Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1875-12-03

to the dignity of a politician of the modern
order, we have never been able to under
stand why public business, National, State
or Municipal, should be conducted on
different principles from those which or
dinarily guide private individuals in
their own enterprises. If man were en-
gagged In any occupation, which required
the services of book-keeper, he would
hardly employ person because he was
sklltul engineer or machinist nor would
the employer feel himself called upon to
pay for these services more than the usual
rate paid by others for similar service
least Of all, if he had in his employment
competent and faithful servant, would he
be discharged at stated periods, and new
and untried ones put into their place. No
man OF ordinary sense transacting any sort
OF business would do any of these things,
yet when it comes to the affairs of the
great public every single one of these rules
are openly and f1agrantly disregarded and
violated; and as matter of course ineffi-
cheney and corruption are often the result.
Thus, in the Tobacco Warehouses of this
State, men are appointed, not because of
their known or Supposed capacity to dis
charge their duties, but purely because of
political influences. Some of these ap-
pointees, in some instances-rare however
have turned out to be competent and
faithful, but they are exceptions; and the
whole system is wrong and fraud upon
tho public, whose interests are thus sacri-
feed or imperilled. Why should the
State employ six men to do the work of
two9 Why should it pay 81 300 to these
six. when So, 500 would be ample compen-
sation for the work. Why should the
State pay in these warehouses two and two
dollars and half for laborers, when every
body else pays only one dollar for them,
and tens of thousands are to be had at
that price, These are things, we say,
that our craftsmanship, if we may dignity
common sense by such name, is not
sufficiently educated in the school of poll
teal ethics to understand. We have the
consolation of knowing, that quite num-
Der of people like ourselves, falling to
understand these matters, are inquiring
" can such things be and overcome us like
a summer cloud"
The action of the Changers, looking to
the abolition of the present system of
State inspection, Of which we formerly
spoke, has lately been followed up by
several meetings of the merchants and
factors engaged in the tobacco trade in
Baltimore, all looking to the same end.
When the present system was first estab-
lished it doubtless was necessity, and
did much good SO long as it was efficient
ly conducted, and had for its purpose the
action and judgment of an impartial and
Indifferent State officer of capacity to stand
between the seller and the buyer, protect
ing alike the interest of both. But of late
years, under the immoral influences of
modern politics, the warehouses have been
run almost exclusively in the interest of
the dominant party. The Democratic
party being dominant in the State to-day,
its leaders unquestionably make use of the
patronage thus under control Of the Cover
nor for partisan purposes, caring perhaps
but little about the welfare of the tobacco
interests so that the party success is pro-
NOTED. Appointments to these places are
made as rewards for party services and
the appointee in turn is expected to show
his gratitude by an active partisanship.
For all this sort of thing the State is COM
PEELED to pay whilst the tobacco trade
suffers. The same thing would have hap
pened if that hypocritical ''reformer," Mr..
Morrison Harris, had succeeded in reach
ing the Executive chair. Therefore, we
say, that the present system. instead of
being of use, is positive injury in every
way to the people, the State and the to-
bacco sellers as well as buyers. Last week
we published several extracts from the
meeting of the merchants engaged in this
business showing the mischiefs of the sys-
tenn and the unenviable reputation which
Maryland inspected tobacco has acquir-
ed abroad. In this connection the Balti-
more Price Current, confirming these views,
remarks:
s'With reference to Maryland leaf, late
Bremen letter remarks that much of the re-
ceipts turn out badly, compared with Ameri-
can samples, and heavy reclamations are the
result. The American samples are not cor
rectly drawn, and it is time that the trade in
Baltimore insist upon holding and making in
spectors responsible for the samples they draw.
Otherwise the sale of American samples will
become impossible Complaints of this char
acter are frequently made by foreign correspon-
dents, and it is earnestly hoped that the next
Assembly of Maryland will take such action as
will restore the good name of our market a.
broad"
All this shows that it is time for those
interested in this large and valuable pro-
duct to be doing something to rid us of
this eftete system. Tobacco may be said
to be the only profitable crop which the
people of Charles are now able to raise,
and if the price of that is to be further de-
pressed by the bad reputation which our
inspection of it has stamped on it abroad,
it is high time the people were taking &C
tive steps to remedy the evil. Already
large quantities of Ohio tobacco pass thro'
Baltimore to New York, where, as in Ken
lucky, they have system of private in
spection. Our people should profit by
the lessons thus taught, and insist upon
the incoming Legislature abolishing the
whole system and adopting some other
better suited to the demands of the times.
Those who are not directly interested in
this trade-the large mass of taxpayers
should look at the useless expense entail