The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-05-22
Badeau,s Bill Of Indictment.

The formidable array of charges
brought against the State Department
by General Badeau, ex-Consul- General
at Havans, is rot affecting the public
mind as seriously as would be natural
to expect from their gravity and the
length of the ind ctment presented by
that ex-oficial. There is rather dis
position to treat the allegations of the
complainant with undue levity. That
the State Department is capable of
egregious bluudering will be readily ad-
mitted, and it might without impro-
priety even be accused of derelictions
less excusable than blunders. Yet
when Badeau makes the accusation the
matter seems to assume \ humorous
aspect. The public is disposed to see
something laughable in a charge of
official delinquency preferred by one of
Grants old placement.
Badeau accuses the State Department
of almost every offense it could in an
official capacity be guilty of. If it had
made special effort to be as contempti-
BILE as imbecility and neglect of duty
could possibly make it appear as q
branch of the Government, it could not
have done worse than the retired Con-
sul-General charges it with having done
in its intercourse with the Spanish
authorities. 1t ''persistently screened
corruption;'' it "was derelict
in pubic duty" its policy
was ..vacillating and ignominious;" its
neglect of injuries and insults to Amer
lean citizens, seamen and trade in the
islands of Cuba" was habitual; its nego-
tiations with Spain were injurious to
the interests and honor of the coun-
try" ETC., etc. Here is list of dere-
Lotions and ofrenses that should entitle
the State Department to the belt for
"eussedness' in a general way. And
when it is considered that these charges
are made by the party who wrote the
unembellished and reliable biography of
U. S. Grant, the disgrace of having
such State Department assumes i'm
presSive proportions.
Probably the reason why the public
is not more excited over these disclos-
ures is that although Badeau's state
ments are not the most reliable, vet al
most any description of blunder or ex-
hibition of weakness can be expected of
department in charge of Freling-
huysen. There has been evidence of
its imbecility in the management of our
relations with Germany. Its slip-shod
diplomacy has been apparent in other
cases in which the National interests
have been mismanaged. Its reputation
for weakness and general inefficiency
has been established at home and
abroad.
The biographical Consul General al
leges that he telegraphed his accusa-
tions eight times to the department
without their being noticed, when he
threw up his commission in disgust.
The public is thus enabled to size the
extent of disgust that could induce an
old Grant office-holder to resign a So
900 salary. But it is intimated that
the consular fees of Havana, amount
ing to about $4,000 q year, have not
been reported or any return made of
them to the Treasury at Washington
for the year during which Badeau occu-
pied the position. Great hullabaloos
are sometimes raised to divert attention
from embarrassing accounts. But
whether the fault is with the Consul
General or the Secretary of State in this
case, the people are not going to get
excited over the delin9uencies of Re-
publican officials when the opportunity
to turn them all out is so near at hand.
-ErchaIQe,