The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1882-12-09
[FRoM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT ]

tEeueiJ Booo' AOGUbT.
tFRoM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT. ]
WASHINGTON, D. c., Dec. 4, 1882.
Though several days have passed
Washington has not recovered from the
sensation produced by the recent action
of the President in suddenly decapitat-
ing some office-holders who were under
stood to be in sympathy with the Star
route conspirators. 1t is still the most
int, resting topic here, because of the ex-
pectation that there is to be another
stroke of the same lightning. 1t is
hardly to be wondered at that sensa-
ton is readily produced by move Of
this sort here at the National Capital,
where the population consists largely Of
Office holders, and Of those who depend
on them for living. When the axe falls
upon even half q dozen of the great army
there is a thrill of some sort-sympathy,
indignation, hope or alarm-transmitted
through the entire body. In the present
instance the sensation was the result not
so much of the actual removals, or, in
deed, of the causes for which they were
made, as of the suddenness with which
the axe fell. Every one knew that the
most of those removed had been guilty
of gross misconduct, that the evidence
of this fact had been in possession of the
Government for long time, and that the
interests Of justice had been seriously in
terfered with by the unaccountable pro-
crastination in dealing with such obvi-
GUS cases. 1t was owing to the general
impression that because nothing had
been done in the matter nothing would
be that the removals excited SO much
comment.
There is no Disgusting the fact that
there are in Washington, in Office and
out of Office, many sympsthizers with
the Star-route thieves. Some are pur-
chased friends in one way and another,
and some are old political associates
whose moral sensibilities are more or
less blunted. But as rule public SEN
timent sustains the President, and the
hope is expressed that after all the Gov
ernment really is in earnest, and that the
result Of the approaching new trial may
be less abortive than the first. The
friends of the conspiritors threaten Wig
oreus retaliation, and are already making
charges against the Attorney General,
which they say will be brought before
Congress, with demand for an investi-
CATION into the expenditures of the De-
partment of Justice. 1t all relates to the
luxurious finishing of Mr.. Brewster's 3
private rooms in the department, and is
considered pretty small potatoes. Mar
shal Henry's plea that he is made mar
tyr because he was friend of President
Garfield is bosh. Had he not been the
sppointee and friend of the late Presi-
dent he would have been removed months
ago.
Secretary Chandler has plan for in
Guiding in his department little group
of semi-naval bureaus now in the Treas
ury Department-the revenue marine,
the lighthouse and the life-saving serv-
ice. This would give anumber of pleas
ant land billets for naval officers, most
of whom in the higher rank of the SER
vice have spent, under the present sys-
tenn, from 40 to so per cent of their ser
vice on shore, and it would multiply the
civil patronage of the Secretary of the
Navy at least two-fold. Nobody who
knows Washington will expect any such
plan to succeed. The admirable and
necessary change made in creating the
geographical and geological survey was
only carried out with great difficulty and
Mr.. Chandler might as well try to carry
of under each arm one of the pillars in
front of the Treasury building as detach
one of the bureaus now belonging TO that
department. The only serious change
which has taken place in the department
relations since the foundation of the
Government Las been the loss o! patents
and lands by the State Department, and
it took the organization of new de-
partment-the Interior-to effect this.
Government departments could be i'm
proved at many points by bringing to-
gethe: cognate work, saving money and
improving the efficiency of the service
but there is no reason TO suppose that
anything Of thu. kind will be done.
Mr.. James B. Eais will be in Washing
ton this winter, and we expect TO hear q
good deal about certain inter-ucean:C
canal to which all the for, ign powers arc
eager to subscribe, almost tumhling cveI
each other in their desire to hurl theil
money into it, while the patriotic Eads
sternly refuses to let them have a dollars
worth of the stock, because he wants the
United States to have the honor and
glory of it. But Generd Sherman
speaks a good word for Mr.. Eads. Et
suys, in his opinion, the st. Louis bri lgt
is the finest in the world; that he maGt
it stronger than the strongest bridge in
existence, and spent hundred OF thous.
ands of dollars on it ont of his own pock.
ct. Mr.. Esds is credited with lobby
in Washington, but no doubt the worthy
man is maligned.
And now they say Mat Carpenters old
house is haunted. Ii is certainly not his
ghost that is raising the alleged racket,
for il he returned at all it would be to
some banquet where his old friends
gather round the festive board, or if the
ghost wanted to appear in unpleasing
guiss it might preamhulRte the Treasury,
''the Department of delay" Os he used
to call it, and scare some of the Auditors
into eIpediting claims against the Gov
ernment. That was Carpenters pet