The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-02-18


Grant and williams.
| Among the many remarkable features
| of Presidents Grants most remark able
administration is the small intellectual
caliber of the men he has called about
him as constitutional advisers Previous
to the installation of the present Execu-
tive it has seemed to be the special
pride of every President to select the
very best available brains in the domi-
nant party for his Cabinet. In order to
do this old jealousies and old rivalries
have frequently been laid aside, personal
preferences and private feelings ignored,
and all other considerations subordinated
to single one-the public good. This
custom was SO universally recognized
and followed that it finally became a sort
of unwritten law, which no Chief Magis-
trate ventured to deliberately disobey.
The advantages which the country de-
rived from it are too numerous and too
| evident to require even passing notice.
But the accession of Grant opened a
| new era in Cabinet construction as in
almost everything else. Instead of util-
izing the talent and experience in politi-
cal affairs which were not difficult to find
among the leaders OF the party to which
| he owed his election, it has apparently
been his desire to dig up as many speci-
mems of chronic mediocrity as he could
no matter how far down he had to go
for them. With only one or two ex-
ceptions the gentlemen summoned to
share in Presidential councils have
been, to all intents and purposes,
the merest nobodies. Many of
them, previous to appointment, had hard
lxyh hno or1 of ,fp;I - l.
date neighborhoods, and of those who
were more widely known not much could
be said in their praise. In short, the
Cabinets of the last six years have been
built of the clumsiest material possible,
and consequently have never been able
to achieve an atom of genuine respect at
home or abroad. Their comparative
pes has a Ia RsaEhiaRs ssEyea
nothing, or worse than nothing.
Where all are more OF less incapable
it is difficult to fairly assign to any one
| individual a pre-eminence in incapaclty;
vet we are inclined to think that this dis
agreeable distinction belongs by right to
Atty. Gen. Williams. The shrewdest in
| vestigation has thus far failed to unearth
the causes of his sudden elevation from
obscurity to notoriety, but he has managed
to acquire srch liberal share OF the lat
ter article during his term of office that
no combination of circumstances can
hereafter deprive him of it. Passing
over the various financial and diplomatic
performances of the Attorney General
any and all of which might be made the
theme of refreshing comment-we de-
sire to dwell very briefly upon the fol
lowing characteristic action, set forth IN
Yesterdays Washington kilograms:
Atty.-Gen. Williams appeared before the Select
Committee on Alabama affairs yesterday, ana was
| interrocated as to his sending troops into Ala
bama last fall. 1t appeared that he had no CORE
| spondence with the Governor of the State on me
subject, but acted on Information from o'he'
sources.
; Here we have two rather important
= acknowledgements first, that the Attor
ney.General and not the President tool
the responsibility of ordering troops
into Alabama last autumn; and, second
f that he based this order not upon th'
demand of the Governor of the State TO
assistance, but "on information iron
l. other sources" Now if there is an.
4 law, or any rule or regulation, which JUS
|. titles the Chief Magistrate in assignin
e the most important portion of his pre-
y, rogative toa subordinate, we should hk
d to have it plainly stated for present in
a. struction and future reference. In
:, greatest and gravest power which tn
~ Constitution confers upon the PresideI
OF is undoubtedly the use of the militar
and naval forces of the Government
certain critical emergencies. Such powe
is, from its very nature, dangerous, an
should be exercised with the utmost ca
ton and wisdom. To hand it over to a.
other is not only palpable violation (
the peoples trust, but prepares the wa
g for those abuses and usurpations whlt
>" eventually destroy the last vestige
popular liberty The President has l
~ more right to put the army of the Unite
y, States under the direction of the Alto
" ney General than he has to give him t
- keys of the Treasury. 1t is flagra
,c breach of confidence and of law, wit
out precedent and without excuse. b
., this is not ALL The Attorney-Geners
IN by his own confession, has employ
Federal troops under circumstanc
which the President himself could n
plead in justification. He did not W;
90; for official notification from the Cover
CHI or of Alabama that the peace of t
10. State was in jeopardy, but acted
ed, information from other sources" a
-s5. without consulting the Governor in a
cgs way. To call such conduct as thi.
SO blunder is simply ridiculous. 1t is
ork impudent outrage which ought to bri
l7c' down upon the head of its author
'ia' sharpest punishment. If the Ia
at II;ab Ch.ncoIIor of Encland had da,
ssh isn ,i,o. - ;ns;an;t;oant A.,
ney- General has done, he would be
,.d peached and imprisoned before TWEEN
' four hours elapsed. Williams will
op5 receive even a rebuke from the reI
ma sentatives of free people in Congr
lies, assembled. And yet We claim to b
great and glorious Republic!
Outrages of this kind do not stop VI
at once permitted to pass unchecked
os0 unpunished If any understrapper of
Administration has the right TO send
40 diers into Alabama, he has the same RI
to send them into Missouri or Massae
y s setts-nor will he hesitate to do so wi
ever he thinks the interests of his ma
y 70 or his party may be facilitated Their
,rn- We are, it seems, completely at
I've mercy of that marvellous political
,1 "a. doing business under the name OF Gl
Lard & NllilamS--St. L0uts Repu0ttcdn.
"A Vermont schoolmaster says
so'o,. never felt unequal to any demand in
:; 80 % line of his profession, excepting on
: os occasion, when a farmer brought
o. bouncing, ffteen-year-old daughter
the school, and, walking up to the
igan, ter's desk, said: That's my youn
orn- gal. and if you ever catch her 81
&c. down hill with the boys, i just want
1910 -
anc. The Government pays twenty
cents apiece on the guns it makes a
Springfield (Mass.) armory, as TO
i.is1' for sorne of the patents embraced