San Andreas independent., 1858-09-11

parent how great had been the process of
decentralization. Most of these would be
found to be utterly useless as members of
society for any other purpose than to act
as the tools of more able and src ,essful
politicians, who, for time, manage to
ride on the top of the wave of political
success.
1t would be wrong to pass over another
class of decayed politicians in the commu-
nifty, whose career has been none the less
striking, and who form fitting example
to hold up to the young to take warning
from. And yet there are many in this
class who cannot well be separated from
the other, both in point of fact being, to
certain extent, coincident with each other.
If, therefore, we allude to them as sep
arate class, there need be no effort made
to draw the line of demarcation on the
part of the reader, since, if he fall upon
one, he cannot well go amiss of the other
in singing out the decayed politicians
from the mass of society. Those to whom
we now specially refer have occupied the
position, from time to time, of recipients
of political bounty; have held clerkships
In the heads of departments, and filed all
grades, in fact, of minor Importance un-
der official masters, just to keep them
afoat for political purposes; while some
of the more able and fortunate ones have
now and then been appointed to Offices, to
which were attached desirable emoluments,
as the necessary reward for extra services
performed.
But this class have nearly all found a
common level with those who once played
the second fiddle in the political orche.-
ira, and with them they have subsided into
frequenters of bit whisky shops, where
meat and drink can be had at low fig
ure, and where it is generally obtained by
them "for the asking-to take drink, }"
by friends and acquaintance.
There is yet another class, who have,
as general thing, possessed sufficient
sense to maintain an ordinary degree of
responsibility, by accumulating and hold
ing on to sufficient amount of worldly
gear to render themselves degree above
the common pot-house politician. These
are the men who were once cold line
Whigs," or cold line Democrats" or old
line something else, who have passed
through all grades of political tergiversa-
ton, striving to be on the winning side
at all times, with gutta percha conscien-
ces and political principles, made to fit
all political contingencies, but with an in
sufficient amount of good hard common
sense ever to make them winners in the
race. We might cite many individual
instances, but as it is not our province to
individualize, and as we write only to
hold up these things to the public, for
the purpose of inducing better condi-
ton of affairs, if possible, we shall not
travel out of our Legitimate line of duty
and license to do so.
We set it down as fact that the petty
offices in the gift of the collector of the
Customs and other Federal officers, COM
mittee clerkships in legislative bodies,
and the thousand and one other appoint
ments of like nature, in eight instances
out of every ten, make young men unfit
for any solid and useful occupation in
life thereafter. While the bestowal of
these appointments is extended to such a
disreptuable class of society that he who
once acts in the capacity comes forth
tainted, and men shrink from giving him
employment, because of the contamina-
ting influences with which he has been
surrounded Look at case IN point, by
way of sustaining our position. The east
ern papers tell us that Keenan,, more fire.
quently known as " The Benicta Boy"
had resigned has place IN the Neao York
Custom House to go into training .tor
prize fight aoith that quondone Col.tor-
MIA political bruiser, John MorrisSy.-
Here are two shining lights from Califor-
MIA, both of whom have been supported
by political favor, both here and in New
York, will soon have witched the world
with the "manly art" inside the ropes.
Is it necessary that we should go farther
and single out similar characters now en-
joying, or who have heretofore enjoyed,
the sweets of political patronage here, by
way of illustrating the contaminating in
fuences which hang around political
avocation in life ? We opine not.
We might 90 on and write column after
COluulu upOH tnio oVPiO, o"o SA"O 10 UC-
yond the province of daily journalism
At another time we may again attempt to
follow out the subject, and point out
more plainly the folies attendant upon a
course of life devoted to politics and par
ty management. Our present purpose
has been to awaken, if possible, in the
minds of these victims toa weak delusion,
a returning sense of reason, that will in
duce reformation before it be too late
ever to accomplish that end to show to
the hangers-on of party, the professional,
political appointee, and member of nomi-
mating conventions, that he is pursuing
the road to misery and wretchedness, and
the only way to avoid those dread results
is to turn short about, and, ignoring whis-
ky and politics, begin life with a new de-
termination and new ambition for future
guidance. Whether this will have been
accomplished not, in one single instance,
we have none the less correctly stated the
case, and performed our duty 4lto
California.