Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1881-05-12

One phase Of this wrsngis among the
Republican leaders cvef the New York
appointments ougtt not to be lost sight
Of by any intelligent person. There Is no |
longer any pretence to any care by any
body for the public interests. The |
President had no thought OF lettering the
of the New York Custom
House By substituting Judge Robertson
for Collector Merritt, since no one claims
any peculiar fitness for Judge
Robertson for such place
and no one charges that the present in
cumbsnt is not fairly good officer, quite
up to the average. TN the other hand
there is no pretence that the opposition
to tn. change, led by Mr.. conkling, Is
based ON any consideration of its effect On
the public interests. The mask has been
completely dropped on both sides, and we
see the President pressing change
for political reasons only designed to
strengthen and build up the anti-Conkling
wing Of the Republican party in New
York, and Senator Conkling and HE ,,r,
New York assistant Senators IT, TIM 81,
effort with bitterness for eouallv nntsn,
political reasons and '.olely in the inter.s,
of their own continued control of their
party organization in their own State. and
the division amongst Senators in caucus
| Ia inn 10, ~ "a, 10.
| in the matter,
Considering the enormous amount OF
cant INDUCED in by many speakers and
writers about Mr.. Garfeld's devotion to
an improved civil service and his dispo-
sition to subordinate mere party consid-
eratons to the public interests, there has
been a remarkable frankness about this
| throwing aside Of the mask. OF course
those who have really wanted to know
the facts have always known that Mr..
Garfield is a man utterly lacking in
| moral courage from whom no such per
to expect OF him could he looked for. h.
the tace OF absolute proof that he Was not a
man " honor Or integrity the American
people made him their President. Every
man OF sense and information who had
juggled with his own conscience during
the campaign so a. to be able to think lac
believed IN Mr.. Garfield integrity, knew
he had been fooling himself
when Blaine was given the chic
nobody who knows anything at all has
imagined that there was to be any sub
ordination Of personal ambitious or par
tisan interests to considerations o
public welfare by this administration
Still, it has for so long time been tn,
policy Of the Republican leaders to pu
on, however loosely, the moral mask, tina
it is little surprising that the fight FOL
patronage and faetional advantage has
been carried On with so little eoncealmen
Of its object.
But, though the motives on one sid
are not bit better than those on th
other, and accumulated evidence .
treachery and deceit by Dir. Garfield i
being produced by Mr.. Conkling = friends
We adhere 10 our position that tlie sym
patty Of disinter.sted men should 20 Will
the President in this contest, because h
is struggling 10 maintain what We believ
to be- the constitutional rights and pre-
rogativ-s Of his office. The Pres
dent has the appointing powp
and it does not belong 10 the Senate
Cnquestiuually the right to accept Q
reject belongs 10 the Senate. Equal
unquestionably IL would he lnt reasoni
: bic to expect that when both Senator
u from any State united III the d,.caratiu
that person was unfit for the Office
y which he was appointed, and that Il
y confirmation would br ngotast III, Joti
% Interests, the other Senators shoul
: accept their declaration. But this
% a vastly different thing from perluittI
the two Senators from a State
70 prevent the confirmation of men silup
because they do not like them or pref
- that others shall be appointed, Recogni
70 ing then that no motives worthy
respect actuate either the President
Senator Conkling in the present 90
troversy, we nevertheless believe ii
,e President il exercising power which b
ar longs to him by the spirit as W,
hi as the letter of the Constitution
or while Mr.. Conkling is lighting for Il
il maintenance Of IS vicious custom ,-sse
n. TALLY antagonstic to the constitution
ne idea of the responsibility of thu exec
or tive Tor the P,rsonnet Of the Admini-tl
I'd ton. Briefly, we wish Mr. Carrie
lie success, not because he deserves it, b
On because it is his constitutional right