Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-04-27
Wnshinaton,s RnleIs.

Washington's Rulers.
II is represented that the people Of th,
District Of Columbia are clamoring Ton
/ cnange ofrulers. 1t seems that they ere
not at all satisfied that Che present Com
f missioners of the District are all honest
men.
The Commissioners are Edmonds. West
and Lydecker. Edmonds and West are
civilians and Lydec6er is an army officer
and is a member Of the engineer corps.
There ha e never been any rumors affect
ing Lydecker's integrity. He, however,
is I'M the minority, and is powerle5s TO
protect the eity's Interests if Edmonds
/ and West should be disposed 10 do things
/ that it would not be pleasant to have the
( public know about.
Edmonds has been q resident Of Wash
ington for many years. lie was appointed
because he was regarded as man Of
ability. and his honesty was considered to
be beyond all question.
West came TO the surface in Louisiana
during the period of carpet-bag rule, and
managed TO get himself elected to the Ser
ate. He was not pointed out while he
resided in New Orleans as a man whose
career furnished an example for amhi-
tious young men to follow. His term in
the Senate did not increase the respect
entertained for him i'm Louisiana. At the
close Of his Senatorial career he was with
out means and without much ability TO
earn such an income as he desired. His
! friends secured for him the Office Of Com
missioner ofthe District. The pabHc knows
pretty well whether or not IN that posi-
ton he has given satisfaction.
1t seems that EdmOnds is a sort Of Shy
lock. He was thought to have ali the yir-
tues that make men honored and respect
ed by their fellow men. When he was APP
pointed the citizens of Washington said:
Snow, at last, we have an honest man
among our rulers, and we may expect fair
treatment The failure of the broker,
Squires, few months ago, and the disc0v-
cry that Edmonds was the man who fur
nished the cash with which to re-
lieve hard-up government clerks and
needy army and navy officers of their
salaries, by charging them ruinOus
rates Of interest, suddenly opened the
eyes Of WashingIonians to the fact that
thereputed good man, Edmonds, was not
so good as they had been led to think.
They, therefore, want to get rid of him
and Of West, aud, perhaps, of Lydecker,
but if they are against Lydecker it is
because they want an entirely new deal.
Ii is only ten years since the Boss
Shepherd ring was broken up, and the
boss himself found the town too not to
hold him. While he spent money freely.
however, he took most excellent care Of
all the interest entrusted 10 him. Much
of The present beauty of Washington is
due to his foresight, and to the system
OF street paving which he inaugurated.
Shepherd is now in Mexico trying to
replace the fortune which he made in
Washin .ton, and which he lost without
knowing exactly how he lost it,.
1t is not probable that either West or
Edmonds viii resign before their terms
4 expire. They are not the kind of men wto
resign. If the President wants to get rid
4 Of them he viii have to ask them for their
designations.
There is no excuse for man like Ed
monds, who, knowing the law, deiber-
ately breaks it. If he had remained a
/ private citizen he might have continued
to conduct his shaving business and no
one would have bothered themselves about
I il but when he took his place as one of
three rulers Of the capital of the greatest
country in the world ne ought TO have
dropped the Shylock business at once.
Win the people of Washington hold a
mass meeting condemning their present
rulers and calling on the President TO ask
for their designations. or Will they content
themselves with growing, hoping their
1 growls may reach the Presidents ear and
induce him TO take action without
/ being specially requested to do SO?