The Portland daily press., 1878-01-28
MONDAY MORNING, JAN. 2s.

grandson inherits the doubt whether the Ship
OF State may net labor in the trough of the sea
II there be not Cabot at the helm, is indicated
By his rejoicing little further on when Mr..
OaDot had declined to be Secretary OF the Navy
fortunately neither the Administration nor
the country a0dS embarrassed by his refusal, since
his successor, Mr.. Stoddert, proved himself in
every respect an able and efficient officer"
One of the most strenuous demands of Civil
Service reform is that the Office shall seek the
man and not the man the office A beautiful
illustration of the statement that our
Observation-Disclosures never did such things
Mr.. Lodge fails to remark in letter of
Mr.: Cabots TO Secretary Pickering, in
which he says: "1n late letter from Mr.. Gore,
he intlmates 10 me that if the Government
should ind 1t necessary to appoint Minister
fienlpotentlary for st. Petersburg or Constau-
tinople or any other foreign court, at the time
OF his present employment being ended, and he
should be thought suitable person to serve
the country 10 that character he would under
take it."
To Secretary of the Treasury Wolcott writes
Mr.. Cabot: II fulfill my own inclination as
well as promise in mentioning to you that Mr..
Gore, one of our commissioners in London, at
the expiration of his present service would
willingly go to Copstantinople or St. Peters,
burg or any other court as Minister Plenipoten-
tisry, if the Government should need person
for such an employment and should think him
capable of serving acceptably."
How would the cheek of reform be dyed with
Ter be caught making such overtures to Secre-
tary Evarts, even though he made them as GIN
gerly as Governor Gore! Our great-Grand-
fathers, good souls, stuck at nothing. They
waited neither for vacancy Hor a place to be-
vacated. The mice were SO fond of cheese, that
If the cheese were wanting they made no bones
OF suggesting that Government provide cheese
for them to burrow in! There is delightful
omnivorousness about this Commissioner Gore
of ours st. Petersburg, Constantinople or any
c07yrt-ha
ready TO go anywhere bnt home. Home, how
ever be had to go. President Adams would
none of him at Constantinople or st. Petersburg
Perhaps he wanted all the spare places for his
son John Quincy, whom he promoted in the
diplomatic service, or for his son-in law Smith,
who had married his only daughter. and who
did not, says history badly, "prove, in all re-
spects, such a son-in-lsw as he could have
wished" And then history rides rough-shod
over the Civil Service of our great-grandfathers
thus: 'His pecuniary affairs becoming embar-
rassed his fstber-n-law had provided for him
by several public appointments, the last of
which was that of Surveyor of the Port of New
York; Is it an Adams and sreat-grandfather
that we are reading of, feeding his family
failures at the public crib, or is it misprint
for Grant and the year of grace eighteen hun
bred and seventy six? Let us "draw out of that
crowd instantly.
A far more edifying illustration of Mr.. Ca
bots conception of the Civil Service may be
found his description of the person who should
bs called to the offic, for which he declared
himself not strong enough. SIT is undoubtedly
requisite that the officer at the head of the Ma
val Department should possess considerable
knowledge of maritime affairs; but this should
be elementary as well as practical, including
the PRINCIPLES of naval architecture and naval
tactics. He should also possess skill sufficient
to arrange Systematically the means of equip
pine, manning and conducting the naval force
with the greatest possible di spatch, and with
the least possible expense; and above all, he
shonli possess the inestimable secret of render
ing it invinclble by any force" 1t is matter
present Reform Administration has swung
back to the faith Of the great-grandfathers, as
is seen by the fidelity with which the present
head OF the Navy Department answers to Mr..
Cabots ideal portrait
For batch of illustrations of the pure con-
oeptions of the Civil Service entertained by our
fathers, l beg especially to call attention to a
letter of his greatgrandfather, which Mr..
Lodge passes by in silence. Mr. Cabot writes
to Secretary Wolcott:
81 think it probable that the Collector of
Marblehead (Mr. Gerry ESQ Congressman e.
bridge Gerry had got bis brother into nice
fat office by way of showing that Congressman
had nothing to do with appontments] has been
removed for keeping back the pubilc money
la defaulting forefatherl. He is said TO be
deficient four or five thousand dollars; and
am informed his brother Elbridge has written a
letter from Cambridge to the merchants in
vance by subscriptions sufficient sum to bal
ance his brothers account with the treasury
Imagine General Butler appointing his brother
Collector of the Port of Gloucester and then
inviting the merchants of Salem to make up
his defcit!], and intimating that, if this was
not done, he (Elbridge) could obtain for him q
new appointment. No appointment except
for fitness] 1t is worth remembering that Mr.
s. Il. Gerry was appointed by Washington, in
compliance with Democratic solicitation chiefly,
if not solely. 1 recoect well that the rival
candidate, Colonel Joshua Orme nephew by
marriage of Colonel Pickeringl was zeaoasly
supported and strongly recommended by the
Federalists. mo scrambllng for office in the
early days of the Nation.] Mr. Warren, who
Is appointed to the place of Gerry, is said to
decline; he thinks himself we'll entitled to
greater reward for his services and the claims
re re i m from both father and mother
tOnces awarded solely with regard to the pub
lie business and not as rewards for services
rendered. Mr.. Hitler Collector of Salem) has
always been esteemed good officer and an
honest man No removal except for cause]
in his character or conduct; but Lno appoint
ment except for fitnessl Colonel Lse wanted it
extremely, and divorce of patronage from
politicsJ the Government wanted Colonel Lees
support His property was exhausted and his
family very large [strong points of fitness
Mr.. Tying was unquestionably valuable acqui-
sition to the Government. He is without fault
as an officer, and in the highest estimation for
pODieys SoOu Scuet, duu uISulby. kis q mdb,
all parties at Newburyport lament bis re-
moval
A nice little bead to string upon this Civil
Service Rosary is the assertion that the candi-
date to succeed Consul Mayer was worthy
man, and very competent to the office; but,
unfortunately for him, among his recommends
tons was one from General Hamilton, which
was enough to defeat his wishes" So it seems
that Recommendations" played as important
part in appointments among the fathers as
amnDU the sona-huf hot
was carried to such length that recommenda
ton from the most distinguished member of
the Federal party was fatal under Federal
President, because of the envy and jealousy
whsch Mr.. Adams entertained of Hamilton's
greatness. Iodeed one of the strong charges
against President Adams was his expulsion of
able, upright, and faithful officers for mere
political purposes.
They did worse things than these. They not
only expelled good men, but they put in bad
ones-iDen known to be bad Says Mr.. Cabot:
"Onr newspaper account of the appointment of
Stephen Cross to the Collectorship was errone-
Gus. was shocked at reading that this man.
who was early displaced by Washington for
misconduct should be again placed 10 the same
office. But it turns out to be Ralph Gross
who is commissioued-a man much below
stephen In reputation: indeed, his nth or in
tegrity would be very little trusted in the part
OF the country where he lives He once held an
Office under Mr.. Collector Tying, but was dis
covered to conDive at smuggling or practicing
deceit in the weight or measure of duted goods;
and for this unfaithfulness 10 his office, was
displaced by Mr., Tying"
1t Is remarkable that Mr.. LODGE having fas-
tened his eyes upon the old Civil Service for
doctrine. for reproof, for correction and for in
strnction in righteousness, should suffer SO
many significant little items to slip past him
GAIL HAMILTON
The MERRILL WILL CAsE.-The first hear
l.. T.. IL.
rill, who left her property to Cardinal McClos-