San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1885-06-25
WASHINGTON LETTER.
WAsnrNeroN, june 8, 1SS5.
From Our Regular Correspondent.


WAsnrNeroN, June 8, 1885.
Ed. FREE PREss The tug Of war
still comes on and goes on between
the administration and the office
seekers. The tugging is to great
extent among the oflice-seekers, that
is they tug against each other; but
the president has to bear the brunt,
and suffer the wear End tear. He is,
no doubt, becoming very weary OF
the delegations that pursue him rela-
tive to comparatively unimportant Of
fees. Perhaps no minor office has
made greater demands upon his time
and patience than the Charleston, s.
g., collectorship. The rival deloga-
tions have been persistent in their
claims upon his attention. He told
them last week that they must agree
to settle this matter between them
selves, and that if they did not do SO
soon, he would be compelled to settle
it In a way that would not suit any OF
the contending factions.
The work of turning out the idle,
the incompetent, and otherwise Of
fensive partisans, goes on slowly but
surely. The term offensive partisan
is in the mouth of every one here, and
it is in danger of being not only
abused, but misunderstood. 1t should
be known that these discharged en-
ployes were not cast out merely be-
cause they were Jealous republicans,
but because their zeal in politics
wholly interfered with their dudes as
government employees. They are
those who have been drawing pay
from the public treasury, but perform-
ing no public service, because their
time has been entirely taken up with
partisan work. While they were
doubtless very important factors in
the republican organization, collect,
ing campaign money, falsifying sta
tistics, "skilled in the art Of making
tho worse appear the better part up
H
on the stump and through the press,
they were the vampires Of our polit'
ical system, sucking its blood and
lulllng it with lies. Many Of them
have been discharged, and many more
will be discharged. No matter what
their "inhuence or backing may be,
the time has come for them to go in
to scandalous retirement, and they
will go.
1t is not alone in the discharge OF
idle and worthless partisans that this
administration is making itself mem.
orable. There are other and perhaps
more important reforms going on.
These reforms are not palpsDie and
visible to the unskilled eye OF the
public at large, but their cumulated
weight will be seen in the reports oi
cabinet officers when Congress assem-
bles next fall, in the message Of the
president, and especially in the
greatly reduced appropriations that
will be asked for the public service
for the next fiscal year.
It is we'll known that frauds upon
the revenue have long been practicod
by impostors in connivance with Gus
tom-house officials. SO great had
this evil become few years ago, that
lit was found necessary for congress
to appropriate 100000 to aid in the
detection and exposure Of these frauds.
But even this fund, designed as it was
for the prevention Of eyasions and ir-
Irregularities, was soon perverted to as
fraudulent uses as those which il was
appropriated 10 correct; and it is q
matter of notorious history that the
greater part Of this hundred thousand
dollars a year went into the hands oi
a disreputable gang Of political bum
mers in New York, Philadelphia and
other cities, as a reward for their par
tisan services. Here was one at
tempted reform, but the misfortune
of il was, like that Of most Republican
reforms, it was 3 backward ratheI
than a forward step.
Such is but one Of many greatel
rascalities in the customs servc'
which secretary Manning, a. prAc
teal business mA1, set TO work tc
eliminate upon his taking charge o.
, the treasury department; and bow b
has succeeded u best tod n The Ian
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