The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1862-01-21

If the public are puzzled to know the
grounds of Mr.. Cameron's resignation, 1t Is
not because of the want Of Sufficient reasons,
but because of their multiplicity; and because
he ha, held office in spite Of so many and such
general impeachments Of his capacity and
fidelity,
when his name was first presented for the
Office Of secretary Of the treasury, ID was held
under adyisement by Mr., Lincoln till certain
charges Of corruption should be cleared up
II was understood that these charges were
not cleared up, and Mr.. Cameron was trans
ferred 10 the war department lie had never
been u statesman, but always jobber in
legislation, and owed whatever political Gle.
walton he achieved to the dcXerous use Of
money
To understand how completely It failure
was h- administration OF the war department,
we must rrcollect that the states raised and
furnished their quotas Of troops to the govern
meut, and that what little the war depart
men, AT Washington did was to embarrass
and comPlicatc the action Of the states New
York raised and Offered its : lccessiye quotas
and turned It's hundred regiments, complete,
over TO the federal government, The war de-.
partment seized upon the appointment of
brigadicts and other generals, aud suffers -
What little Mr.. Cameron did was il.done.--
The commis'ariat Of provision aud transpor
taton, the health Of troops, and the accomo.
datiOn Of the regiment, were neglected. 1t is
on his department must fall the responsible.
ity Of raising sixty thousand cavalry, with
! horses and equipments, when ten thousand
! only are needed This is u sample If the or
ganic errors Of his administration.
President Lincoln endured all this-en.
dured his iactIOus conduct IN disseminating
an official report recommending IN uncOnstl.
tutional course Of action which he knew the
president condemned Mr. Lincoln tolerated
even the abuses which the Van Wyck iuves
| tigatiJn revealed What, then, has tardily
reused him to suggest to the secretary the ne
cessity Of Il resignation: Most likely the
monied men Of the large cilc. have protested
against the wa,teiulncs- of his admiustra
ton, which has kept them, ike the daughter
Of Darius, ever pouring their water into u
sciyc. The secretary % the treasury we arc
told, when Intercepted a. 10 the extra0rliu.
airy disbursements which he !, called upon to
make, has no hesitation ia declaring that u
large prDyOU,m Is wgsioi IN traHd anil
speculation, iraR, another grsN share Is ,.r
pnded ATTY JY Wuo' et n'7lyrncs anil go3s
iHaUCHftyH.'
Indeed. the history OF the world has never
shown n war So unproductye of results, and
yet so costly in the preparation aud conduct;
and this i all the fault Of the federal govern.
ment for the machinery Of states is - al.
mirable that the first organization Of our vast
army was made with little cost aud with in
credible celebrity, by the local authorities.
Mr.. Cameron has fallen, then, in the yawn-
ing gulf Of a treasury deficit, where 50 many
ministers and almlui~tra tions, dvnastirs and
states hav" been engulphed. We all know
the power OF vacuum in mechanics: bat it
is as nothing compared with the political
power Of u vacuum in government trca~u
ry. let Us add, also, that the secretary Of
war would nave found i, difficult t. weau
himself from an administration with a full
treasury.
lie goes now 10 tn" court Of St. Peters
lurgh, to confirm" the line Of the dumb and
incompetent men who with the single accom-
! plshueut Of never being able to make them
selves understood, have preserved Il, the
| friendship of Russia for nearly a century
| The dumb waiter" was the invention Of an
absolute monarch and the Gear likes those
! We send him, and Will probably consider Mr.
Cameron good specimen Of our patent.
i',U,y 1TWB.