The Portland daily press., 1866-05-15
Government Appointments and Removal,

A week ago we had occasion to comment
upon the great evil which has come upon the
country, under the present system of bcstow-
ing public offices upon political partisans as
rewards, instead of employing faithful and
competent men, at the cheapest possible rate,
to discharge the duties of the offices. There
is, of course. no reason why a mans political
opinion should entitle him to an Office under
the government any more than to govern
ment contract. In either case, the public adj
vantage, in many ways, requires that the man
shall receive the work. Amy discrimination
other than this, breeds corruption. If con-
tracts are awarded to any but the lowest bid
der, If offices are bestowed upon incapable
men, the country suffers. And the economical
loss is not the greatest misfortune. The pow
er which has become, by long practice and the
consent of Congress, concentrated in the
hands of single officer, is dangerous to iber-
ty and should be abridged at once. The i'm
mense political influence of the President, in
creasing since jackson first showed how it
could be used, and enormously developed by
the war, has reached pitch of which the men
who founded the government, and the Con-
gress of 1889, which furnished the first prece-
dent for the practice since and now prevail
ing, could have had no conception.
The Advertiser has devoted no less than
three articles TO this subject within the week.
The treatment of great subject like this af
fords the best possible test of mental disci-
pline and range. When a disputant rushes
into debate with handful of partially plausi
; Bile arguments cleaned from the surface of such
matter as this, when he fails to mark the
exact limit of what he knows and what he.
hazily guesses, he betrays lack of mental
poise and furniture, which renders his con-
illusions of very little consequence to anybody.
The Advertiser makes three objections to
the reasoning of the Press. /. That "tbe
Press undertakes to be wiser than the fathers
of the Constitution and the wisest of its ex-
Founders, the immortal Webster" 2. That
the Congress of 1889 conceded the power of
removal from Office "to be constitutionally
vested in thePresident." g. That the authori-
ty of the Federal Judiciary confirms the prac-
tice of the government. All these assertions
are blunders which well-read publicist or
lawyer would be ashamed Of as we shall pre-
coed to show.
We have already cited Hamilton's opinion,
published before the Constitution was adopt
ed, and reasserted by him ten years after the
decision of the Congress of 17S9-a decision
carried by majority of only IA in the House
of Representatives, and by the casting vote OF
Vice President Adams in the Senate. Hamil-
ton said,-
The consent of that body the Senate would
be necessary to displace as well as to appoint
a change of the Clief Magistrate therefore,
could not occasion so vi0lent or so general
revolution In the officers of the government as
might b expected If he scere the sole disposer
OF oDtces. Where man in any station had
given satisfactory evidence of his fitness for it,
new President would be restrained from at
tempting change in favor of a person more
agreeable to him by the apprehension that
discountenance Of the Senate might Illustrate
the attempt and bring some degree of dis
credit upon himself Those who can best es-
innate the value of steady administration
will be most disposed to prize a provision
which connects the official existence of public
that body which, from the greater perrnanency
OF its own composition, will in all probability
be less subject to Inconsistency than any other
member OF the Government.-Ihe Federalist,
No. II. 1.-iy
That was the opinion of the fathers of the
Constitution" although Mr.. Madison, one OF
the writer's Of the Federalist, has since stood
almost alone among our great statesmen in
advocating the contrary doctrine. As the Id
oertiser does not seem to be aware of Mr..
Madison's position on this question, we take
the liberty to call its attention to his argu-
ments, which are perhaps the best to be found
on that side, though th " have been generally
regarded as inconclusive. tits worthy of no
tice however, that during the eight years OF
Madison's administration, be made but three
removals. From the madness of the Jackson
ian policy, he was as far removed as even Ham
nton.
Coming now to Mr.. Webster, whom the Id
rsrtiser with great felicity and originality
styles "the immortal Webster" we find it nee
essary to mention another fact of which the |
Advertiser seems to be unaware. This mat
ter has notslept since 1889. On the contrary |
1t has been repeatedly agitated in Congress,
ana the greatest American statesmen have
LETT their opinions neither to inference nor as
sertion, but actually on record. In a speecb
delivered in the Senate, on this very subject.
Feb 10. 1886, Mr.. Webster said,-
I think, sir, that the power OF anno;nt,
naturally and necessarily includes the mower n ~
removal, where no limitation is Expressed ~
any tenure but that at will declared. Tho
power of appointment being conferred on the |
President and Senate, think the power of re. |
moval went along with it and should have
been regarded as part of it and exercised by
the same hands. Itliak, consequently, that
the decision of 1889, aohich implied a power
OF reiaocGt separate from the appointing pOac-
er, irGs erroneous.
Calhoun and Clay, during the same debate
and Benton and Van Buren, in 1927, are on
record on the same side. Calhoun confesses
that he approached the subject with the i'm
preston that the decision of 1859 was well
weighed and ought not to be disturbed. He
was compelled, to use his own words, to ac-
knowledge "the force of the arguments of
those who contended that the power was rot
vested by the Constitution in the Executive"
After quoting these opinions, it is unneces-
sary to remark that the Concession" of the
Congress of 1889 is not of such sacred ma
ture as to forbid its propriety being drawn in
question. The debate Of 1889 however. rela-
TED to the appointment of Secretary of For
eign Affairs, now called Secretary of State.
ar' Madison's opinion was originally given in
'nis oeoate' with reference to the appointment
ana removal ola Cabinet officer, which would |
.a.uia any oe left to the President. He did not |
LOOK FORWARD 10 such an accumulation of po-
htical power as is now vested in the President
OF Washington.