Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1876-06-14
The One Term Rule.

has been generally adopted as TO Governor
Northumberland, Senators, Representa-
tives and county officers. II one searches for
the reason, he will find il solely in the fact
that the chances Of election 10 persons ambi-
tious for public Offices were reduced one
half by that amendment and So. 10 restore
the chances as they formerly were, the old
and general rule of two terms was reduced
TO one. On what principle is this rule based
Manifestly it is, that the Offices are designed
for the satisfaction Of the olIice-seekers.
These are many and their chances few the
chances must be doubledto crafty thegreatcr
number; aud that cannot be- done without
ruling out everybody who has once been sue
cessfnl. On the same principle also, all the
subordinate Offices which come within the
control Of executive officers, Legislators, con
gressmen and Presidents, are but so many
baubes to be distributed to the clamorons
beggars, or personal friends, or to discharge
political debts, or purchase new support
and hence comes patronage which is the
bane of every government, debauching alike
the dispensers and the recipients of it, For
tunately, Vermont has had little of it but
it has more now than it ever had before and
so long as the people of the state counte-
nance the fundamental error of giving offices
10 those who seek them, rather than to the
men who are best fHed really for them by SUI
perior integrity and capacity and are both
too Independent and too modest to beg-pat-
rouage will grow the beggars will become
our kings aud like George the third, they
will erect " a multitude Of new Offices, and
give us "swarms of officers to harass our
people, and eat ont their substance"
So great is the patronage Of our national
government, and so gross the abuses and
corruption attending it, even in spite, often,
Of the best intentions in the appointing
power, that good men Of all parties have be-
come alarmed, and have labored patiently
and earnestly TO devise remedy. They
have studied the experience Of this and
other countries ON this subject; they have
searched for the root of the evil, and having
found it, they have struck at the root. 1t is
the very root from which came the one term
rule in Nermont-the old two term rule
also-and their remedy was to change the
principle. The civil service reform" pro.
poses the employment of honest, competent,
and industrious men for the bureaus at
Washington, and assurance of employment
and promotion strictly according to THEN
merit as public officers. They are to be the
servants Of The public, and not merely of a
party, or of the man who commissions them
The principle then is that the offices belong
TO the public, to be executed for the public
benefit; and not TO those who seek them for
personal advantage, and pervert them to the
public injury
This brings us directly back to the prin-
siple which is obligatory upon the freemen
of Vermont by virtue of the constitution.
The bill of rights declares that government
(Which includes all offices under it) is " for
the common benefit, protection and security
of the people," and "not for the particular
emolument or advantage of any single man.
family, or set of men " or, let us say set OF
oihce-seekers, or rings for the control of
elections, patronage and legislation. The
eighth section of part two of the constitution
fixes an absolute rule for representatives
which excludes all other rules, one term OF
two "the House of Representatives of the
freemon of this state shall consist of persons
most noted for wisdom and virtue" And
then the freemans oath binds every voter to
conform TO these principles of the consttu-
| tion--thus
" You solemnly swear that whenever you give
your vote orsuifrage touching any matter that con
Germs the state OF Vermont you will do it so as in
your conscience you shall judge ,cW most couduce
10 ne best good Of he same. as established by the
constitution rdhod fear or Jaror.of dHy mal."
Thus the constitutional rule enforced by
an oath which cannot be Intentionally yio-
lated without mourning the guilt of perjury
ignores all the rules, be it one term, two
terms, or anything else than the election of
the men best fitted to serve the people
Now We propose to apply this consttu-
tional principle to the present question of
Governor. Happy as we would be to indulge
in the belief that the people will come back to
the rule Of the constitution, and in the selec-
ton of candidates within the respective
parties, seek for the very best men, we have
no hope that the one term rule can be
speedily broken up in all the towns. As
we have had, so we shall have, legislature
consisting very largely in both branches of
new members-of men who have had abso.
lutely no Legislative experience little knowl
edge of the statutes which they will be re-
quired to alter and repeal, and little knowl.
edge of any of the questions on which they
will be called 10 act We shall expect that
this year--as for several past sessions
eral weeks will be spent in initiating the
neophy ties into the mysteries Of legislation,
and that then, in about fortnight's time,
the Governors table will be buried with
some hundreds of bills for examination, aud
his approval or dissent-nearly all Of them
passed hastily, many of them crude or erro-
neous, and some of them mischieyous. Pray
consider this question-what sort Of Gov
ernor shall we absolutely need in such
case We think not a man who is as inex-
perienced as the Legislators he will be com
PEELED to criticise not a man who is neces-
sarily to be dependent upon the aid aud ad-
vice OF Others, who are not responsible TO the
people as he is, under the penalty of im-
parchment; and not man who is unac-
quainted with the laws of this and of the
United States, and with the practical work
ing of the different departments, at least of
the state government. Looking at the la.
bors to be expected, we are confident that no
man in the state is so well qualified as is
Governor Peck. lie has had years expe-
rience, in which 10 learn what Governor
has to expect from hasty legislation he is
more profound in the common law than any
other lawyer in Vermont and he is quite as
familiar as any other with the statutes and
the rulings Of the courts. But he has had
one termi SO much the better. lie had
much wisdom aud virtue before his election,
but he has got more now. But he lives on
the west side Of the mountain that is not
an important objection, unless somebody