Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-02-23
CONGRESS AND CABINET,

In recent lecture at Boston MIR. Gamaliel :
Bradford gave fresh expression Of his we'll |,
,nown theory of the need of responsible ex-
cutive power the chief practical outcome
If which theory is that Cabinet officers ought
o be given seats in Congress. He quoted
Van lIosrs observation that in the details
If politics the Americans are more skilled
and more intelligent than any other PEOPLE,
but that being so wear,cd and exhausted,
NTH constantly recurring election struggles,
it is impossible to get them TO consider the
upon which all politics arc based.
They do not know, Mr.. Bradford thinks,
what is meant by responsible executive pow
or, and it is the very first thing they should
learn. 1t is, in brief, the power winch
changes thought into action. The ship cap |
tain receives his instructions from his owners
and then steps upon his vessel, IN absolute
control of her voyage round the world. Inc
colonel of regiment receives his orders from
the commanding general, and thence-iorward
every mind and will in that regiment, unless
defeat and disaster are TO follow, must bc aD-
solutely in subsection to his. There are no
more splendid examples of administration
than our great railways, with hundreds OF
millions of capital and tens of thousands oil
employees, and doing business upon the mar
rowest possible margin of profit. The secret
lies in strength of executive ORGANIZATION.
The policy decided upon by the directors is
committed to general manager, who rales
| and holds individually responsible every man
| in the long chain of service.
In civil society, the executive power, long
confined to few hands, was grossly abused
| for ages: and the nineteenth century has de-
voted itself to destroying or greatly modify
| ing it, And one of its eSpedients 10 his end
has been the creation of representative bod
les to act as check upon the executive.
But from the establishment Of the Govern
ment to this hour, Il tremendous struggle has
been going On between the two branches,
| in which the executive has been growing
constantly weaker, till it has come TO he a
mere Instrument of legislative faction. AS
Mr. Bradford well points out, moreover,
through the whole country, in the States and
in the cities, precisely the same process has
been going on with the same result State
legislatures and city councils have reduced
the governors and mayors to insigniticance,
and taken possession of the work OF admin
stration through their committees and tho
intrigues of the caucus and the lobby. Thl:
is true of Vermont, as Of other States. As
the FREE Press has often shown, the Gov
ernor has become little more than gloriiec
turnkey and this city is managed, not by the
Mayor but by almost wholly irresponsible
committees of the Board of Aldermen. This
arbitrary assumption of power by the legis-
lative branch of the Government has worked
trouble In the past and will work more in the
future, though we may not be prepared to 50
as far as Mr.. Bradford, who sees ANARCHY and
civil war ahead, and says that whereas, in
the case of slavery, the division of the coun
try was sectional, and the weakest portion
had to yield, the new conflict will take the
form of social disorgaDiZlton and the fac
ton fights which have ruined So many com.
munitics in the past"
As to reform in this all-mporlant mat
ter, Mr.. Bradford can see no hope in the
States or the cities, for he thinks that the
pernicious practice of electiug a chain OF ex-
eculivc officials independently of cach Other
more fatal TO good administration thar
anything except An elective iudiciary-is SC
| STRONGLY harricalpd ns In offer no pract icalJlC