The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-04-10

When the office-seekers are ten times or
even five times in number the offices to be
filled by the President he is sure to make more
enemies than friends in the distribution Of the
spoils He cannot avoid it. 1t is a simple
matter Of arithmetic. We may then safely
conclude that however wisely General Grant
may dispense his favOrs his administration
will not be strengthened thereby. General
Jackson commenced the system Of rewarding
his political friends and Furnishing his enemies,
and the squabbles among his friends kept him
continually in hot water. Van Buren,, in 'tol-
lowing in the footsteps of his illustrious pre-
decessor," completely broke down. Polk,
adhering to the same idea that his strength
was in his patronage, found himself too weak
at the end of his first term to make any serious
struggle for second. Ditto poor Pierce and
Buchanan; ditto Tylor, Fillmore and Andy
Johnson. To be sure in the cases of Pierce
and Buchanan the spoils were Overshadowed
by the revolutionary issues raised on the
slavery question; but still both these men were
sadly worried in the division of the spOils.
Pierce, for instance, it will be remembered, in
his appointment of Redfeld as Collector of
New York, reopened the old quarrel between
hardshells and softshells, and split the de-
mocracy of the Empire State into two nearly
equal hostile factions in the next State cleo
ton.
In short there is only one plan in which
General Grant may possibly satisfy in sue
cession decisive majority of the office-seek-
ing patriots of the republican party. This
plan is to change his Cabinet every month and
to leave the distribution of the offices to his
secretaries. But when we come to think OF
it even this will not do; for if the collector,
assessor, marshal or postmaster appointed in
April is to be turned out in May the difficulty,
instead of being mended, will be made worse
by these monthly rotations, even with the con-
sent of the Senate. But we like none the
less General Grants fundamental proposition
to change his Cabinet whenever he finds it
inefficient, although he may thus be required
to change it every week. We hear, too, that
a change of two or three members may be soon
if half that is said of the present Cabinet be
true it is "a balky team and not calculated
to pull together up the steep hills of our
foreign relations nor through the mudholes of
Southern reconstruction. 1t is said that Mr..
Fish is too much of the sold line whig" of
twenty-five years ago on Cuba, st. Domingo,
Mexico, Canada and the Alabama claims for
the young America" of the present day;
that Boutwell, has not the grasp of mind
for the reforms needed in our financial system,
and that Mr. Borie is not the Secretary of the
Navy. A copperhead journal, which assumes
to know all the ms and outs of the administra
ton, attributes this observation to Admiral
Porter -''Mr Borie is nice little man; he
does everything that tell him to do
Such things as these may be only the ''weak
inventions of the enemy" but they are
creating troubles in the republican camp.
The late facetious and enthusiastic Dana,
the devoted and persistent volunteer Cabinet
maker for General Grant till the General had
made his own Cabinet, is no longer facetous
over Greeley for the Court Of st. James nor
enthusiastic over the hero of Vicksburg. Dana,
indeed, has become sour and spiteful over the
Presidents appointments and perfectly out
rageous in his augs at Borie and Porter Gree
ley is evidently under a cloud, Raymond is
befogged, and the waterfowl poets Of the Post,
in most unseemly wrath have been exercising
their poetic fancies against Senator Fenton's
influence at headquarters. All these clashings
and family jars in this locality may be divided
between Messrs. Morgan, Conkling and Fen
ton in Washington, and one result will most
probably be, with the aid Of the Albany
Legislature, a general Generalization of the
party in this State in time for the next fall
election.
But what more could the republican mana
gers or expectants of any faction or color ask
of General Grant in giving out the loaves and
fishes than he has done and is doing? Has he
not been as impartial and comprehensive in his
favors as man could be? Among the recipi-
ents of his bounties are there not, in fair pro-
portions, radicals, conservatives, soldiers,
sailors, civilians, rebels, women, Indians and
niggers? Wendell Phillips, who is not an
office-seeker, finds General Grant up to the
mark of his high calling; Miss Susan b.
Anthony, in behalf of womens rights, says
''well done :" and Fred Douglass with many
compliments, while recognizing the dawn of the
millennium, declines the mission to Hayti. But
the simple fact is that it is as useless for Gen
eral Grant to try to please everybody as it
was for the miller on that famous journey with
his boy and donkey. The only course for the
ciques and factions and to shape out and pro-
claim bold American policy on our foreign
relations, which, in commanding the endorse
ment of the people, will compel the co-opera-