, 1874-01-08


ton dispatch of the oath nit. says: ''The
President announces the policy of max
ing future Territorial appointments out
side of said Territories, because of the
party factions therein which are kept
alive and emEittered by selections from
either
This is the carpet-bag" policy pure
md simple, and though it has been |
pracficed towards the Territories by ev-
cry Administration for the last twenty
years, no President has ever before vol
unteered a reason for it, and the excuse
offered by President Grant fer treating
the citizens of Territories like subjects
of penal colonies, only adds insult to
injury; it is treating them like wards
and dependents, threatened with pun
ishment for indulging themselves in the
expression of political differences which
generate party faction. 1t is assumed
that where party factions exist the peo-
pie forfeit their right to self-government
and strangers must be sent to rule over
them, to act as their guardians and re-
strain them in the exercise Of their rights
as citizens of free country under
popular form of government. The doc
trine is imperialism undiluted, centrall,
zation without ehock or limit, absolute
ism Unauthorized by the letter and hos
tile to the spirit of our free institutions,
to assent to which would be treason to
human rights. The right Of self gov
eminent is inherent and inalienable;
there is no lawful authority to deprive
any recognized citizen of the Republic
Of that right. The right of the citizens
of any organized Territory to regulate
| their own domestic institutions in their
own way is as clearly defined by funda-
mental law AS the same right to citizens
of the several States, and quite as neces-
sary to the enjoyment Of the freedom
guaranteed to all. Tho right of the
General Government to prescribe do
nestle government to the citizens of
4 Territories, is assumed without warrant
of the Constitution, and like all assum-
ed authority is subject to the grossest
abuses because it has 10 defined limits.
4 The citizens of the States uniformly
protect themselves against colonization
of voters and Office seekers by prescrib
! ing term of residence to both. The
President, in the exercise Of arbitrary
and unauthorized authority, declares
| that no resident citizen of a Territory
shall hold an Office in the same, because
he desires to restrain the citizens who
have no vote for President from med
ding with party politics.
Admitting the right of this thing, ex-
perience has proved that the policy is
bad towards the public service. In
almost every case of official malfeasance
by Federal officials in Territories, the
uftS DtSu "a S.ii pOS pe'00SiB
and MOI citizen of the Territory at the
time of his appointment; and on the
other hand, the best and most faithful
officials have been among the occasional
appointments of resident citizens. The
temporary appointment of Marshall
Blirn, an old resident, to the position
of Superintendent of Indian Affairs, at
the instance of Col. Kimball, is conceded
by all but few interested partisans, to
be the most creditable appointment ever
made to any Office in this Territory,
and no man in the Territory doubts that
the affairs of the Office will be honestly
and iudiciously conducted while he re-
mains in charge while nnder the con-
troll of "carpet baggers' it has been
an object of public scandal for years
past: yet this is one of the appointments
which the President proscribes as caleu-
lated to give offence to local politicians
who may deem all appointments in
proper which are not made as rewards
for party services We protest against
the doctrine in toto on all accounts.