The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1877-09-18
VOL. g..
The Balletin,
SURRENDER.
shameful collapse of iae CisH Ser.
wee Experiment.

. lt'fh W. il'lNlNsl
The decision reache by the president in
relation to the case Of Naval Officer Cor
OF naturally ELECTS great deal Of com.
ment, but no part OF II can be regarded a,
complimentary to Mr.. Hayes. Like every
man in power he has his sycophants, but
even the circumyening astutsncss which
sycophants think they discover in his action
In this case u Lotaqualuy which the Amer.
lean people desircin their chief magistrate
The people appreciate steady strlightfor.
ward, resolutc adherence 10 sense Of
duty; but maneuYGring and iinesSe in eXtri.
eating u president from embarra'sments
which his sagacty should have avoided
have no tendency 10 establish him IN the
confidence OF the country. iWhea TIE pres.
ident discovers that he has been imprudent
or has made "a mistake a frank and open
rectiilcation Of his error il more hoGorl' le
than the most adroit retreat under cover
Of artiul pretenses.
What is claimed for Alr. Hayes by bi,
fatteIers is that he h1, executed mastery
stroke OF strategy IN avoiding direct con.
llict with the cOntumaciOus Mr.. Cornell
and putting his threatened removal on Il
different ground from his open defiance OF
the civil service order. Ci,zgns who have
10 admiration for iines,c think the pre,i
dent should not have quaied and re,orted
t. sIbterfuge, in the issue forced upon him
by this defiant OIL GER. Had he promptly
suspended Mr. Cornell AID faced the con
sequences the country would have given
HIM credit for sincerity and political cOllr-
age, aud even the Republican opponents Of.
o. his civil service order WOul! have res. .
pected his decision VI character. But when
he -hirks the plain issue which confronted
him, p0- poDes action 70 more convenient
season and threatens to remove Mr.. Cor .
nell on other grounds than his defiant con.
tempt Of the civil service order, the people /
will be apt - regard It as confession by
Mr., lilye- that he "bas bitten Oh more than .
he can cLaw,' il We may employ this .
hOnely but forcihle phrase.
Does Mr.. Hayes mean to advertise to the |
country that If Mr.. Cornell we're compe.
tent officer he would ignore and condOue
hi, contempt Of the civil service ORDER
Does he intend TO have it understood that
he will not suspend officers for mere DISC
bedienCe OF that Oidcr unless he can also
accuse them Of incapacity or ineGicieLcy in
discharglng the duties prescribed to them
by law: If he has retrcated 10 this posi-.
ton What respect VIII hereafter be paid 10
the civil service order; If open and defiant
contempt OF it, such as Ia. been exhibited |
by Mr.. cornell, Is not to be regarded as Of |
Itself ground for removal, then the civil |
service order Is stamped by the president
himself mere buncombe manifesto that
may he safely deiied by any other officer |
against whom it is not possible 10 rake up
other charges. This il what he virtually de- |
clares by hi singular action in the ease Of
Mr.. Cornell, which Is an indirect revOcl- /
ton OF the order, if this case is TO be re.
garded n a precedent. DisObedlenc5 Of
the order j. either q cause OF removal or it /
isnot, ltitis, no case 20 ilagrant as that Of
Mr.. Cornellis likely to occur, ami he should
have been made an example for warning /
and lettering others and for dilusins !
among politicians conviction that the |
president Is too deeply in earnest to trifed
with on this subject. But when, instead Of
promptly and boldly ,uspendirg Mr.. Cor
nell for public and contemptuous defiance |
of the. order, he he.tates and recoil' and
makes up his mind 20 suspend him for an.
other and entirely different cause he has no
reason 10 complain if the public draws the |
inference that he dares not make fight on
the issue so distinctly rendered. The post |.
ponemCnt lone is asymptom OF yacillati0n;
but the threat of removing Cornell at a fu.
ture day for an entirely different cause is |
equivalent to saying that any officer who
deiits the order, but is corr ect in other
respects, may defy it with impunity.