Weekly Trinity journal., 1877-12-22
OPEN WARFARE.

ldeut Hayes OF Roosevelt and Prince, for
Collector and Naval Officer Of the port of
New York, by vote of 25 to 80. Many
Of the Democrats are included in the vote
in favor OF confirmation, while the Re-
publican Senators voted nearly solid
against. 1t would seem from this that
Hayes and Conkling have a! length
matched weapons and that the victory
thus far rests with the New York Sena-
tor, What vii follow next can only be
coniectured, but if the Senate stands firm
to the position it has taken Mr.. Hayes
will be compelled to recede. To a certain
extent the sympathies Of the people will
lead them to side with the President, on
other grounds they will uphold the action
Of the Senate. Like the majority ofques-
tions of national interest it mas two sides.
Primarily the Administration is held
responsible for the acts of its appointees,
OF every grade. This may not always be
just, but the responsibility for wrong, il
wrong be done, must be fastened some.
whore. Yet the President had not ought
TO be supposed to know personally the
qualifications and character of every one
OF the great army Of officials necessary to
conduct the affairs Of this govornment.-
This Information be must obtain from
those whose local residence qualities them
to give it, We know that in the nature
t.f, l.. ]
apply for this Information will naturally
speak a good word for their personal and
political friends. These friends are rec
ommended too often for the political SER
vices they have rendered rather than any
especial fitness for the desired position.
Ii they prove to be failures, if they turn
out dishonest or incompetent, the admin
istratioa which appoints them is held re-
sponsible, the friends upon whose recon-
mendation they were given places for
which they proved unfit, escape censure
except it be their due share Of the odum
which attaches itself to the party. 1t
would then seem, that if the Executive is
to be held responsible for the misdceds Of
all his appontees, he ought 10 have the
sole voice in saying who these appointees
are to be. 1t is wrong to ccnsure the
President for an appointment made upon
the recommendation Of one presumed to
be fully qualified to judge, yet the Presi-
dent is, ms the appointing power the re-
spon.ible party.
This apparent irreconcieabfity has
somewhat puzzled the heads of those who
have made the science Of government
something Of n study, but it presented
no easy or apt solution. Finally, the
theory Of Civil Service Reform was
broached and it@nt once found advocates.
Many Of these advocates knew nothing
about what they were talking, but that
made them none the less strenuous. The
theory Of Civil Service Reform, as we
understand it, is to find good men and
keep them. No ono can object to that
unless it be some bigoted partisan who
cares nothing for the good Of the country
SO long as his party rcaps advantage |
But here, again, comes in the question Of
what constitutes good man. Men will
differ on that as on any other question:
And if good officer is removed without |
sufficient cause, IL Is equally Il violation Of
the principle Of Civil Service Reform as
would be The appointment Of one known
to be Giqua,iheI.
We believe there is no question raised
rs to The honesty or the competency of
the two officers whom Mr.. Hayes pro-
posed to di-pace to make room for Rooae-
welt and Prince. But they disobeyed the
order OF the President forbldding FEEDER
al officials to take Il prominent part in |
local politics. For the disobedierco Of
this order the President proposed to lop
oil their Official heads and the Senate re
fused to nd him. The Senators no doubt
thought that ii an officer did his duty to
the county it was no sign that his useful |
ness rs member Of the party should be |.
lost. In other words the President had |
no right TO attempt TO control the unof- |
hclaI acts OF those who, like himself are |
Federal servants That the order being
an improper one the officers had Il right |
to dI,obey it. The Senate on IL test vote
has refused to sustain the President when
he attempts TO enforce the order, and in
our opinion the people will sustain tho
Senate. The American Republic Is not
quite yet ready to say that the edict Of
Ple-ideut, ike that Of an Emperor must
gouuque toned.
1t may be said that the President should |
have the right to remove without cause. T.
To a certain extent this is true. But if /
tie rupture between the appointing and |
confirming power alises from the con
strucliun of V hat is termed Civil Service
Reform, the responsibility will be divided. .
Generally speaking the appointments of
Mr.. Hayes will be confirmed without
question. Where removals are made
from just reasons, the Senate will, we
prophecy, ever be found ready to act in
unison with the Executive. But where
the latter tries to substitute his idea off
rule of action for that Of fifty or hun
dred thousand others, we may expect that
he will not find unanimous approval.
Within certain limits the principle of
the Presidential order is correct. When
Federal Officers make use Of the prestige
of their positions to stock conventions or
manipulate primaries, it works Injurious
" to the party to which tho officer belongs.
The presence Of Senator Sargent and
Secretary Gorham in the Republican
state Convention two years ago caused
breach in the party which gave the State