New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-11-03
WHY SECRETARY COX RESIGNED
ACCURATE ACCOUNT OF THE MATTER
OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE IN THE CASE

! tween Secretary Cox and the PRESIDENT IN
| relation to the resi- gnation OF the former
| Various statements of the causes which led
| to the step on the part of the Secretary, and
also of the reasons which he assigned in the
! resignation, have been authorized at the
| White House. The letters themselves now
| set at rest all controversy in regard to their
| real contents and character. The following
may be relied upon as the correct statement
! of some Of the causes which forced the
! presentation of the issues set before the
| President by the Secretary.
| Throughout the summer General Cox had
| been aware of vigorous efforts on the part
| of politicians, and many whose schemes he
| would not forward in his department, to in
| duce the President to remove him. Preyl-
! GUS to leaving, i'll September, for short
| vacation. there were unmstakable signs
| that the President was yielding to the con
| certed attack upon General Cox.
Shortly after the latter left the city, an
| order to which he had called the attention
of the clerks in his department, regulating
| the absences for voting. was .peremptorily
revoked by the President. at the instance OF
| Chandler and Cameron, without any con
sultatiOn whatever with the Secretary, or
any subsequent communication with hun on
| the subject further than the bare order OF
| revocation. The order thus set aside was
not new one, and has already been referred
be briefly given here:
A year ago the Secretary, in his efforts to
| render his department efficient, was greatly
embarrassed by the long absence of the
clerks. Most of them took the usual vaca
tion of one month, and subsequently ten
DAYS, and more frequently two weeks in
addition, to go home and vote. The Secre
tary then gave notice that, in future, clerks
must arrange their vacation SO as to include
Ot n from
the month allowed to enable them to vote,
or. at their option. to take the full extra
| time given for elections and have it deduct
ed from their pay. This at the proper time
was formally brought to the attention of
the clerks. The Pennsylvania politicians
and others Immediately carried the matter
before the President, and he, with no other
word to the Secretary. fatty snubbed him
by revoking the order. Meantime the
boasts and threats of leading party mana
gers. openly made in the Department, show
ed that they were confident of complete
victory upon the questions at issue between
| themselves and the Secretary, and their de
tiant conduct both in private and in public
was such that no Cabinet officer having any
self respect could longer delay placing the
issue of full support against them. or the ac
ceptance of his resi- ,natiO, oauarely before
the President
There had also been an attempt, from the
same source. to change the Indian policy.
SO far, at least as to dictate the appoint
ments of agents instead of allowing the
selections to be made by benevolent and re-
ligious organizations. Finally. however
the President had directed correspondence
to be opened with various missionary soci-
eties asking them to recommend proper
persons for agents. The Secretary in carr
rying out the Presidents directions, had
fully committed himself and the Depart
nent to make such appointments as these
societies should agree upon As the recon-
mendations arrived. the commissions were
accordingly made out and signed. lmmet
diately after Senator Chandler appeared on
the scene, one Of these commissions were
suspended and another revoked, and Il man
suggested by Chandler commissioned. tho
la tier assigning, as a cover for the transact
ton, the false reason that the Mcthodist.
wanted this man for an agent.
The society to which the Secretary had
committed himself at once wrote to know
why faith had not been kept; and the Sec,
retary again. through purely political in
trigue, found himself in very embarrass-
ing position. knowledge of the situation
here reached him at Staten Island, where
he was spending his vacation, and he finally
concluded to place the questions involved
before the President in such way as I'd
ascertain whether ii was the wish of tho
Executive to support him in the contest, OF
to abandon the field to the influences which
had been at work so long and 80 persist
emily, and thus secure peace.
Accordingly, on October 3, the Secretary
wrote the letter given below, and mailed il
to the President at Washington. The en-
velop was marked personal" to distin!
cuish it from the mass of business mail, and
to insure its meeting the Presidents eye
first. Upon the letter itself there were no
marks to indicate that it was considered OF
private nature by the Secretary. nor has
anything Since passed between the Presi
dent and the Secretary to indicate that
either considered the letter other than the
open official correspondence attending q
resignation.
The Presidents reply was written
Immediately upon the receipt of the resig
nation, namely, on October s. and is
throughout in his own hand. Instead of be-
ing forwarded to the Secretary himself, at
Staten Island, it was sent with the routine
business mail to the department, addressed
in the usual business form: ITO the Secre-
tary of the Interior with no mark upon
the envelop to indicate that it was for the
Secretary in person. Consequently it was
opened with the business mail, and passed
through several hands ordinary business
does, before it was stopped for the Secretary.
Lest it might be supposed from the state
ments which have been authorized, that the
Secretary in other communications or ver-
bally, has assigned personal reasons for re-
signing the statement can b@ relied upon
that the Secretary has never, either orally
or in writing, laid any private and personal
matters before the President as reasons why
he should withdraw from the Cabinet.
General Cox upon leaving office, thinks it
his duty to yield up to the general demand
the following correspondence, and has
therefore furnished it for publication:
STATEN ISLAND, October 80, 1870.
Ny DEAR SIR-Whcn Congress adjourned
i'll the summer | was crcdibly informed that
a somewhat systematic effort would be made
before the rcassembling in the winter, to
force change in the policy have pursued
in the Interior Department. The removal
of the Indian service from the sphere of
ordinary political patronage has been dis |
tasteful to many influential gentlemen in
both Houses, and in order to enable you to
carry your purpose out successfully, | am |
that you ought not to be en- !
barrassed by any other causes Of irritation |
in the same department.
NV views of the necessity Of reform in the |
civil service have brought me more or less
into collision with the plans of our active |
political managers, and my sense of duty |
has obliged me to oppose some OF their
methods of action through the department.
have no doubt whatever that public senti-
mcnt will sooner or later fully sustain these
Efforts to make what regard as needed re-
forms, but ought not to overlook the fact
hat for the present they involve an OppOsi-
ton which it may not be for the interest OF
this administration to provoke, and as my
personal tendency is to be rather more than
ess persistent in a course which l am per-
ntted to pursue, deem it my duty to place