The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1873-04-10
THE PRESIDENT fANo THE SALARY
ACT,

Among the resolutions adopted by
the Springfield Farmers Cow ention
on Wednesday, was one censurinp
the President for not vetoing thebiiI
containing the provision for the in
crease of salaries. As much has
been said about this, it may be well
to examine the matter little. The
salary clause could not be consider
ed separately by the President andiif
he declined to give it his sanction,
the whole Legislative Appropriation
Bill would have failed. This bill
provides the pay for all the officers
of the Government and the contin.
gent expenses of all the officers. The
legislative, judicial and executive
branches, with all their thousand at.
taches, great and small, are Deepen
dent on this bill for their pay. But,
besides these, there were incorpora-
ted in the bill three other important
provisions, all of which would like
wise have failed had the President
vetoed the measure. One was q pro-
vision relating to the disposition of
captured and abandoned property, a
long. considered and vexed question
that was finally disposed of by the
bill. Another was the clause, pre-.
sented and advocated by the Will
son Credit Mobilier Committee, pro.
viding that suits shall be brought to
recover all moneys of which the Pa
cifie Railway has been defrauded by
the Credit Mobilier. A third was
the Senate amendment instructing
the Secretary of the Treasury to
withhold all payments to the Pacif-
ic Railway, on account of transpor
tation OF mails and supplies, until the
Government be reimbursed for the
interest it has paid out on the bonds
of the road.
If the President had vetoed the;bill
not only would the appropriations
for carrying on the Government have
failed, but these important measures
also. An extra session of Congress
would have been Inevitable, iDvolv-
ing an expense amounting to more
than the salary increase, and with
the ultimate result, probably, of the
re passage of the bill. These con
siderations, were in themselves suffi
cient to cause the President to hes
itate. But there was another of even
more weight. The Congress is com
posed of the Immediate representa-
tives Of the people. For the Presi
dent to assume that they were pla-
cling false value upon their servi.
ces, and inform them that he would
regulate their pay according to his
own ideas of fitness, would have
been an act for which he would
have been roundly denounced and
though this interference was richly
deserved in this case, the question OF
its plopriety Is a very serious one.
The President is not elected to guard
the people against their own repre-
sentatives, but he is to stake care
that the laws are faithfully execu-
ted" Although he is clothed with
extraordinary power which, upon
occasion, he can exercise, it may
well be doubted if it would be q
proper time to interpose his veto
where the subject of an act related
simplyto the pay of members of
Congress-, matter which is left by
the Constitution entirely under their
own control and subject TO their own
regulation.
So far as his own salary is concern.
ed it is fair to presume that, if $685.
900 was reasonable salary at the
foundation of the Government, $780,
600 Is not unreasonable now. The
salaries of other officers have been
doubled and trebled, while that of
the President has remained the same
1t is even now not half of what is
dra by high officers in Europe,
and a great country like this ought
not to be too niggardly with it's chief
executive. Besides, the Presidents
salary was not retroactive there
was no grab of back pay in his case,
the increase only applying to the
future.
In view of these facts, we do not
think the Presid ent's course calls for
censure or resolutions of condemna-
ton, no matter how much we may
wish that some power had int ven
ed to prevent 80 disgraceful a con-
summation as the passage of the ret
roactive salary clause Chicago In
ter Ocean.