The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-10-19
OUR REPRESENTATIVES, ABROAD.
Men Who Are Representing American Dig.
nifty and Scholarship in Foreign
Capitals.
tCorraapondence PHILADELPHIA Times

l correspondence Pntla1ephia Times
/ WASHINGTON, Oct, Ia. When Secretary
Schurs came Into office he said he should
make II point only to select practical sur
veyors to be surveyors general Of the Terri
tories, as though that officer had to know the
length OF o chain OF the points Of a compass
to properly perform the duties OF his Office
Yet there is not q practical surveyor In the
whole service. When Secretary Evarts cams
into office he was not to appoint to foreign
| position any one who could not speak the
language Ut the country 10 which he sought
an appointment We all know the result. II
| is the finest kind OF civil service nonsense A
gentleman who has recently returned from
| an extended European trip, and who was him
self for q long time an officer In the foreign
service, gives me some Information az to the
abroad. Taking for instance, the quallflca-
tion Of being able TO speak the language Of
the country TO which they are accredited, this
gentleman says that he discovers that the
following Ia about the situation:
Goodloe, ct the Belgium Court, q sort "
miniature Paris has little smatterlng Of
French, which ls the court language there. but
Merritt, his predecessor. knew no French.
Noyes. at Paris, does not speak a word OF
French, although he thinks he does. He says,
there is a young lady In the family who can
manage TO speak the little social nothings In
the language OF the country. Hit, the seore-
tary Of legation. who is very thorough,
competent fellow, has acquired good knowl-
edge Of the language, while the under seore-
tary Is an excellent French scholar Meredith
Reed, who is now In Paris. and who has been
running the Greek Mission for three Or four
years Without any salary OF allowance from
h ths hnted sta aa and who
speaks French excellently. He will proba-
bly, not, however, consent any longer to repre-
sent the United States government la Europe
ut his own expense, inasmuch as Congress has
tr1I&l 1s&t.x
Mr.. Marsh. who Is brother-in-law OF Sena-
tor Edmunds, of Vermont, and who is not to
be removed II that distinguished Senator can
prevent IT, speaks Italian well and Il very
accomplished scholar Aside from that, how
ever, hls qualifications for the post OF Minis
ter to Italy would not DO very good aa he
understands nothing Of business affairs and
lives somedtstance from the city and ID Mt the
legation very little However, In Italy there
is very little to do. and Mr.. Marsh line
Berlin poor Bayard Taylor spoke German
like native. Ills wife was German. Presi-
dent White, Of Cornell University, is now the
Minister. He does not speak the German
language, and the manner III which he wrestled
with French at the Haytian court. when we
were on that famous Santo Domingo expedl-
ton. leads me to believe that he does not speak
any language but his own.
Horace Maynard. at ConstantInople, does
not speak any language that any inhabitant
VI b'S 1adSu hhuNS hh bsiluE bhb IlS HIS
q long and ominous gesture with crooked
finger, which, possibly. the Turks under
stand. Mr.. Maynard IL reported 10 sneak
English, although his efforts In that drec- |
tion scarcely come UP to our elevated stand |
ard Of civil service reform. Russia ls vacant, |
but Eugene Schuyler, who was there, was |
scholar, speaking several Ian |
guages with marked ability. Being now va
,ant. and with the new boom In politics. II Ia |
likely to be- filled with some statesman from |
the lower swamps Of Indiana. who chews l
tobacco largely, tells ohaeene stories and |
wears a number twelve boot, "a the United |
States have been represented at foreign /
courts may times before. England Ia vacant |
and our country will do well II 40 genteel and |
Influential a gentleman as Minister Welsh la /
to st. James.
In the other countries. billiard, at Brazil,
ioes not know d word If Spanish Or Portu-
xuese; Thomas A. Osborne, at Chill, does not /
speak Spanish OF any language but his own.
n China, Seward knows considerable OF the
Chinese language and knows about q great
many other things aa crooked as the Chinese
etters are, but he does not speak French,
which is the diplomatic language there: In
Japan Mr.. Bingham has to content himself
With English. although be has secured very
rood standing. Az a rule the diplomatic and
consular officers OF our government speak
cad and write nothing but the English Ian
tuage, and many OF them do that very poor