The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-01-07
Grants Nomination OF Wiliiams-Whae
Will He DO with Its

Grants Nomination OF wniiams-What
Will He DO with Its !
The Bar Association met last evening" and,
although the rumor of the withdrawal OF
Attorney General Williams narne was cir
culated tn the meeting, it was thought neces-
sary, in the absence of oAicial information, to
pass series Of resolutions condemnatory Of
his nomination for Chief Justice. They are
ore very severe and pointed, and will be found
elsewhere Many evcellent reasons for the
withdrawal of Mr.. Williams name have been
given. but still it may not have been withdrawn;
and in the cloud of contradictory statements
from Washington on this point the weight of
probability is with the assertion that the
nomination will be left in the hands of
the Senate. for the President is unlikely to
relinquish deliberately formed purpose. We
have some dim remembrance of an observa-
ton on his part that he could have no policy
to be maintained in opposition to an intelli-
gent general view of the public interest but
on that point he may have changed his mind.
It is scarcely credible that the President should
not by this time understand that the nomina-
ton of Mr.. Williams is thoroughly and ire
trievably bad one No doubt bad nomina-
ton might be made by any man in the Presi-
dents position-more especially for an Office
like that Of Chief Justice. With somewhat
easy ideas Of official obligation the President
seems to fancy that one man is as good as
another for almost any place, and his
preferences and designations are cor
tainly without relation to special
qualities in his candidates he, therefore, may
not have considered very deeply the qualifca-
hons proper for the Chief Justiceship, and
have thought he was choosing wonderfully
well in naming Mr. Williams. But he can
scarcely suppose the reasons made public
against the confirmation TO be fictitious, and
they are such as should have induced him to
reconsider his nomination and the fact that
he has not reconsidered it is discreditable, for
his adherence to his friends" in this case is
simply an obstinate defiance to. evidence
against them. ar avam o.
Every one will regret to see proposition
made in connection with the probable rejec-
ton of MIR. Williams by the Senate for legisla-
ton against the Office of Chief Justice, in
which Senator Conkling comes forward as the
henchman Of General Grants unworthy pur-
pose. 1t is not the first time we have heard
the proposition to change some law under
which General Grants nominations had been
found unsatisfactory /; and such propositions
are not pleasant for the people to contemplate,
as they imply the notion that the Presidents
will is of more consequence than the law-and
that where the two are in actual or moral con-
Aict it is the law that is probably unjust or
improper, and ought to give way. Aside from
this, the notion that the Chief Justceship
should be abolished forthwith because the
Senate will not let the President fill it as he
may choose has an air of childish peevish-
ness that is amusingly little That child
should storm out in its small way and ami
hilate some toy in regard to which it had been
thwarted and crossed is NATURAL but that
the President should initiate such childish
conduct in grave political emergencies was
hardly to be looked for. Shall we apply
similar reasoning through our political sys-
temp Shall we abolish every high place,
because the appointing power has not in the
list of its favored ones q man that fills the
conditions Of the Officer Shall we level
down our whole administrative system to ''the
meanest capacity" We believe that Con-
gress will fttingly rebuke this proposition if
it comes before it. tn
Mr.. Williams opinion on the Virginius is,
of course, the one immediate fact that has
made his confirmation impossible, because its
bad law affords the Senate sure and good
ground for refusing to appoint him to the
head place in our judicial organization. Other
them may be substantial and convincing ones
to many minds but the Virginius opinion
has come to relieve Senators Of the necessity
of touching those reasons that are less proper
to be brought forward in such connection,
however convincing they may in reality have
been. Few limitations, and those unlikely,
are given as to what the President will do
next in regard to this appointments; but it is
likely the course events have taken will insure
US against bad or unworthy Chief Justice,
while they may give US one Of the several
gentlemen who are eminently fit for the place.
We have seen the accomplishment in great
degree, of the object with which we first began,
some months ago, to discuss the appointment
of Mr.. Chase's successor. Our apprehen-
sion that the Office would be filled on the
personal favorite" principle was not ILL
founded, but the success with which we at
tracted public attention to the subject has de-
feated that plan; and public attention, thus
once fixed on point Of this nature, will not
give way, and will exact the rejection by the
Senate of every name but one in all ways
proper. "a
The Cuban Observation-Disclosures
Victory Over the spanisrds.
One Of the most important battles which
has taken place in Cuba since the outbreak of