The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-03-18
The Administration Of General Srant-
The ISeginning.

From the NJ T. Herotd.
The rush of hungry patriots TO washington
on the wild hunt for Office startles even tne
manaojpe politicians whose followers these
bnnory natTiots are. General Grant, however,
aonns,oned 10 dealing with large bodies OF
| go, an a short notice. sustains the pressure
,ai,b the coolness of an old campaigo oer, and
| takes his own time In paroelling out the loaves
| and fishes. Meantime our ATTENTION Is called
| 10 the more important responsibilities and
| du,ies of his position. We expect under his
sdmjnistration in the development of the in
calculable resources of the United States, an
epech of progress, prosperity, and power
without an example in the records Of any
people on the face Of the globe. We have had
ieasons to fear financial crisis and collapse
from the mismanagement OF the Treasury,
and reasons, also, to fear, from these and
other causes, such demoraliz atoms and dis
orders in our body politic as might bring uPon
us political as we'll as financial bankruptcy;
but we look now for brighter days and better
things.
1t is yet too soon to pass judgment upon the
capacities of the new Cabinet in the work of
retrepchment aud reform; but there are two
departments which have already gone vigor-
ously to the task before them. We refer to
the War and the Navy Departments. The ex-
perienced and efficient men assigned to the
proiess sionsl business of these departments
have commenced with the will of new house
u
aud bridal reception. General and special
orders affecting the reorganization and re-
ducton of the army and the pruning down of
useless expenses have already been sent to
every section of the country. 1t is contem-
plated within short time to reduce the
aggregate rank and file of the army
in active service from forty-fve to twenty
FIVE regiments-or say from forty-five TO
twenty five thousand men-and in this
and other ways to cut down in
twelvemonth the expenditures of the War
Office to one half the last annual budget of the
Secretary. This is good. And in the Navy
Department we have evidences OF similar
activity with the prunipg-knife. Indeed, it Is
said that Admiral Porter, in direct charge OF
the reform bureau, is turning the department
upside down and inside out, and that Grand
father Welles would even now be shocked at
the innovations made in the brushing away
of the dust and cobwebs of many years acou-
mutation, and in the clearing out of old and
useless lumber. At the same time Secretary
Borie, off on a little journey, leaves posted
about the walls for the information OF place
hunting interlopers this facetious inscriptions
-'There are no vacancies in this depart
ment." He has no tine to waste upon office
beggars.
We see, then, that in the War and Navy
Offices il is the purpose of the new managers
to reduce personnel, machinery, and expenses
to the margin of fair peace establishment.
Let it not be inferred, however, that this
means peace under Grants administration,
right or wrong. II means only that while
peace prevails our amy and navy may be
raced to the peace establishment of mere
| police force on land and water. Why not,
when, under President Grant, from the men,
materials, appliances, and inventions of our
late civil war, he could within six weeks mus
ter the most formidable army in the world
1. l.
navy The inaugural very clearly shows
that while General Grant means to ask
nothing that is not right of foreign powers, he
intends to submit to nothing that is wrong
So the War and Navy Departments under him
are to be organized for the exigency of war
while reduced as to the expenditures of al
assured, enduring peace.
But how is it with the other departments
the Treasury, the Interior, and the Post Office
Here different order of things seems to pre
vail; here the politicians appear as if in full
possession, and the wild hunt for Office is il
full blast, on Marcy's debasing motto tha
''to the victors belong the spoils." Their
are not in this demoralizing exhibition any
very encouraging signs of ECONOMY, re
trenchment, and REFORM" But when thi
unseemly rush of spoilsmen and this de
grading scramble for places at the public cri
shall have somewhat abated, we expect ths
General Grant will take look into tn
practical working of these departments, an
we expect that il they are found wantin
upon the test OF economy and retrenchmen'
he will apply the rule OF his address to til
Congressional committee announcing his ele
tion-the rule of dismissing at once any men
Der Of his Cabinet when found incom petent
unsatisfactory. The Commissioner of Intern
Revenue, an officer second only in his gre;
responsibilities to the head of the Treasur
: comes also within this category.
The Post Office Department has been turns
over to Mr.. Creswen deeply in debt or benin
hand; the Interior Department has bee
turned over to General Cox awfully mixed I
with rings of indiana cheating contractors ar
railway land speculsting rings, and all sor
of Territorial schemes and jobs; the Treasul
I. Department and its appendages of the intern
y revenue service have become q scandal to d
y Government and burden to the people t
:, heavy to be much longer endured, aud all
' consequence of the thievipg whisky ring
; tobacco rings, gold and stock gambling ring
= and other rings Of sharpers and plundere
= too numerous here to specify. All the
- abuses, frauds and corruptions in all the
i, departments, il is the duty of the officers
. charge to rectify, and General Grant says tn
: reform is his fixed purpose. The heads of 4
= departments then, will do we'll not to fore
y y this; for if found deficient they must by +
. President be removed, and because even
= their deficiencies he will be held responsible
y the country.
d The Difference Between Civil Administi
le tiOn and Military Command.
NJ v IUo