Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1882-04-14
Fires, Floods, Failures, Foreign
Intelligence and Miscella-
neous Telegraphic
News.
Gath = Gossip.

Pen PICTURES OF THE NEW CABINET.
WASHINGTON, April L." Gath" sends
the following letter 10 his paper to-
night:
The president has now completed his
cabinet, and we may take peep at his
ideas Of the fittest people TO rule the
country which can be found in the re-
publican party.
GEOGRAPHICAL DESTRUCTION.
Mr.. Frelinshuysen md Mr.. Folser,
from the adjoining states OF New Jer-
sey and New York, occupy the two
highes:: positions. His attorney gen
eral is from the state of Pennsylvania,
and from the most populous city there
of. His secretary of war is from Hi
nois, and of the navy from New Hamp-
shire. His secretary of the interior is
from Colorado, and his postmaster gen.
eral from Wisconsin. Such is the geo.
graphical distribution-with four men
| from the east. two from what is called
the great west, and one from the west.
The south does not show in the cabi-
net at all, paying the penalty Of the
war half 4 generation after it is over,
III being ignored in the greater patron
age and honor of the government.
New England, which was always
wont to have 4 distinguished place in
American administrations, whether
democratic or republican, is typifed by
| Mr.. Chandler, of Concord, New Hamp-
1clNt ~ n. =
distinctive specimen of the active lob
byist that has ever been put in the
cabinet from the land of steady habits
and moral illumination. The western
states are very inditferently represent
ed, considering their political strength
and Importance to the republican
party. The postmaster general is an
/ old man, taking his views at second
hand from Conkling and some of the
eastern politicians Of past day.
The secretary of war, though he rep
resents the large city of Chicago, is per-
| haps the slightest political force of any
III the cabinet net-wearing distinguish
ed name, but having no hand in the
government OF events, and showing,
both in his course before he entered
the cabinet and after he entered it, that
he was a puppet, doing but little origi-
nal thinking and choosing. Though
bearing the name of Lincoln, he sup
ported the experiment of putting q
soldier three times in the presidency,
and in the cabinet he has made his
most distinguished appointments solely
with reference to that soldiers wishes
retiring the greatest quartermaster-
general this country or perhaps the
world ever had to slip in for a week the
father in-law of General Sheridan, and
then retire MIN TO accommodate the
chum and classmate Of Gen. Grant.
The
WAR DEPARTMENT
was not wont in other days to be GOV
erned by its soldiery. Even as late as
Hayes administration Mr. Ramsey, the
war secretary, governed the army with
but slight reference in great matters te
the wishes of the general in command
keeping in mind the examples of Stan.
ton and Marcy, who always made the
military understand that they were tc
obey orders from the civil administra.
ton, and not to intrigue with it. Gen.
eral Scott undertook. in the moment d
his victories and consequent compla
cency, to address the secretary of war
Marcy, a letter, saying that he had Just
risen from n hasty plate of soup" anc
would therefore communicate tht
news The grim old secretary of VA
! congratulated him, officially, on tht
soup, and it turned out to be the mos
costly bowl of soup Scott ever gave o
received.
The republican party has 70 depen,
for its weighty majorities.upon the cen
tral western states, Iowa being the ban
ner state, then coming Kansas, Michi
! gan, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Min
nesota and Nebraska, with Indiana fre
! quently turning the scale. From thes
\ rich, positive, national states the presi
n dent has found the negative Mr.. Lin
coin and the venerable Mr.. Howe 8
about the best material for his cabinet
Iowa had in the post of honor he
! neighborls old war Governor, Kirk
j wood; but he has had to walk th
y plank, having been kept in the csbine
; long enough for Jim Wilson, anothe
8 celebrated Washington lobbyist, to b
: elected to the senate, without incurrin
d the dreaded opposition that Nigh
!; have been provoked had Knkwoo
: : been retired.
5 Mr.. TELLER,
! who has been in the western state
: twenty-three years. signalizes the youn
g state Of Colorado by becoming he
Z first cabinet officer; and, though b
: has been in the senate six years, he
new man to most OF the people {