Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-01-04
s1I1sTEs OF STATE OTT1oERs.

ocerS Eel delieacy IL again abiding
b ha subject in general terms; but it can
not Be properly avoided What was once
a question Of policy, IS now q matter Of
necessity. awaFs the time is unpro-
pituous; but- crtainly cannot bepossi-
BE that the p5 ple ef great snd prosper
GUS State are desirous, or even willing, that
every officer Of the Stsa Government
should remain at bis post, in the discharge
Of onarous and responsible duties, when
he is compelled 70 draw upon other means
than his salary for bis actual support IL
Is fact, universally known and recog
nized, that there is not single State
officer who can cIothe his family, and pay
his board in respectable private house.
from the salary that is allotted to him.
This should not be so. It is illiberal on
the part Of the 5tstoi and unjust to the
officer
Our scale Of salaries was adopted under
8 very different state of things than exists
at the present time. Even then 1t wss
said that none but the wealthy or the very
poor could afford TO hold Office. We have
passed the point as to the latter for the
man whose Circumstances required him to
rely on the compensation Of the best Of
your Offices, would be compelled to aban.
don his position. There are clerks in the
public Offices, without care ana respOnsi
bility, who are receiving equal, and, in one
or two cases, better salaries than the heads
Of Departments who employ them. This
bastern necessity, that cannot be avoided.
Without it, the public interests would
suffer
Il is common argument that there are
seekers enough after the offices and he
who is chosen understands what the sal
ary is, and has no right to complain
There is such thing, especially in times
like these, as men c0nsenting 20 assume
important positions from higher consider
ations than those Of q pecunisry chsrac-
ter; and It has been true, and may be true |
again, that 1nsn will consent to take State
Offices, even at 8 pecunisry sacrifice, in
order 10 make Of them stepping-stones to
higher and better positions In the first |
case it is unjust to impose upon patriotic |
impulses SO severe g sacri6ee; and Ia the /
last it has been amply demonstrated that |
the public interest is not promoted by /
making of your offices mere hot-beds for /
the growth and advancement Of political i
ambition. There is dignity and ehsrse- |
ter about the compensation, as there is
arising from the honOrs of Office. The |
u4OEG TEE DcCkhBaD u Jul EuAhAANol bAo DDNFOA II
able YOU will be to attract men Of the 1
highest character and ability from the /
other avocations Of life, TO ssrVe the State. /
As it is now, the smallest railroad eorpo- |
ration within its limits offers mora solid
Inducements 20 IFS President or Superin-
tendent than the State does to its Governor i
or Chief Justice. Ths result is that, un-
der ordinary circumstances, with all your
hnrn
the choice of men Of business talent and 4
integrity.
hsye been, for fhe last fifteen years,
in positions where was enabled TO- and /
have thoroughly tested this principle; and
my unvarying experience has been that
there Was no ecOao1ny so poor as that of /
low wages and chesp men. have always i
found that when L made my service at
trsciiVe, and its positions valuable, com
msnded q class of men whose skill, devo-
ton and integrity returned, four-fold, the
liberal compensation allowed them. What
is true of corporation is true Of State
and we will do we'll to profit by the les
sons that our corporations are sfording
US
Apart from the considerations Of public
policy; the character Of State is always i
fnjuriously affected by the manifestation of /
8 spirit of ilhberslity and injustice toward /
its servants. In population and wealth,
Ohio ranks as the third Slate in the Union,
vet, in point of compensation 20 her pub i
lie officers she stands almost st tie foot of /
the list. l beg leave TO present ycu S
eomparison with the two States above and /
several below our class; taking the off e /
of Governor, which holds q relative posi- 4
tion 70 all others
Nav York. s4 600 and furn.sht ID house /
Penpsylysnia, 1900 g
Ohio, l'syU
MSIsachusetts, s,5GO-in ls65, 5000.
New jersey, $40
HArylsnd. 5000 and furnished house
The comparison is about the same with /
the Judicial and all other State officers
In scanning it, we must either charge our i
sister States with gross extravaganza, or
admit cur own illiberAlity and injustice
The labors of all cur Departments are
not only much heavier on account of the /
war, but they are constantly increasing, in
ths natural order of things 1 speak from ]
personal knowledge when say that the /
isbors and responsibilities of tine State |
Auditors Department aretWoif not three /
fold what they were when-I filled that /
position, twenty years ago; while the sal |
sry-then very LOWS increased only /
tbirty-three per cent. While the Treasury |
then received and disbursed from two and 1
one half to three millions annually, the /
Treasurer now passes through his hands /
from eight to nine millions OF dollars and |
the salary of that Office has been increased
twenty-five per cent. An the gain that
has been made by this process Of economy
does not amount to respectable fraction |
of mill on the dollar of your duplicate;
and has been several times sqzandered in
Legislative debates and action upon the
subject of economy in the reduction OF
salaries.
This topic is not pleasant oae to pre-
sent, but I have felt that / could consist
emily and properly speak of it; for, so far
as my own wishes or aspirations in the
future are concerned, have not the slight
est pecuniary interest in it. feel that
Justice to public officers, and the characler
and dignity of the State, require the inAu-
guration OF q more liberal policy in this
particular l think it should be done, as
TO the officers elected this fall, while you
have the power to accomplish it, before
they assume their official positions am
confdeit the people will approve the act,
for they will see the reason and appreciate
the justice of It. --
MILITARY CLAIMS.
There are great many claims, growing
out of military operations, that require
some action. They originate from various
causes, and are of a character not recog-
nized or provided for by existing laws,
snd cannot, therefore, be audited BY the
officers ofthe general Government 1t is
difficult to draw the proper line of dis
tincticn, and yet many of them are serious
grievances, and inhict severe injury upon the
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