The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1853-07-19
A VETERAN WRONG

II
raj Taylor being impressed with the wrong
and partiality which existed and had been long
practised towards the North in the distribution
of Washington patronage, directed Mr.. Ewing,
Secretary of the Interior to prepare tabular
statement showing the names, places OF resi-
dence and date of appointment of the clerks
and employees in each department, in their
proper classification together with the amount
of salary received by each. This was done
under the direction of Mr.. Ewing, by Mr.. God
dard, and of course involved considerable la
Dor and investigation. Gen. Taylor's object
in directing the compilation of this table, which
was for his own use, was to enable him to
equaize the patronage of government between
the States and to give to each what fairly be-
longcd to her upon the basis of Congressional
representation
The table when prepared, exhibited the fact.
that the patronage of Virginia, Maryland and
the District of columbia, stood in the relation
of about forty-seven to one to that of Iowa,
Michigan and Wisconsin; about twenty TO one
to the New England States, and more than ten
to one to New York To such an extremity had
the exacting and craving disposition to tho
politicians of these southern States driven
previous administrations that they had beon
bnllied into givingto them this inordinate pro-
portion of tho ''spos." Tho ratio of other
SOutucrU OtdteS. SUCH us oOutf SuTOiiuu uuO
Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi was upon
an average The work of classification was
considerably embarrassed, from tie fact that
large number of the southern clerks, aware of
the great and inordnate proportion of the
southern patronage, and dreading enquiry or
scrutiny into it, had taken the precautiOn to
hail from northern States, and three OF them
we observed at the iime, all scions of the Ol6
Dominion, and doubtles "sons ofthe first fam
lilies. had done the humble Peninsuar State.
tho distinguished honor to hail from her; thus
bringing up her ratio to n respectable number
upon paper.
As fast as policy dictated removals, Gen. Tay-
lor employed that function to equalize the pat
ronage as far north as he nightly substituting
a northern man wherever southern man had
been removed but this was dull and slow tool
to work with, and he had under the providence
of God. but a few months moro to live in which
to employ ii, consequently the ratio of clerk
chip patronage remained Mt his death essen-
italy unaltered and continued so under Mr..
Fillmore. Had Gen. Taylor lived. the change
would have been more radical. Under Gen.
Pierce, it seems not very probable that any
radical remedyswill be applied, if il is fair to
Judge by the appointments already made and
published. We takc at random the Pension
office for example which is under the super
VlsiOn OF tnO DephrlHlcnt oI tue iu'efior. t"o
Secretary of which is northern ma. There
was forty mine appointments made upon the
first Of July. Of which forty are from the south
as follows: Virginia. twelve; MARYLAND. four
teen; District of Columbia. tcD North Caroli-
ma, two: and Georgia, two The rem aiming
nine appointments are distributed through
Pennsylvania New York and New Hampshire.
Department Offices i'm Washington arc poor
concerns it is true. and few men with much
ambition or very high aspirations crave them;
nevertheless, they have their political influence,
and those who fill them help to make up the
"pubic sentiment of the metropolis" and in
that regard, at times. exercise an agency upon
the sentiments of mcmbers of Congress. In
addition to this. some of them wicld a limited
power in their offices, which becomes useful
and necessary to certain class OF members
who 90 there to make money; others have hand
some and agreeable wives and daughters, and
altogether though their influence is under linn
it, they can aud do accomplish much in the
way of out-of-d door appliances upon members,
and upon the Departments. For this power,
such as It is, to DO divided with something
like apparent fairness between different sec
tions of tho Union no argument is necded-it
is the right of the North which Tho has long
beeen deprived of, and which she will long
continue to be, from present indications.
tsfl Detroit Adv.