American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1881-02-26
The Idiosyncrasies Of a Bogus Re-
former. +

| The temperance people throughout
the country are proposing to hang up
in the White House a portrait of Mrs.
HAYES in recognition Of her zeal i'll be-
half of their cause Hayes himself
gets loud praise from the teetotalers
for. his alleged devotion to their prin-
Irciples. They honor him as the one
cold water occupant OF the White
House.
No doubt Hayes has made a great
show OF temperance in his White
table have been compelled to satisfy
their thirst with cold water, cold milk,
milk and water, tea. or coffee, or
chocolate. OF wines they could get
none, unless perhaps on a single occa-
sion currant wine or gooseberry wine.
1t is true some punch was once
fraudulently concealed in ices packed
inside of oranges, but very likely Mrs.
Hayes knew nothing of the trick, and
perhaps Hayes himself only winked at
the violation of bis avowed rule. At
any rate, he has taken great pains to
show himself as temperance host.
As soon as he had secured possession
of his stolen seat he began to air his
horror of intemperance in the public
service.
Hayes was particularly severe on
drunkenness in the army. He an
hounced his purpose to deal with it
with the greatest severity. Hewas GO
ing to Danish whisky drinking from the
military service and make of the army
q sort OF temperance society on a large
scale. How sad to think that our
young men in shoulder straps were I'M
der the influence of the example of
older officers who freely used the in
texicating cup! That was the lament
we heard from the White House.
7 But how has Hayes carried out his
avowed purpose and indicated his tenn
peraLce principles so far as the army is
concerned9 He has done more than
any previous Executive to encourage
drunkenness in the military service.
Instead of treating drunken officers
with just severity and with an equal
justice. he has pretty uniformly COM
muted their sentences, as imposed by
courts martial, and restored them to
duty. .-7es Fs .s.... 55--i- z. = u
Even the gravest offenses against
military order and military discipline,
and common decency as well, whether
committed under the influence of drink
or otherwise, have been leniently re-
garded by this pretended temperance
advocate. Crii:ies which outrage the
sense of honor of all decent men, and
which unit a man for the society OF re-
spectacle people, have found ready
pardon from him. .s fs-7.
An officer who had long disgraced
the military service would at last be
brought to trial, and the, evidence pre-
sented to show beyond question his
guilt of outrageous Offenses. He would
be sentenced to dismissal. Thereupon
he or his Ohio friends would journey to
Washington. and lobby about the White
House until its temperance occupant
restored the offender to duty. That
has been the rule, and every dismissed
officer. no matter how fragrant his Of
lenses. has had good reason to expect
that it would be applied TO his case.
His military associates might prove
his guilt incontestably, and get rid
OF him for a time as a nuisance and q
man unfit for decent society; but
Hayes would see that they soon had
him back again. Since Hayes worked
his subterranean way into the White
House, he has confirmed the convic-
tions of only nineteen officers out of
sixty found guilty OF gross offenses. /
most of them involving drunkenness on
duty. Forty-one of the convicted Off
GERS have been retained in the army by
HAYES personal order
He began the work soon after getting
into the White House, and has kept it
up steadily ever since. In November,
1877, he issued a general order to the
army, in which he delivered sermon
on drinking. mo person addicted to
it," said Hayes, '.can expect to be
trusted with any responsible duty: and
a person who cannot be trusted had
better not be continued in Office"
after this solemn warming" he said.
in closing the order, 90 Il rigorous execu-
ton of the sentences imposed in due
course by courts martial may be ex-
pected."
And yet, ON the very day of its issue.
he set that order asidei He committed
a sentence of dismissal for drunkenness
on duty TO suspension for three months
only. The next day he again set sem
tence aside, and in 4 case where the
offense was of a kind he had previously
i'll order to escape a ourt-martial, had
given his word as gentleman to abb
stain from intoxicating drinks, but had
afterward broken it.
In the spring of 1877, commenting
upon two cases of this sort, Hayes had
said that if 3uch officers were retained, |
1.-the high reputation which the army
has always held for honor and dig
nifty, as well as integrity, would soon
be a thing of the past" Blu. N No
1877, when the case OF an o. |
ficer dismissed for that very oflcnse |
came before him, he committed the sem
tence to suspension from rank and
command on half rag, for eighteen |
And at short intervals Hayes has been |
putting drunkards and reprobates back |
in the army from that time 10 this. No |
matter how gross or nasty the proved |
charges and specifications, he has taken |
the culprit to his embrace and treated |
him as if he had committed some trivial |
pffense only. What is mean, contempti-. |
BILE. odious and disgusting behavior in |
the eyes of decent men generally, seems |
TO strike Hayes as very pardonable con-
duct
In one of these cases where Hayes re- |
stored the dismissed officer to the army |
The details OF his OiienseS, as recited in |
specifications, of which he was proved |
guilty, are too filthy for publication. In |
another the officer was found guilty of |
from a large number of en-
listed men money due them for extra
1uty, and which he had received for
heir benefit. In still another case the
officer was convicted of gross cruelty to
he sick men of his command, causing
he death of one and imperiling the |
ives of several. .s --
What effect must such leniency in the
treatment of outrageous oifenses have
Upon the army, especially after Hayes
,antiDg sermons on temperance in the
oublic Seryice2--N Y Sun