Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-04-13


11e central Government where the powers o
government are combined. If this system
OF encroachment is permitted to be, the day
Is not distant when our republican system
passed on the idea of division of powers
between the Federal government and the
Staets will be transformed into one Impe-
rial despotism with all power at the city OF
washington, and l care not whether that
power Is exercised by a single person
or monarch, or by five hundred
persons called a Congress, it is
equally a despotism. [Applause.l And
the doctrine is now boldly proclaimed by
men high in authority that the States Of
the Union have such powers only as are
conferred upon them by the constitution of
the United States, when directly the reverse
is true and the States have all power,
except such as the constitution of the
United States has conferred upon the
United States, or has withheld from the
States. The difference is this: The gov
ernment Of the United States is a govern
ment of deriYatiTe powers; but
in the States the Government is
inherent. They have all the powers not
denied them, while the Government Of the
United States has no power except such as
is given it. (Applause.) And such is the
Constitution of the United States In terms,
for 1t declares in one Of it's amendments ali
the power not conferred by this constitution
is reserved to the States respectively or to
the people of the State. But pass from
these encroachments of the Federal Gov
ernment to another matter, complained
Of, and justly, and perhaps
more loudly than any other
by the people. That is the abuses and cor
ruption Of the Government. This seems
to be an era Of corruption. Part of the Of
ficials here in the city of New York at first
disclosed robberies which were being prac-
ticed by those in authority and that
awakened public sentiment in the country
that caused the people over the land to look
to their officers and ascertain what
disposition they were making
of the money which was collected
from them. In the city of Chicago several
of the officials have been convicted of re-
ceiving bribes, and other ofienses, and are
now suffering the penalty of their crimes in
prison. Applause In the Government
of the United States, although we have not
been able to unearth and disclose all the
cOrruptions, in fact think we have only
just seen the surface of what exists be-
low, still enough has been seen to show
that abuses exist. l will illustrate by re-
ference to two other cases. One that has
occurred and been brought to
light is that one of the officers that has
charge of the National Banks of the coun-
try, without whose fiat a National
Bank cannot exist, whose duty it is to su-
peryise and watch them when organised, so
that there can be no fraud upon the law of |
upon the people. Within a few weeks it
has been discovered that that officer, when |
be was inquiring into the delinquency of /
one of these banks, received as a present |
from one Of its officers a carriage and a |
set of harness. In the city OF Washington t
be was observed walking down the avenue
N company with an officer who had been
there to give an ac-
count of = certain defalcations in
lis bank, and OF the misu Sc
If the money Of the people. Aferward he
walked out with the head of the bureau
md on the way passed a carriage shop,
walked in, bought fine carriage and har-
less. The clerk, it proved, also received
Monies. Well what happene |? Why the
ommittee that investigated this, com
nittee friendly to that officer and friendly
0 the Administration, reported that in
heir opinion the good manage
lent of the Currency Bureau re-
uired that there should be a change in
ficer at the head Of that department.
Laughter Thereupon that officer was
TO resign, and go out Of Office
onOrably on resignation. Why? Now,
lppose that officer had been delinquent
/ the discharge of some political
squirements. Suppose he had re-
Used to pay an assessment for party
urposes, that be refused to use bis
lfuence to pack a primary meeting or I
)ntrOl a convention in the interest Of some :
.vorite purpose of fsOme Congressman who !
0t him his place, do you think he would :
ave been permitted TO resign? !
he whole political guillo-
ne would have come down and off would
ave come his head, and his trunkless body
Ould have tumbled out OF. office as a
lOnument to all other officers of the fate /
those who betrayed them. TApplause.1 {
here is another officer who has been re- /
,ntly investigated, ly slightly so, |
1 think, one of the cabinet i
Ulcers, the Secretary of one of the /
apartments, and what has he been =
1ing? Why, simply this: A few years ago, t
lTing the war, Government entered into a 1
,ntact with certain persons to build some L
ar vessels. After the articles were made, '
e Government changed he plans some c
hat, and it is alleged that they a
slayed the contractors in the COM i
elton of th3 vessels by which L
ey suffered loss, in consequence of the :
Sc in the price of material and labor. In | 7
L year 1867, two years after the war was L
-eT, they complained that they had suf'- j
ed great losses by reason of this action of ?
e government and asked to be paid. |
0ngress passed a law authorizing the Sec II
tary Of the Navy TO convene a S
Imber of officers % examine Fl
to their complaint and see what, if any r
ing, was due them. That Board met and I
ported that there was due these contract s
S in consequence Of the action of the v
Overnment $115,500. Therefore the Gov Il
nment of the United States through its e
)ngress in 1868, passed a law directing "
1880 to be paid these contractors in full II
all claims grOwingO out of the construction Il
these vessels. That money was paid 0
d received. Don't you think that ought ii
have been an end of it? No, it was not. f,
ext, without any law, the Secretary or a
niZed another board, and told them 10 70
luire into this matter, and they examined. 3.
ley reported that the contractors Il
ght to have $4,000 more. Tlis a
Is board Ofhis own subordinates. There l
Is no law directing him to appoint this fC
ard, as there was in 1867 by another a
cretary; but he appointed it of his own u
litiOn, and then what does he do? Why is
pays them this $4,000. What do you "
ink of that? And he not only paws that W
)ney, but he pays it without any appropria- a.
n to pay it with. The officer might Just as W
Il have taken 500, 900 out of the Treasu- Vi
without any examination at all, Just as L
Il have taken any money as to have TAX 81
the particular money he did. Il
not Only violated the law by paw st
money on an account that had been ci
tied, but also by taking money that had rC
7er been appropriated for such a purpose. q
nat is the answer to that? We are 81
3wered that that was his construction of b.
law" [laughterl. VI
Mr.. Trumbull went on 10 say there e.
,uld be a reform in our revenue system eC
which taxation shall be reduced and so Of
anged as to bear equally as far as posi- 81
upon all branches of industry without W
reasing one branch for the benefit of ST
)ther. di
Liberal MichIganders. I'll