Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1855-01-03
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP,

the Interior at the last session of Congress,
and also In his recent annual report, recon-
| mended the creation of the Office of Assistant
Secretary of the Interior, with compensa.
ton equal to that Of the Assistant Secretaries
Of the State and Treasury Departments. That
such an officer in tho Department of tho Int
rior Is demanded by the public interests, is be-
lievsd to be susceptible of demonstration. Ex-
listing laws devolve upon the Secretary of the
Interior supervisory and appellate jurisdic-
ton over all the important, diverse, and COM
plicated questions connected with, and grow
ing out of the management of our recently
much extended public domain and Indian re-
lations-the pension and bounty land system
Patent ofice-public buildings and grounds in
the city of Washington-thep enitentisry-the
supervision of the accounts Of United States
marshals, clerks and attorneys, survey of
boundary lines, &C. The immense interests
to the Government, as we'll as to private in
diyiduals in all sections of the country, grow
ing out of these several distinct branches of
the public service, are equal, in extent and
importance, to those committed to any other
department of the Government, and their great
diversity renders their proper management
much more difficult. In each of the other Ex-
ecutive departments, the laws, precedents, and
customs are homogeneous. In the Department
of the Interior, they are exactly the reverse.
The necessity for this kind of executive and
administrative assistance was felt by the
former Secretaries of the Interior, each of
whom recommended that it be provided for,
though in somewhat different form, or,
rather, under . different name
The act creating the Department of the In.
terror, while it relieved the Secretary of the
Treasury Of the management and supervision
of the public lands, lead mines, and judicial
expenses of the Government, established for
his further relief the Offices of Assistant Sec
~ Of the Treasury and the Commissioner
of the Customs. This was done upon the rec
ommendation Of Hon. Robert J. Walker, who
so distinguished himself in the management
of tho Treasury Department. and the bill
making al these important changes was intro
dueed, explained, and passed in the House of
in one day. In the Senate,
but little, if any, opposition was made to it.
The creation of the Office of Assistant Sec
rotary Of State was asked for by the head of
that Department and Mr.. Mason, from tho
Committee on Foreign Relations, in the Sen
ate, reported an amendment to an app1opria-
ton bill to that effect, and it was adopted
without division and without its necessity or
propriety being questioned, or the reasons of
the Secretary of State, which Mr.. Mason
offered to read, if necessary, being desired by
any one.
The Secretary Of the Interior makes to Con-
gress similar application; and can COM
parison of the respective labors of two De
partments leave upon the mind Of any one a
doubt as to its propriety and necessity?
The Postmaster General is provided with
three Assistant Postmasters General, each
having a chief clerk independently of the
chief clerk of the Department. The War and
Navy Departments possess still greater admin.
istrative strength in the numerous staff and
other heads Of bureaus who participate in the
of their affairs
All the administrative labor in the Interior
Department is performed by the Secretary
and his Chief Clerk. The business of that
Department is immense; and, taking into
the diverse nature and the ex
tent of the interests involved in the numerous
questions to be considered and decided by it,
it may not be out Of the way to say that it is
inferisr to none in Importance, and it must be
clear to every intelligent and we'll informed
person, that if the Office of Assistant Secretary
ls necessary in tho ether Departments, it is
equally essential in the Interior Department.
The recommendation of the Secretary Of the
Interior seems to be in the alternative be-
tween the establishment of the Office of AS
sistant Secretary, or the increase of the Chief
Clerks salary to $4,000 per annum, as he
says his duties &c are as arduous and of az i'm
portant character as those of the Assistant
Secretaries of the other Departments, and his
object being to obtain for him like compen-
sation-" The Secretary's illusions to a recen
increase of compensation to some Of the off,
GERS of the Government have reference to an
act approved April %, and the joint resolution
Of Congress, approved the Goth of July last
By the former, the compensation of the three
Assistant Postmasters General, and of the Su-
Clerk of the Census was in
creased to $4,000 per annum, and by the lat
ter 20 per cent for two years was added to the
of the " officers, clerks, messen.
gers AMI employees in the Legislative Depart
ment of the Government, thus increasing the
compensation of the Secretary Of the Senate
and the Clerk Of the House of Representa-
tives $500 per annum; and the increased COM
pensation, under both acts, made to commence
from the lst of July, 1858. Under the ope-
ration of the said joint resolution, the compen-
sation Of the messengers of the House and
Senate is increased to s., 800 per annum, be-
ing within $500 of that Of the Chief Clerk of
the Executive Department.
IL Is dItncult to perceive whv thnsa n,r,;.,,