The daily union., 1854-07-22

aas enclosed, entitled
4 H''p' gh,oqs bslssssSe u bsoo noii2sao %
the United States Being constitutional it is power
wMch Congress cannot take away or impair 1t might,
provide legal means and legal agents 70 aid tho President
IN its exereise in the absence Of which he must Of
sity exercise lawful discretion in those respects The
conscientious determination questions Of this class
qire generally the Investigation Of proceedings in court
and That questions 9 law s well as Of evidence and the
conduct Of correspondence, in all which the President
Yires the instrpmentaty Of public officer. Formerly,
this duty performed BY the Secretary Of State Of late
has been assigned to the Attorney General in whose de
rartmsnt BY reason Of the nature of the business appro
i prately falls. -5 "a Is,,,,e IA .it p e,s55L
rs Commissions Of public officers Of Judicial character
provision Of law exists prescribing the department
which shall receive the applications and reconmendations,
ns e @ psa % a Spa e. ne
it was done by the Secretary Of State but it has natu
raj epnnezion With the general duties Of his office and it
has been assigned to the Attorney General as more
There is Of legislation in this respect give method
aud convenience to the public business. When the
vided that all civil commissions should Issue on the De-
partment Of State and all military ncuding naval ones
from Ae leparent Of Wsrs Thirty ycars afterwards it
provided that all commissions OF officers employed in
eyyng and collecting the public revenue shall be made
with its SEAL AS the duties of administration continued
to increase it found convenient to give an official seal
to the other departments, and to make il evidence in law
but correspondent provision OF law enacted relative
to the issue of civil commissions, which remained on the
footing Of the acts as to the Departments Of State and
that as ii hs o State sHrss Tssur
and Navy SO in those of the ostmaster General Interior
and Attorney General commissions should be sealed Is
sued, and recorded in the Office to which they belong
One remaining branch Of public service Is to be consd
cred in order to dispose Of this part Of the subject namely
superysonof the accounts Of Judicial and legal officers Of
| the government.
When the Home Department established the super
yisOry previously exercised BY the Secretary Of the
l
officers Of the courts OF the United States was transferred
to the Secretary Of the Interior Y this no special fitness
tend the appointment of those officers he has no power
by statute to correspond with direct them and II
i has been recommended that the accounts Of judicial Off
GERS in with their appointment be transferred to
Finally Il any o these proposed changes be adopted or
whether they be SO not 1t is desirable that there should
provision for the Of temporary in The
another Of l7e5provson is made that in q the alb
from the seat Of o sickness Ct the See-
S h S5 sassF s ss es ssF
shall be lawful the President authorize any per
Office until successor be appointed or until such alb
inability by sickness shall cease May l792
ana February - 79t There i also an enactment by
Postmaster General all his powers and duties shall deyove
for the time being, the First Assistant Postmaster Gen
temporary the President either in regard
this or to the Departments of the Navy INTERIOR and At
orney General The existing legislation leads ooRposi.s M
hand that the power expressly conferred ON the President
three of the departments may be applied by analogy to
the others On the other hand 1t be said that the
express enactment comforting the power the President
those three cases and making special peculiar legal pro-
vision In regard to fourth, is the implied exclusion of
any power Of the President to the remaining three Per-
haps the uer view of the question is to consider the two
statutes decaraoy only and to assume that the power
to make such temporary appointment is constitutional
one 1t has been exercised in regard to all the departments
In the questionable of the casesthat Of Attorney
General whose quasi judicial functions especially would
seem to require to stand legislative aauthOrityproof
lists in the files of the department that temporary appoint
ent has been made by the President in the of the
departments whose heads exclusively executive
officers But general provision is desirable to remove n
doubt the subject well respecting the Attorney GEN
era the other non-enumerated departments 5ta 4g
submit the propriey therefore, of some further provis
ion oaw the arrangement of the legal affairs of the
government The proposed changes do not enlarge the
devove additional labor this office by transfer from
others which account beg leave to add few words
When the office of Attorney General created and for
long afterwards inequality existed between his salary and
that of other officers of the same class The reason why
received less than the others is given by Washington in his
letter to Mr. Edmund Randolph rendering to him the first
appointment of Attorney General in which he says Tho
salary of this office appears to have been fixed ut what it is
from belief that the station would confer preeminence
s possessor and procure ol m decided preference OF
until yery late period the Attorney General receiving
less salary than his associates but being invited were
by the nature of the Office into private professional practice
in the courts for which his association with the govern
ment united the professional qualifications which, from
bis being appointed to the Office he may be assumed to
possess would TO give him great advantages The
published correspondence Of the eminent statesmen of the
FIRST and second generations OF constitutional history
the reports Of legal sdudcations the printed opinions Of
this Office and the documents file in it, show that twas
the received practice Of the Attorney General not only to
give opinions in private cases. and argue private at
the scat of governments but also to attend, practising
barris,er the stngs OF courts in the States oo4
The Office of Attorney General of the United States has
been filled, in past times, by who while eminent IN
hr special profession, have been not less eminent in the
o parliamentary, diplomatic, administrative, u
dis distinction and many Of whom now live enjoying,
by title the respect and The confidence of their coun
ymen AZ the bar OF The Supreme Court they did honor
70 thcir station aud their Official opinions the law
which guides the action Of the government Nothing
eeua be fereign nay purpose than to reflect, in
what follows upon any Of those distinguished persons for
puTsnpe In office which not forbdden but
ts contrary iavse by Law, and justified by Off
cal usage aud by the appreciation acquicscencc OF
Washington, AaasnH Jefferson, and Madison. I.fl4
hefstoofe fhe of the Attorney General in this
respect da essentially n'ere With his proper official
iute pnjadiclsily afsc his general relation to the
\ sotosalaega. l,tt 4asL e,,,l
Within he however the condition Of the
cxasns=y ep8ssuu. ohsnss~ occasionirg aug
sra ssisn III As Of adm uss,iv- business which
tssss 81 department called upon purfcsm aud it
would ~, " p0sslAs nnw, II has been heretofore for
iiIe Atorney Genefsl oompaihly with performing well
Il