The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1871-09-23

Government MtDcniOrnliZutiO.1- Grants
Reelection I3 bc Secured at AL
COS,s-Ali Work ut the Departments .
Neglected 10 Accomplish tlats nud-
Dissipation of the Giesks-A str:a-
ing Lesson.
WAsuiSGroN, Sept. 10. Commit the
party every where for Grant, and have the
! DELEGATIONS fixed early for the nominating
| convention J"
This is what the United States Govern
mcnt j. now being used for--arlny, navy,
and civil service. This dictum goes forth
on every possible occasion, and is virtually
a part of the instructions of every Federal
officer throughout the country. The Cabi-
net officers are, most Of them, all the time
away from their proper posts, making
stump speeches, attending conventions,
laving wires, log.rolling, and Tcsorting to
ali sorts of low tricks and articles, tG secure
the denomination Of their master, and,
as they suppose, duplication OF their
own terms OF Office. You have IN idea,
even 80 fur away as New York, how the
public business is neglected here and what
4 state of anarchy il is in. All the subor.
dinate officers and clerks in the Depart
mcnts plainly sec that the " denomination"
isshc cny;ossing and all.absorbin@ care of
the Administration, and the consequence
is utter demOral!ZatiCn. II could not be
worse on tie eve of an election, or just after
an election. Claim agents and Department.
attorneys complain that they cannot get
ANYTHING done. Parties that come here III
person from distance at a heavy expense
TO transact business in the public offices
have to 90 back disappointed because the
&ecretaries, to whom their cases must be
referred, are away log-rolling. Even Invalid
soldiers, and the widows and orphans OF
those who have laid down their lives for
their country, have repeatedly, during
this month, come within this category. a
Western member of Congress on his way
home from one OF the Atlantic Watering
places, stopped here the other day to trans
act some business in the departments tor
some of his constituents, but could not 40 il
thing on account Of the absence OF the sec
retares. lie said that during an experience
of twelve years here in one capacity or
another, he had never seen such neglect OF
business in the public offices. ! do not be-
lieve much in the alleged virtue of {. fees"
in The departments; still msny OF the de-
partment attorneys insist that in some OF
the offices they cannot do any business
without them, and that now they are more
imperative and eXorbitant than ever before,
on account of the laXity and bad examples
of the Administration, the subordinates
seeming to think that II their superior
officers, up to the very highest, can take
presents for office services, they are
free to do the same. One of the
most noticeable features of the pre-
sent decentralization he-c is the dlSsl-
nation of some Of the fast, snecure clerks,
which one or two of the Secretaries keep
here at the Government expense, solely on
account of influential relations at home. Ii
is no uncommon thing to see half dozen
or SO OF these WORTHLESS, imagining them
selves the chief nobility of the land, drink
ing and carousing during office hours Ill
saloons in the vicinity Of the Departments,
and as they walk the streets insult their
bettcrs of the laboriug class. For such an
net one of them was knocked into the gut
ter the other day by young mechanic on
7fh street, near The Post office Depart
ment. Verdict OF the bystanders: "serveo
him right" ,
The policy Of the anti-Grant Republicans
here, as well as in other parts of the coun-
try, seems to be to let the Administrator
xiii itself by its selfShness and stupidity.
They say here that there is plenty OF time
before the nominating convention for such
a result, and that is sure to come WITHOUT
much effort on their part. They are cer-
tainly not far from right, If the same de-
moraliZation exists throughout the coun-
try that exists here.