U. S. Geologist for Wisconsin.
Second, That of my brother in-law, Robert Henry
Fauntleroy, who obtained upwards of year ago.
ondary situation in the Coast Survey
Third That Of my brother Richard, recently appoint
ed Captain OF infantry, in the U. s. service.
1t is pretended that any of these offices
aed, the salaries increased, through my agency.
Some one had to fill them, and to receive the salaries
heretofore attached to them.
Nor did my opponent in the late canvass assert,
nsnuae, that any of these gentlemen was ncompe-
tent to fill or had not faithfully filled, the Office to
which he had been appointed
OF the two first forms of avortsm, then, stand
quilted. The last one remains TO be met Have fa-
vored the application of my relatives, with undue
preference the exclusion of others among my
stituents, rs competent and mertorous7 few SIM
pie factshere submitted to the People of the District
my sufficient reply.
1. The Office of Geoogist of Wisconsin, obtained by
DIR. Owen. It's duties are, to make geological survey
and chart OF that Districts and separate BY and
bounds down quarter sections its productive
mineral lands from its farming ands the law requiring
the former to be put up at FIRE dollars acre. the latter
atadoiiar and qrrter The geelogst also required
to make in his laboratory careful analysis Of the
ous ores, and orebearng rocks and Soils found through
out the District
On this duty and its able performance, tens OF thou
sands ofdoars, in the land Office department, depend