Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1872-01-10
THE CONSISTENCY OF THE PRESIDENTS
OPPONENTS.


When the New York Times, some
months ago, called Oakley Hall, Boss
Tweed and other leaders of Tammany
Hall thieves" instead of disproving the
charge, they met it 10y impugning the mo-
tives of the publishers. The public there
fore adjudged them guilty When the OPP
ponents of the President charge him with
corruption, they are answered by facts
When they accuse him of bad taste in
appointing his relatives to office, the of
fence alleged is one against propriety and
not against law This being the case it is
fair enough to judge the accused 10y the
standard of his accusers.
The leading opponents of the Presi-
dent in the Republican party are Senators
Trumbull and Schurz. They are Jealous
for reforms in the civil service. Is this
newborn zeal cunningly espoused to raj
" the opposition against the President, or
has it been a principle long controlling
their public acts? Let us sec. how the facts
are.
At the first meeting of President Grants
Cabinet, after his Inauguration, he an
nounced to the heads of the depart
ments his purpose to retain in Office
such of Johnson's appointecs as
were friendly TO the Government du-
ring the war; whose records as public OIL
GERS showed them to be competent and
honest. One of the first instances in which
the President was importuned to depart
from this first effort towards reforming the
civil service was in the case of the pension
agency at Springfield, Illinois. The in
cumbent, at the time referred to, was an
ex-soldier and competent officer. But
Senator Trumbull had q brother-in-law, q
civilian, with no earthly claims to the
place, whom he desired should have the
office. Governor Cox, then Secretary of
the Interior refused to make the change,
upon the request of Senator Yates, the col
league of Senator Trumbull. The entire
Illinois delegation then joined in request
ing a removal, General Logan, now OPP
posed to the President, among the number.
Secretary Cox still refused, when the Pres
ident was appealed to. Now, unfortunate
ly for the friends of civil service reform,
the President and his Cabinet are not en-
tirely free to act as they choose in such
cases as the one referred to-. They are
compelled, under the distribution of pow
ers made by the Constitution, to go to
Congress frequently for legislation to facil-
| itate their Executive duties, and for appro-
| priations to carry on .sIhey
are not Independent of Congress any more
than Congress is Independent of other CO.
Johnson tried to be the Government and
failed, as we all know. So in the case of
the pension agent at Springfield, the
President, in obedience to the importuni-
ties of the Senators and Representatives
from Illinois, and from natural desire to
maintain friendly relations with the con-
gressional delegation from his own State,
was persuaded to yield, and Senator Trum-
| bulls brother-in-law was appointed
| This case was one of the very first of the
| kind upon which the Preside was called
to act. Senator Trumbulps success en-
couraged others to try and the pressure for
| changes grew so great that many more
were made than was ever contemplated.
| Senator TIumbull having led in this wal
on the Presidents earliest efforts to re-
| form the civil service, the question natu-
| rally suggests itself: ought he now &c
lead in an opposition that assumes eXtrG
| zeal for this very reform as its chief claim
to popular favor? Having importun
ed the President TO suspend these eff
forts at reform in order to secure al
office for his own brother-in-law, we are
constrained TO ask, ought he be fOremos
and super-Zealous in opposing the Prcsi
dent because of his alleged nepotism?
We gave a few days ago statement o
the somewhat similar circumstances un
der which Senator SchurZ secured the ap
pointment of Mr.. Jussen, his brother-in
]
within the gift of the revenue bureau
collector at Chicago. With what con
sistency does this stckler for propriety il
official conduct, accuse the President of nc
potism? Having secured from MI
Lincoln an important foreign ap
pointment upon the ground tina
he "cOntrOUcd tlpO millions Of GeaDldi
UoterS" and having eXacted from the Re
publican National Committee some tw
hundred dollars for every speech delivere
during the campaign of 1SG0-contrary t
, the original agreement-both demand
, based upon the most degrading ideas {
claims to public service-with what pre-
priety does this champion for civil servic
reform question the Presidents sincerit
or motives in his real effort to give tn
people honesty and capacity in public pc
sition?
: We have heretofore frequently based til
; Presidents claims to public confidenC
upon the fidelity and ability with whic
. he has discharged his responsible dutie
{ We have now examined the alleged acts
1 improperly and judged these acts by til
standard of the accusers, and we insist thu
they afford no reason to change the Verde
based upon the claims first presented.
The recall of the Spanish Minister, S
nor Roberts, together with the presence