Eastern times. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1846-1857, 1853-09-15
Retrenchment and Reform

The determination Of the President. as man
ifested in his inaugural and his acts subsequent
to reform the abuses which have crent ;nto tbe
management of the business Of the various a.
partments at Washington, and to retrencb tbe
useless expenditures, is a subject for congrat,
ulation on the part Of the country. SeTeral
sinecure offices have been abolished and tba
work which has been done by two, three. ana
even four clerks, has been consolidated. and
the work will be done by one for the future for
the same compensation Besides, the force
now in the departments is diligently employed
all the time. The business of the Treasury
Department is some six or seven years behind.
This business is to be disposed Of as soon as
possible, and that speedily General Pierce
himself pays weekly visits to the departments,
drops into the Offices of the heads of bureaus,
and, so far as his time will permit, makes
himself acquainted with the business and prac-
teal operations Of the several coordinate
branches of the government.
Heretofore, the business of the departments
has been most criminally neglected. Lazy
clerks with fat salaries have been in the habit
Of working an hour or two per day, and then
they 60 fishing, hunting, boating, and what
not. We understand that the heads of the bu-
reaus have notified the force under them that
they will be required to work from eight to
four, and that no excuse, but of the most nee
essary and satisfactory character, will suffice.
We understand that the other day one of the
clerks in the Treasury Department went off on
fishing excursion, and was gone two DAYS
without so much as saying by your leave
When he returned in the morning to his desk.
he found polite invitation to walk to the prop
er paying office and take his pay, and he was
forthwith discharged.
The army and navy expenses are to be re-
formed. Probably in no part of the govern
ment is the scalpel of reform so much needed
as here. The miquity and corruption prac-
tised in making contracts for the supply Of
what the government wants Of all descriptions
are monstrous One of the whig clerks In one
of the departments remarked to friend of
ours, about year before Mr.. Fillmore's term
expired, that if the people only knew the out
rageous and wicked corruptions practised at
Washington and elsewhere in contracting for
| supplies for the government In the thousand
various ways that are required, they would
come on here in a body and drive us out at the
I point of the bayonet.'
We hope the President will carry out the
determination he has manifested to the very
| letter, and cut off at one master-strOke the ar
my of blood-suckers who have been for years
tattenlng upon the public arteries. If he viii
reform the crying abuses which have crept III
to the army and navy expenditures, into thu
contracts for erecting public buildings, and the
thousand other contracts which from year t
year must be made, he will be entitled to tn,
lasting gratitude of the country. We hope HI
will apply the knife of thorough and radica
reform to all the corrUpting abuses which have
been fostering in rank corruption at the seat 0
government. Let him spare neither friend no
foe, and we will guarantee that the people
will sustain him.-NaShud Nv. H) Gazette.