New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-04-06

WHAT rs THE USE or 4 SECRETARYi
Let us be just to Mr.. Richardson. 1t is of
course impossible for him to read every paper
to which he signs his name In great public
office most of the business must be done by
subordinatcs. Letters must be written, docu-
ments referred, orders given-all under the
name Of the chief Of the department, but
practically without bis knowledge. He Is
technically responsible for his clerks and other
assistants; but it is physically impossible for
him to be certain that they always perform
their duty. We can only insist that he shall
exercise such general supervision over his
Office as TO keep the machinery OF business IN
working order, prevent any gross abuses, ana
watch that no matters of great Importance
escape his personal care.
| Has Mr.. Richardson done thisY lie tells us
that he knew nothing about the operation OF
the Sanborn contracts; that the first OF them
was made before he came into Office; that the
Others were copied from it and ran right along
IN sort of rut that he never looked into
them, never read them, never knew how much
| Sanborn was making out OF them, until the
| pending investigation aroused his attention.
| He signed papers, issued instructions to col
lectors, transferred large sums OF money to
Sanborn's credit, placed the regular officers OF
| the Government at the beck and call OF TINS
private individual, and turned the Internal
| Revenue service upside down, merely in the
course of official routine, and without under
standing what he was about. Ihis Is
not at all incredible the only question
| is whether Mr.. Richardson's ignorance shows
a lack of ordinary diligence and care
in the supervision of his department.
His own testimony furnishes an easy
answer to the inquiry. For he tells us
that his attention had been particularly drawn
to the subject of these or similar contracts
while he was Assistant Secretary. He had
talked about them with Mr.. Boutwell,. He
had discussed this very law with Judge Pen
derry. And he had come to the conclusion
that the system was utterly indefensible and
demoralizing. He did not believe that such
contracts ought to be granted lie was salts
fed that gross abuses were inseparable from
Them. He knew also that the making of con-
tracts was discretionary with the Secretary of
the Treasury, and that he could break up
the system whenever he chose. And yet he
allowed the contracts TO run on, and to be cx-
tended, and to take in matters never contem-
plated by the law, and to build up abuses
1 even worse than he had originally anticipated.
He made no inquires he exercised not even
ordinary care; he merely went on signing his
name, with the regularity of machine.
Now we have only TO say that the Secretary
of the Treasury, if he does not exert some
sort of supervision over business in his de-
partment which he knows to be dangerous, Is
a perfectly useless officer. 1t argues either
corruption or astonishing incapacity in the
head of the financial branch of the Govern
ment when a private person is allowed to go
OH for year or so, taking so per cent OF the
taxes which might have been collected by the
| ordinary agencies of the Administration; but
when we fad the Secretary allowing-nay en-
couraging-this abuse to continue and increase,
after he has discovered that it is an abuse
and that he has power to stop it by single
word, we are utterly at a loss to suggest any
excuse for him.