The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1866-02-22
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY % lsss

Sbateeueni End intelll-
gent rejecting persons, Of all parties.
have, since the adoption of the FEDERAL
constitution, regarded the aceumuls-
ton OF patronage in the hands of the
President as a dangerous feature, and
viewed all attempts to enlarge it with
serious spprehensions. 1t was regarded
by them as q source Of power. which.
IN the hands of q corrupt Chief Mapis.
trate, might be used for the destruction
OF our free institutions, or to retain the
administration Of the Government in
the hands of a particular party. In
deed, the Whig leaders openly charged
q made It q serious complaint against
Gen jackson and his democratic sue
eessors, thai their power and patronage
a been used TO keep the Government
under the control of the Democratic
party. IL was alleged that the Demo
cratic Presidents, with their hordes of
postmssters, marshals, collectors, and
other officials, scattered throughout the
country, ell bound to work for party. to
keep their places, we're fast bringing the
Government to ruin. Hundreds of
those who are now most active leaders
Of the ultras of the National Union
party, were those who most bitterly de-
nounce1 the Democratic Presidents for
this alleged abuse; and seriously deba.
ted the propriety ofvesting the appoint
ing in q quarter less liable to make i'm
proper use of it.
If there was good cause for appre-
tensions of danger, on this score, before
the war, there is much more u now.
The experiences of four years of active
war, have unsettled the maxims and
principles of the past We have lived
so fast and done go much not in &C
cordance with the true principles of
constitutional government, it seems al
most impossible to make men realize
the true condition of public affairs.
The war has cost as q vast expendi-
ture of money. A mountain of debt
has been left for posterity to
overcome. We are burdened for
generations to come, with op-
pressive tsxes-taxes, against which
in former days We warned the people,
and cited the examples of European
Governments to prove, aid in making
the rich richer and the poor poorer
which make it impossible almost for
the poor to improve their condition.
To collect these taxes, officers are APP
pointed, and thus a vast addition, per
petual perhaps, has been made to the
Presidents grand army" of Office
holders, "hireling stipendiaries' as they
we're want TO be called.
But the present Congress has sought
TO increase this vast standing army, by
enlsrging the Freedmen's Bureau. and
providing for the appointment of Off
GERS in every county of the late slave
States. With this addition TO the
number of Office holders already eating
out the substance of the country, a
profigate tyrannicsl President would
hold the destinies of the nation in the
hollow of his hands.
Fortunately, however, we hayein the
Presidential Chair one who has risen
from the ranks of the people, of uncor-
ruptible integrity and honesty of pur-
pose; a statesman who deprecates the
concentration of power and patronage,
and who is unselfish enough 10 reject
the offer 10 increase his authority. In
the veto of the Freedmen's Bureau
Bill, he has given the highest proof Of
his fidelity to republican principles
and of his reverence for the rights OF
the people Let the plaudit of 'Well
done, good and faithful servant" go up
to him from oil quarters, and especially
from the Convention to-day.