Morning journal and courier., 1886-03-12
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS. NUTS FOR CLEVELAND. Senator Wilson Takes
 His Inning. JAKE SHARPE BIDS DEFIANCE To The Knights Of Labor
 Committee. \ MAN DIES FROM SNEEZING. Gladstone Meets His First
 Def. at.
A MAN DIES FROM SNEEzING.
SENATOR WILSON SPEAKS.

SENATOR WILSON SPEAKS. A Scathfng Review of President CleVeland's PreteRsfORs to Civil Ser vice Reform-The Right of the Sen- ate to Know the Reasons Why OM- cials Have Been Suspended.
 WASHINGTON, March 1.-The large crowd that was present again to-day in the Senate seemed as interested as ever in the discussion regarding the Attorney Generals refusal to furnish the papers in the case of the suspen- sion of District Attorney Ruskin of Alabama. Among the preliminary matters was memo rial from New York presented by MT. Evarts praying for the confirmation of the negro
 John c. Matthews as Fred Douglass success sor. MT. Logan presented the minority re- port on the Fitz John Porter case, which is the same as that presented by the minority last year except that it embodies General Logan's letter in reply to General Grants ar ticle in the North American Review justify ing the conduct of Fitz John Porter
 At o'clock Mir. Wilson, of Iowa, took the floor in support of the Judiciary committee's resolutions. He charged in opening that for the first time in the progress of this govern ment its executive power has been used in making an assault upon the character and reputation of it's citizens. He followed this charge with caustie review of the Presi- dents civil service utterances, and contrast ing them with his conduct President accused him of insincerity in his civil ser
 vice reform professions. The people had generously given the President credit for sin
 +J, oJ,o 0th
 political must be lodged against public officer before he should be suspended, and vet he had suspended 643 officers as persons unworthy of trust and confidence. If hs had said to them, "You are Republicans and if you don't resign will remove you,' he would have dealt with them frankly and man. ifested manliness which should have chal- lenged the respect of his political opponents. The people had appreciated the difficulties surrounding his assumption of the execu- tive power, but they could not reconcile his actions in suspending competent and faithful officers with his repeated assurances that such things would not be done. He had said that men would not be discharged for partisan reasons, but only for cause. The people had believed that he had the courage of his convictions. This res ulted in a universal belief that charges other than po- litical should be lodged against polite Il of ficer before his suspension could be secured. It had logically followed that whenever an officer was suspended the people believed some grave charge had been made against him. Indeed, every suspended officer was by the Presidents own declaration made to stand before the country as unworthy of trust. He had suspended 643 public officers and marshalled them before the country as persons unworthy of trust and confidence. Many of them had requested to be informed of the nature of the charges against them. This had been denied. In this way the executive power was being used means of assault against the reputation of the citizens of the re- public No such outrage had been inf1ict- ed on our citizens from the first year of our national existence until the incoming of the present administration-its pomp and circumstance to the contra " notwithstanding. It was most extraordinary manifest ot reform for the President to place himself before the country as the accuser of 643 public officers he had suspended, at the same time deny ing to them information as to the things as to which they were accused. The President had now asked the Senate to join him ill his accusations. When the Senate requested to be informed concerning the official conduct of the accused officers it hatly told that no information would be given and this re- gardless of the effect the citizen. This
 was not the theory of the constitution, MT.
 Wilson said. It contrary to both the
 
 the beginning.
 Mir Wilson read section 1, ,76S of the re- vised statutes relating to suspensions from office during recess of the Senate giv- ing the President authority in his discretion
 to suspend any civil officers appointed by the consent of the Senate except judges un- til the end of the next session of the Senate.
 Mr. Wilson inquired, what did this meant
 Who might exercise this discretion? Not
 Grover Cleveland, but the President.
 Grover Cleveland is person; the President is an officer The discretion delegated was not a personal discretion, but official discretion. Official discretion must be sxercied for lawful pur-
 poses and in lawful ways. Hence Grover
 Cleveland may not suspend from office in
 his personal discretion, the President may do it in his official discretion. What did this imply? What but that some cause connect ed with the public good must impel him to act It was this that. vitalized official dis cretion. Official discretion was hedged about by law, recognized custom, long prac- tice and established methods. The President had overlooked or disregarded this rule in his action. He had failed to keep in mind the distinction between the individual and public officer. His Cabinet seemed to have confounded personal caprice and official duty. Hence the affirmation of the Presidents pre- rogative and the affirmation that that pre- rogative might not be encroached upon. Thisk ingly phrase implied that the Presi- dent must not be questioned or held respon- sible for anything he may do in his discre- l tion, even though his act may be unlawful | This phrase gave tone and character to the definition of the new order of things which had been established in this republic \ in respect to executive power. The outraged | citizen who stood arriagned before the coun- | try by the President as being unworthy of confidence must not inquire concerning charges made against him because that would | ba alive of the possessor of executive power; and when the Senate called for l information on the government files \ in order that that citizen may | have fair play, common justice and oppor | tunity for defense, it is coolly informed that l the public interests would not be promoted | by the giving of such information. Thus l the kingly prerogative of the President plac 1 ed under lock and key the public records of
 the country. If this were reform the sooner | we returned to the old practice the better. MT Wilson referred to the constitutional | amendments proposed by the first Congress 1 to show the anxiety of the founders ot the | government that the rights and reputation of 1 accused persons should be protected by con- ! fronting them with the witnesses against then. The President had said that this ad- | ministration was to act ''behind glass doors" | and WAS to sthaye no secrets" but it had not l lasted long. The administration was loaded down with secrets and the glass doors hSQ DeeA ADAuoOneu | In conclusion he said the administration had
 been engaged in a comedy of errors,' and it's position in the light of all that had been
 promised was not little discouraging.
 MT. Kenna obtained the floor to speak on
 the resolutions to- morrow afternoon at two
 o'clock Mr. Stanford submitted resoi utions,
 which were unanimously agreed to, express ing the Senates sorrow over the death of
 Senator Miller, of California, and providing
 for the removal of his remains from Wash
 ington to San Francisco in charge of the ser- | geant-at arms and five Senators.
 The Senate at 3:45 went into executive
 session and at 6 o'clock, when the doors
 were reopened, adjourned. While in execu-
 tive session resolutions were adopted inviting
 the President and his Cabinet, ths Supreme
 court, House of Representatives and foreign
 legations to be present at the funeral services
 of the late Senator Miller on Saturday. Sen
 ators Jones, Frye, Cullom, Butler and Gray
 will accompany the remains to California.
 HoUsE.-After the morning hour expired
 the House mt into Committee of the
 Whole. MT. Townshend of Illinois in the