National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-01-30
Breakfast Table Letter to the presiden

Breakfast Table Letter to the President.
MIR. PRESIDENT: The American Senate of to-
day, when viewed from the elevated stand.
point OF an impartial historian, will rank in
patriotism the equal, If not the superior, of
any deliberatiye body on earth. With but one
life between It and executive power for the
Republican party, It rose to the highest plane
Of legislation, removed all chance for acci-
dental power, and provided for every emer-
gency of succession to the presidential office.
The federal constitution invests the senatoa and
the President with executive duties clearly de.
fined, each independent Of the other yet each
can serve the other and promote that good
understanding which always tends to wise
administration OF goyernment
Your most illustrious predecessor was SO
deeply impressed with the importance of
frank and full understanding between the
Chief Magistrate and the Senate in his own
and future times that he embraced an oppor.
tunity to set an example which may be SER
viceable in the solution of the present question
between yourself and the Senate concerning
the furnishing Of information from the eXecu-
tive departments of the government relative
to nominations to office, without any surrender
of the high powers vested in the President by
the constitution, illustrated in the following
message, dated New York. Aug. 6, 1889:
"GENTLEMES OF THE SENATE My nomination
of Benjamin Fishboum for the pace'of naval
officer for tho port of, Savannah not having
met with your concurrence, 1 now nominate
Laohlan Mcintosh for that Office.
"Whnteyer may have been the reasons which
induced your dissent. / 0ra persuaded they
were such as you deemed sufficient. Permit
me to submit to your consideration whether
on occasions where tho propriety of nomlna
tions appears questionable to you II would not
be expedient TO communicate that circum-
stance TO me, and thereby avail yourselves of
the information which led me to make them
aud which would with pleasure lay before
You. Probably my reasons for nominating
Mr.. Iishbourn. mny tend to show that such
mode of proceeding, in such cases. might DO
useful. will therefore detail them.
First. While Col. Fishbourn was an officer,
in actual service, and chiefly under my own
eyes, his conduct appeared to me irreproaeh,
able; nor did 1 ever hear anything injurious 10
his reputation US an officer or gentleman
At the stormlng Of stony Point, his behavior
was represented to have been active and brave
aud he was charged by his general to bring the
account Of that success to the headquarters OF
the army.
"SeCondly. Since his residence In Georgia,
he has been repeatedly elected TO the assembly
as representative OF the county Of Chatham,
in which tho port of sayGnnah Is situated, and
sometimes Of The counties of Glynn aud Cam
den; he has been chosen q member of the
executive council Of the state. and has lately
been president of the same he has been
elected by the officers OF tho militia, IN tho
county Of Chatham, lieutenant colonel OF the
militia In that district aud, on q very recent
occasion, TO wit, in the month OF May last.
he has been appointed by the council
ION the suspension Of the late collee-
tori 10 an olice in the port
of savannah, nearly similar to that for which
nominated him which olliee heaetually holds
at this time, 10 these reasons for nominating