Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1869-02-05
QUEEN AND PRESIDENT.
what they Get for their Services.
From the Philadelphia Press.l


what they Get for their Services.
From the Philadelphia Pressl
The points of resemblance between
the parliamentary and governmental
systems of the United States and Eng.
land are by 10 means so close as they
may appear. There are three estates
of the realm in England. known as
Queen, Lords and Commons, while
I'm the United States the controlling
power of the Senate and House ol
Representatives is so great that q
President has his hands so tied, to a
much mischief, were he so inclined.
The sovereign has an absolute veto,
which has very rarely been exercised,
and the President has also the right
to interpose his veto--subject, how
ever, to the chance of its being over
ruled by the action of Congress-
Much of the Presidents time Is occu-
pied in deciding on vacant or to-be-
vacated appointments, whereas the
Queen has nothing to do with these,
all of which are made by the heads
of public departments (the Cabinet
Ministers, in fact), subject to the ac-
tual approval of the Prime Minister,
in the first instance, and the nominal
approval of the Queen at last. OF
course, II there were reasons for be-
lieving that any one had given
grounds of personal Offense to the
Queen, good taste would suggest the
propriety of not bringing his name
before her for confirmation. In fact,
however, all things considered, the
British sovereign does not possess the
power of having a man appointed
even to petty post in the customs
or excise department.. To do SO, she
would have to beg the premier to ap-
point him, and, though he might do
so, it would be with a feeling, which
he would scarcely think ofconcealing,
that his royal mistress would have
done we'll In not troubling him. There
is plain and practical reason for this.
The Queen Is supposed to be above the
law; though 1t did happen that
Charles l. lost his head in London,
and Louis XVI. in Paris, and that,
within the last thirty years, various
sovereigns have been deposed and ex-
lied by their "loyal and loving SUBJ
jects." The fiction of English con-
stitutions! law is that the Queen can
do no wrong. Somebody must be
responsible, however; so the Queens
ministers are held accountable. But,
ever since Lord Strafford, confiden-
tial minister of Charles the First, had
been impeached, tried, convicted, con-
demned and beheaded-his loving
master signing the death-warrant-
for doing that masters behests, Brit
ish statesmen have insistei that, il
they are legally and constitutionally
responsible, they must have liberty of
free action. Hence, the Cabinet vir-
tually govern the British Empire,
and not the Sovereign. Now, with
us, the President, whose powers much
resemble those of the Prime Minister
in England, is held constitutionally
responsible, and may be dealt with by
the process of impeachment.
In this country the President Is not
extravagantly paid. He has the
White House for his ordinary resi-.
dence, and also sort OF rural sum-
mer retreat i'm the suburbs of WASH
ington. His residence Is furnished,
is rent-free, and, we believe, is lighted
and coaled at public expense. The
salary Is $25, 900 n year. The British
sovereign is much better off. Queen
Victoria has not one palace, hut
twenty. = Independent of Osborne
House, on the Isle of Wight, and Bal
moral Castle, in the Scottish High
lands, she has full use of Windsor
Castle, Buckingham Palace, St.
James, Kensington, Kew, Hampton
Court, Whitehall, Claremont, Frog
more, what are called the Lodges of
Richmond, Hyde, Greenwich and
other royal parks, and Marlborough
House. These are absolutely at her
disposal, rent free. In some of them
she has allowed various Of her rela-
tions to reside, rent and tax free; Rich
mond Lodge has been granted, for
life, to Earl Russell and all are kept
in repair out of the public purse, at
an annual average cost Of $500, ,00O.-
The Queen and her family receive
about $1,000, 900 per annum, besides
these palaces, from the British pub
lie. Her Majesty's own allowance is
81 OPS, 900 n year, out of which 1862, =
500 Is supposed TO be disbursed for the
expenses of the Royal Household
(which Paddy calls "the ating and
the sup o. drink"); S66, 900 is set down
for royal bounty, aims, and special
services; and 100000 for Victories
'privy purse, or mere personal eXpen-
diture. But, contrary to an agree
ment made Mt the revolution between
William and Mary Oh one hand, and
the House of Commons on the other,
whereby the Sovereign's hereditary
revenue was surrendered on condition
of a large fixed civil list being settled
on the sovereign, at the beginning ot
each reign, Queen Victoria continues
TO receive an additional twenty-five
thousand pounds sterling per annum
(Sl25, ,000l from the Duchy of Lancas.
ter, whereby her own personal in
come Is swelled up to S49l 900 per an
mum, of which, since her husbands
death, seven years ago, she can not
in any one year, have spent one-siXth
Taking. these savings at S2,65O,O 900
considering that Prince Albert be
queathed her So, ,OO0, 900, which he had
saved out of about $50, 900 a year h1
received between his marriage in Feb
ruary, 1910, and his death in Decem'
Der, 1861 and counting in 81, 5000
bequeathed To her by a rich man
named Necld, who passed over all his
own relations, Queen Victoria's re-
serve fund, against rainy day, is
about 80, no. ,0O0-to say nothing of III
certain annual increase from iudicious
Investments. If the revolution
which, II Is said is perpetually in hcl
anticipation, should ever take place
her Majesty has n golden nest-egg, al
all events, which will enable her Il
live respectfully as private individ-
ual. she may have such an antici'
patton, but very few of her subjects
even think of il as probable. There