New-York tribune., 1879-01-28

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and General Arthur, according to the Secre-
tory. made no attempt to punish 1t. and
even resisted a measure which was expected
to lessen the number of opportunities for Sucn
corruption. Grave irregularities we're ioih"
TO exist in the wcighers' and gangers' de-
partment the Collector had not endeavoreo
to rcpress Them and the SccretaIys own reforms
are declared to have effected an annual savlngIh
this branch of the service OF T3oO,ooo. Inc
abuse of free permits for imported
goods was allowed to grow up; there
were frauds committed by clerks III
the "charges and commissions cases." ETC.
The sum of the Secietary's argument Is that
the President found it impossible, after re-
pcated trials. TO execute reforms in the Gus
tom House against the opposition OF the Col-
lectoI, who was also, 1t is alleged somewhat
negligent and the removals were found heceS-
sary to secure harmony OF action.
General Arthur had the advantage III nav
ING the last word. and he made it unmiStak
ably sharp and angry. But some of the kecnest
thr,,sts in the whole letter are at points in
the record of the Administration i'll this
matter. for whose weakness the AdminlStia-
ton alone is responsible. The suspended
Collectors first paragraph contains the hardest
blow of all when he says:
"When an Administration deliberately
"avOws and constantly rcteratcs that re-
"moyal from Office is to take place only
" for cause. it is Obvious, no matter what may
"bc said to the contrary, that removal must
at least in the estimation ot that portion oi
"thc public which has faith in the sincerity
"of the Administration carry with II Il
stigma upon the character of the removed
.'oiccr. And tins stigma is not fully re-
moved even if the first notice of intended
removal is accommodates was the case
with mc-with an urgent offer OF IN M
poTtant foreign appointment under ahothcr
" department OF the Government
When General Arthur comes down to the
! defence of his administration he certainly
seems to point out number of flaws III the
| Sccrctary's letter. He declares that he
always punished bribe-talcrs when he
| could convict them, that the method oi
| lc,scming opportunities for corruption, when
he was said to have resisted, he actually
suggested. and alleges instances where con-
yictrd bribc- takers were saved from punishment
bv MIR. Sherman He admits that the system
| of &" free permits" has prevailed, but adds,
| that il has prevailed for eighty years, that
! if is not, so far rs he knows, without au-
"thority of law" that it still continues, and
| that Collector Merritt has issued more than
800 " free permits on blanks furnished to
| him by the Treasury Department. lie shows that
the "fraudulcnt protests were made before
he entered Office. that Government book
keeping made his expenses seem greater
than they really were. and charges MI.
Sherman with "making insnIations with
"out vcnturing upon assertions" Ills
general defence of his efficiency COW
crs familiar ground. lie charges that
the Jay Commission was a partisan body, or
gapized to convict insists that there was less
complaint during his colIcctorShip than at
other times, and repeats ~ Well-known ana
impressive enumeration OF reforms suggested
by the Jay Commission, which he had prcvi-
ously urged upon the Department iii vain
This is the sum Of the whole controversy,
for Mr.. Cornell was not drawn into it. Every
one must wish to justice done between
the disputants, and yet all citizens-and
especially all ReDuhlcans-will be glad to
see the controversy soon ended.