Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-06-03
WILLIAM Il. CHANDLER.
A Very Able assa Efficient Executive
OFFICER
HOW THE NEW OFFICER Is REGARDED BIZ HIS
FRIENDS.


HOW THE NEW OFFICER Is REGARDED BIZ HIS
FRIENDS.
Wash. Cor. BoEpon Herald
WASHINGTON. d. c., May 25, 18S2.-The Office
OF the Secretary OF the Navy is q long and some
what grandiy proportioned apartment In the
third story Of the eastern pavilion Of the new
department building west Of the White House.
In It's center Ia Q desk at for an emperor or q
newspaper editor, with room enough on its great
flat top for all the books of reference and public
documents, reports, memoranda and other litter
Of great public department.. From It's sides
project the handles OF q great many useful
drawers. Around it the inlaid floor is covered
with luxurious rugs. and here have sat the Sec
retaries OF the Navy since Robeson's time. At
either end OF the long room are desks for pri-
yate secretaries and stenographers, and there is
plenty OF rich ieather-coyered furniture at the
sides of the room, while the frescOed walls are
hung with many pictures. 1t has been one Of
the 'shOw rooms of the building ever since it
was first occupied and it has long been the Gus
tom to allow visitors to come in by the dozen
and take few minutes view of it whenever
they have presented themselves during the day.
the room being so big that 1t was quite possible
to do this without interfering with the business
of the Secretary, even though he might have a
private conference with some Of his chiefs Of
bureau on hand. Outside the main entrance
door in the corridor is Lindlcy Muse, the
VENERABLE MESSENGER,
who has been the card bearer to all Of the Naval
Secretaries for more than 10 years, 80 that he is
one of the oldest Of the employees Of the govern
ment, yet he is only beginning to be an old man.
and will doubtless see several more Secretaries
yet before he makes way for successor. He is
usually during the day, or rather was up till re-
Gently, the central figure and chief point of in
terest Of from 10 to 80 people, who, seated in
chairs provided for them awaited with greater
or less anxiety or impotence the opportunity to
see the Secretary of the Navy. Big as the room
is. no Secretary till now has felt equal to admit
ting to an audience more than one person at a
time. But all this is changed. Fewer people
now sit i'm the corridor, while a long row Of
chairs at theleft of the door you enter, ranged
fashion, are provided for persons
who are asked In as soon as they present their
cards. while the brisk new Secretary, in another
part of the room, is rapidly getting through
with all of his visitors in the order of their ar
rival. He does not sit at the great desk at all.
At the end Of it there now stands high square
desk. with very small top, at which Mr.. Secre-
tary Chandler stands while he reads and signs
all the papers which he has to dispose of during
the day. Three or four times as many people
call to zee him az ever called On any other Sec
Rotary of the navy. Half of them are
SENATOR'S AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS,
and half OF them probably do not come on any
business which relates to the affairs of the Navy
department. They are ushered in till the row
of chairs is full, and then other chairs, in the
corners and about are availed Of while the Sec
Rotary, with the person in hand sits on the sofa on
the east side of the office and eonfers in his rapid
and fluent way on the topic which his visitor
brings before him. Perhaps while he is sitting
thus the chief clerk, or the head OF bureau
enters with some papers in his hand which re-
quire immediate attention The Secretary, with
out absolutely suspending his conversation
drops it for moment, walks to his desk, looks
the matter through if it does not require q long
examination, and dispOses of it with his sigma
ture or otherwise. as may be required; then he
springs back to his sofa and his friends finishes
up his conversation, and then walks over and
invites the next person TO present his matter.
Thus the new Secretary Is on his legs three
quarters OF the time, aud he seems to prefer this
way OF doing business. He agrees with Presi-
dent Arthur that men in official life sit entirely too
much, and. by receiving his callers standing, he
has the privilege OF avaing himself Of the Presi-
dents expedent Of keeping the visitor, whom he
does not wish to make a long stay, on his legs
also. 1t is only those whom he really wishes
to see that he asks to sit down. This is sensi-
Die, and great help in the dispatch of business
HOW THE NEW OFFICIAL GETS ALONG.
How has the new Secretary got on with his de-
partment? it may be asked. The answer that
is made by all the bureau officers justifies the
pleasant things that were said of him before he
was appointed. Every one OF them will tell
you that business has never been done as rapidly
and satisfactorily in the Secretarys Office cat
tend to the matter in hand, keep no one watt
Ing. seems to be the motto Of this swift worker.
whose decision and power of dispatching business
u.s. indeed. quite out of the common run To be
sure, he has had plenty OF experience. At the
age of 81 he was speaker Of the lower branch of
the New Hampshire legislature. Before he was
80 he was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
appointed by Abraham Lincoln, and serving
under Chase until the change of politics of john
sons administration sent him out to make his
future as practicing lawyer in Washington
Since then he has grown to a prominence i'm the
councils OF his party which made him hardly
second to any other man in his knowledge of
politicians and political methods At one stage
In his career he was the judge advocate Of the
nayy-a good place for a young lawyer-so that
he did not go into the department as stranger
to its methods. To come back to his work in
the Navy department. it is the simple truth to
say that the new secretary has shown himself to
be the master of the stuation but, at the same
time, he has wholly avoided any disagrceable
manifestations OF his official pre-eminence and
by treating the bureau chiefs with
FRANKNEss AND GOOD SENSE,
ne has secured the confidence and good feeling
Of all of them. His predecessor completely
failed in this respect. When Judge Hunt went
into the department he gave several of the bu-
reau chiefs reason to believe that he intended
to freeze them out, and they regarded him with
doubt and suspicion from the first To be sure.
this was wholly unnecessary, and the error
would not have been committed by any man OF
good sense. 1t was not committed by Mr. Thomp-
son, who got on well In the department during
Hayes administration. When Mr.. Chandler was
appointed Secretary Of the Navy, one of the
first things that came along was q plan for u
trip to Fort Monroe on the TallapOOsa the side
wheel steamer. half pleasure boat and half
freight carrier, which plies between Washington
and the northern navy yards. Mr.. Hunt man
aged to get into q miserable personal contro-
versy with the commander of the Tallapoosa.
rich and popular young officer Commander A.
G. Kellogg, all because this officer would not
treat Hunts son, who il an ensign in the
navy, land who was detailed to the ITALIA
poosa. but did not do any duty better than
the other young officers. The Taliapoosa has
always been a sort Of pleasure boat and it has
been the custom to pay for the wine consumed
by Secretaries OF the Navy and their guests out
of the contingent fund of the navy. When
the trip to Fort Monroe, on which President
Arthur was to accompany Mr.. Chandler, was
planned, the new Secretary sent for Commander
Kellogg. and told him that, while he Was Sec