The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-07-18
THE CUSTOM HOUSE.
The New AppOintees to Assume the Duties Of
Their Offices To-Day.
LOOK at the Rings and Cliques-Ths ''IndiA
pensable' Officials in the Customs Service
Who IL Really Indispensable" "A
Question Answered-How to Mako
the "Rings' Chatter and Jingle

Thomas Murphy, the newly appointed Colleetor NJ
Customs for The port OF New York. viii this morning
assume the duties pertaining to the administration
OF this oice, AMI his predecessor, Moses ii. GrinneE
will also enter upon the discharge Of his functions
as Naval Onicer OF the port In nearly every instance
Of succession In Office there Is grelt deal OF talk,
buster and sensation about sweeping reforms"
Establishment OF sinecure positiOns' "retrench-
ment,' "stoppage OF corrupt and fraudulent Leak
ages" and the like, and in every Instance 1t remains
for the courts and the detectives and the secret ser
vice agents to veltila-e and punish new crimes and
misdemeanOrs 1t therefore may not be out OF place
at the present time to go into the question OF the
causes of these offences and the system under which
they not only can exist out do actually flourish.
THE 'RINGs."
One OF the essent al things for thorough reorrna.
ton OF the Gu tom House Is the breaking up of the
"rngs which formed by the heads OF the diner.
ent departments. The evils growing out Of these
combinat ons appear 10 be chronic There are the
Warehouse Department Ring the Seizure Bureau
Ring, the Free Entry Permit Ring, the Withdrawal
Routine Ring, the Lquidatlng Department Rings
and the Auditors Bureau Ring. Then there is the
Appra eis' Ring and the Ring OF the Inspectors
Department, Surveyors Office. Here is list OF
some OF the principal "routines,n which naturally
gravtate toward abuses, developed In iegitimate
money making and favortism. The way these evils
are continued is most natural. When Mr. Murphy.
for instance takes his chair in the Collector 's once,
the first men who come in contact with him are,
with few exceptions the souls OF these rings. 1t IL
70 0M R0s Sy vet
they give the newly installed Collector just informa
ton enough to make HIM realize the idea that he
has entered upon duties echlc make them essential
to hts success! srs. H.1 atlc. gt.
Now, the newly installed collector should impress
It upon his mind that there iS not duty to be per-
formed In the custom House that cannot by q clear
headed, intelligent man be thoroughly mastered in
fArfu Lrpth han Onlfn ftt.tin
will talk about mastering the tari1, for instance.
WE'LL an entire change IN the tariff has just been
officially announced. An intelligent man outside
the Custom House read the schedule in the news
papers, and III ten minutes apply the eXactions
any article named in the list. so, what is the OF
experience where change is constantly the order Of
the day? TO set.ihis matter perfectly plain before
the most casual reader II may be well 10 recall two
incidents III Custom House history which transp1red
within lew weeks
II any one two or three months ago had visited
the building and inquired of these "rng masters or
anybody else what two men more than any others
essential to The successful working OF The CusA
formed that Mr. Franklin, OF the Naval ONCE, and
Mr.. Date Ogden, OF the Collectors Department, were
these centres OF necessity. He would have been
shown Mr.. Dae Ogden's fine, intelligent,
arstocrac face and impressive personal appearance
Information that he had "been at the head Of the
hqudaung department. over forty years" And II
the informant was one OF the ring or rs depend
ants, he would 80 on to say that the responsibility
OF making up the duties for the whole Custom
House was in charge OF Mr.. Ogden; that he was
important department.; that the details OF the sys.
tenn had grown up under his supervision; That he
knew all precedents and had the decision Of every
Solicitor OF the Treasury regarding the tariff laws at
his finger ends. Aud, finally. after the visitor had
OF Mr.. Ogden 70 tic Revenue Department, lie would
agree with his in ormant that II by any act OF Provi
dence Mr. ogden Should onlcially leave the building
collection OF tariffs end
But one morning without any announcement, Mr..
Ogden did vacatc his place, ana the sun did not re-
tire behind cloud; there was not even a gentle
ripple in the routine OF the liqudating Departments
OF the Custom House. The fact is that he or any
other man i not essential to the business and the
fact that he has gone out without creating the
slightest pcrc ap ,ibe erect proves 1t
"But we might possibly spare Mr.. Ogden;" the
self admiration society OF the Custom House mad TO
Mr.. Franklin OF the Naval ONCE, he is the naval
office He has been naval officer for thirty years;
without him there wouldn't be any naval office" But
the other day, gentleman without thirty seconds
worth OF experience displaced Mr.. Franklin and his
thirty years experience, and the Naval ONCE has
tory. And il MI. FRANKLIN and Mr.. Ogden, whose
united Custom House experience and ofce holding,
the government what is the use Of any telling
Mr.. Murphy, THAI they or any other official are es-
sentialn to the Custom House.
The statement Is bosh: our system, independent Of
the provoking and senseess routine Is too simple
as WHOLE to ever make an expert, much less re-
quire one. Tile act is that when one hears broker
or some occasional importer complaining that the
removal OF some certain person In the Custom
House delays business, thousand to one some little
ring, outside arrangement has been deranged or
broken up; hence the delay complained Of ..
The remedy or one OF the most essential remedies
for the regeneration OF the Custom House would be-
an entire change in the heads Of the departments.
II men who have been In ONCE fifteen twenty and
twenty-five years must be reaincd-and 1t is
evident by the cases OF Mr.. Ogden and Mr..
Franklin they are not necessary-then change
these gentlemen from the departments they
have 80 long occupied into other places, and
that woul certainty derange II not destroy any
supposed rings other evils. II the secret history
Of the Custom House could be written 1t would be
found that all abuses worth the publics notice have
sprung from the long continuance of the same men
in the same bureaus The spirit OF this republican
government has wisely arranged periodical change
In our public men. Inc President, the members Of
Congress, and tie Coec Tor oil the port subjected
to this healthy rule; and 1t seems only sound sense
that 1t should apply TO the remaining Ogdens and
Franklins who Iold place in the gray granite build
ing in Wall street.