New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-07-11
MLNORITY RELE.

Representative ButterwOrth does not need to
be told that his statistics regarding removals
from Office by President Arthur were altogether
misleading. 1t seemed proper to him to please
the White House, aud he doubtless has done
so but Intelligent voters in his own district or
elsewhere, know that very erroneous impress
SION would lie produced, if his speech should be
taken as a photograph of the present Admins
tration The catch is IN the word removal"
The President has not gone about brutally be-
heading officials who represented the majority of
the party. lie has pursued much the same
course with respect to subordinate officers that
he adopted in changing his Cabinet. He knew
that he could not afio,d to make a.wholesale
removal of the advisers selected by President
Garfield. But he could afford TO allow them to
resign, one after another, and even to accele
rate the resignation in some instances by
making a continuance in official station uncom-
Portable.
President Arthur has not in form removed
great number of otlicials-though blunt re-
moval has been Iesorted to many times without
justification in the needs of the public service
OF in the wishes of the party. In much
greater number of cases, less direct methods
have succeeded. Many officials, us soon as they
learned what the policy of the President was
likely to be, rendered their designations, con-
sidering that no regard for the public interest
required them to perform duties which could
also be faithfully performed by others, and
therefore disliking to stay where they felt they
were not wanted. A different policy, or per-
sonal invitation from the President, would have
retained these men in the public service, so that
they were virtually frozen OUT though the
selection of their successors appears in the
record as appointment to fill vacancies made
by resignation Precisely the same is true in
many cases where officials were virtually driven
to resign by the appointment Of uncongenial
associates or by other methods.
1t is equally true that great many officials
whose terms of Office happened to expire during
the first year OF President Arthurs Administra-
ton, have been left undisturbed until their
terms expired, and have then been replaced by
others. An Administration seeking to repre-
sent the whole Republican party, and not
merely portion of 1t, would have sought the
continued services of these men, because they
had been found faithful and competent, and
because they did represent the party. The APP
pointment of Stalwarts in their stead was mot
a removal bless your soul, 1t was nothing OF
the sort 1t was merely filling vacancies
created by expiration of terms"
The people have observed all these things.
They are not gulled by any trick of phTaseology
in the matter. They see that the President
wished to fill the Offices, as he has filled his
Cabinet. almost exclusively with men who
represent a minority of the party, and that he
has made changes in that direction quietly,
decorously, and with as little disturbance as
possible. The Constitution gave him the
power. His manner of doing the thing has not
been coarse or offensive But he has been
steadily and rapidly getting rid Of officers who
represented the party, and putting in officers