The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1853-09-28
Failure Of the Administration.

London Times, under date of New York,
August l6, forcibly sets forth the reasons
of the failure of Gen. PIERcE's Admin
istration. We quote several extracts
:" We are witnessing n new spectacle
among us-the moral prostraiion Of a
new President during the first six months
of his Administration. General Pierce
is the first American President who has
lost ground in the beginning Of his gov
eminent the first who has either been
DIES ,rtod by his original friends or be-
come to anything like such an extent
obnoxious to the public That Gonor-
al Pierce has gone down in the public cs-
teen, and lost the prestige which attend
cd his assumption of political power, will
not be denied nor that he has most di.
rcctly and powerfully contributed to the
dismcmbermcnt of the Democratic par.
ty.
lie was nominated by reclamation.
and the national Democratic party every
where abandoned itself to the most con.
fdcnt hopes. lie stood forth before the
country as the representative of the
grand idea of nationality. lie seems to
have perfectly understood his position.
In a letter to the Mayor of Boston, af-
ter his election, he said that she knew
he was neither nominated nor elected for
any personal qualifications, but as re.
liable representative of the national sen
timent.n lie felt this. lie had never
been largely in public life he was
consequently not very much known as a
political man. When his star rose over
the country, the mists of uncertainty
hung before it, and like other objects
seen through mist. it doomed up in UNI
due proportions. But these mists are
gone now, and the object can be survey
ed with accuracy. He could not have
given stronger pledges; the Union men
desired no stronger; and from Wash
ington's time to ours, no President had
ever been favored by so fair an oppor-
tunity to win lasting fame
But it soon became evident that Gen.
Pierce had adopted false, feeble, and
fatal policy as the guide of his admins
tration--namely, to unite ali factions by
their leaders. This was his idea Of ma
tionaity and a national Democracy. lie
committed that mistake which no public
man ever committed without ruin lie
sold his friends for the sake of buying
his enemies, and thus lost them both
He either abandoned or neglected near
ly all the great men of the country who
had saved the Confederation in the fear
full agitatons of 1850, and he bestowed
nearly all the great and profitable places
in his gift upon those factionists, north
and south, who had been the Original
fomenters of abolitionism on the ono
side. and of dsunion and secession OF
the other. No men who had distinguish
ed themselves as friends of the Unior
were taken into his councils and The
Governmental nearly all its departments
is now, with few exceptions in the hands
of those men who became notorious only
as the avowed enemies of the peace meas
ures of lS50-measures whica General
Pierce had often declared could alon,
save the Union at that trying crisis
and men who General Pierce declared
should receive no countenance or favo
from him, and who should be looked up
on with distrust and suspicion by ever,
true friend of the country.
This policy is Enthusiastically NANTES
now and it is fast working out its inc
vitablc results. Every National Demo
crat in the Union has become hostile t.
the administration, and it finds that il
leaning upon the factions upon which i
has showered all its favors, it is leanin
on broken reed. Gen. Pierce has n
party now. The Frccsoilcrs of the fire
States have abandoned none of thei
ground or their principles. They su:
pended their agtations and intrigue
and active hostility against the law an
constitution only long enough to &c
place and power, and then grew NOR
} virulent and factious than ever TIL
, Disunionists Of the South have take
. exactly the same course, and among tn
thousands Of both, Gen. Pierce canuo
point to man Of them in whom tn
country has confidence. and he is doubt
less now convinced that by giving thcs
factionists his favors and confidence h
has made no new friends for himselfan
: lost his old onos--that, instead of allal
ing agitation, he has actually revived
when dead-that, instead of consolidatin
the Democratic party, he has hopelessl
dismembercd it,
The most Notifying weakness is thu
! stamped upon the Administration =
something often more fatal to a Govern
ment than the boldest iniquity. Wher
wickedness undermines one Ministr,
weakness prostrates a score. The broa
contrast all this offers to the bold polio
of General jackson is matter of un
) versal remark and its effects are worl
ing themselves out quite fast enough
, Your readers must not fall into n mi
n take here. / attach none too much in
, portance to this unwise and wrong di
tributiOn of office and power by GU
President. Office here means just wha
it does under monarchies--power Th
, political power of the United States i
. now in the hands of the enemies of til
Union, just as far as the holding of oilic
, is by the constitution put in the hand
, of the President. Besides, there is on
rule established by our political cxPor
cncc which has no exception-the fat
of every one of our administrations ha
been decided by the manner in which tn
official patronage of the Government ha
been distributed. The opponents of
triumphant party never look for it
favors, 1t is expected that the friend