The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-02-19

moval. He had previously given no hint
Of dissatisfaction, had never expressed a
desire for an explanation of the newspaper
charges, if such had come to his knowledge,
and never mad intimated a desire for his
resignation, until the day before he was re-
| moved.
SOUNDS IMPERTINENT.
! Mr.. Edgerton continues:
| OF course, if you believed me unfit for the po-
stion neglectful of duty. you should have re-
| moved me long ago, but presume there were
prudential political reasons why you did not
make my removal until after the election. In
| this regard. 1t would almost seem as if you
| were willing to play false with the mugwumps
J to enable you to win with the democrats And
| here permit me to define the term "mGlsNwump,' ~
| as referring to a class of political refOrmers
who have the spirit OF reformation without
| common sense and good judgment to reform
as reforms are not effected by unjust personal
! denunciatlon, but by reason.
AN ALLEGED DILEMMA.
| The result of the election placed you in di-
| lemma from which few people would have
| known how to eXtricate themselves. You found
| a man on your hands whom the mugwumps
| had declared war upon, an enemy to their civil
| service reform theories and your plan of be-
coming their representative in the future would
| be weakened or defeated if some assurance of
| your fidelity to their cause could not be secured.
| Accordingly it appears that you decided upon
| and, deeming Col. Thompson a good enough
| mugwump for them, you, therefore, demanded
! my le'ination that you might appoint him, ap-
| parently as an atonemept for your previous in
| action.
THE PRESIDENTS PosITIvENEss.
Mr.. Edgerton quotes the Presidents let
| ter tran 5mtting to congress on July %
| last, the fourth annual report of the COM
mission, and says;
Mr.. President, with due courtesy to tho high
office you hold, allow me to say that you are a
very peculiar man, a positive man, positively
wrong or positively right, and, therefore, an
unsafe man to trust; and that element in your
character, l believe, led to your defeat. Pope
credulous, since they most believe themselves,
and advise most with their feilow fatterers and
| worst enemies
FOOLED BY FLATTERERs
Being one of that kind Of positive men your
self you have kept some men of like character
around you who are positive only in their malice
and conceit. They hatter you and have conceit
that would magnify themselves and malignity
that would detract from others. Juvenal says
There is nothing man will not believe In his
own favor" You were credulouS enough to be-
lieve that you were elected President by the
mugwumps and therefore you permitted them
to malign your real friends and to fatter you
into policy which led to your defeat
THE NEED OF FRIENDS.
You are a man who would not permit your
real friends to admonish you with freedom and
confidence, and as result you have suffered for
want of friends, and your wrecked and wretched
greatness has discovered that there is no true
success IN life without the power and blessing of
friendship. You believed that your will and
your power to enforce it was above all powers
but the will of the people expressed in consti-
tutional way has taught you that there was
wiser and better way than that chosen by you.
RETALIATORY INDIFFERENCE.
Mr.. Edgerton goes on to say that he had
hn
persons connected with the civil service
commission and then returns to his attack
upon tae President, saying:
If you can find as many reasons for removing
me as the Democratic party, through an indif-
ference which was simply retaliatory, had for
removing you shall be quite willing to remain
with you in the gloom of defeat.
HIS VIEWS ON THE LAW
He then writes few words as to his
understanding of the civil service law, and
says:
The measures embodied in this law intro
duced a new feature in the administration of
the government. There seems to be necessity
for it, and, although proper in itself. it was an
unpopular measure with the masses of the
people and, especially, with the Democratic
efficacious by gradual process and develop
ment of its utility and by strictly economical
methods.
EXPERIENCE OF OTHER NATIONS.
In other and older nations where similar laws
have come into force their adoption has only
been affected after great lapse of time through
experience and patient deliberation. That any
attempt to expand it per sditltD in this country,
so as to make it provide all departments OF the
government and to make large appropriations
for the purpose necessary, was calculated to
make it more serious, If not to defeat it en-
tirely.
GOVERNED by HIS OWN VIEWS,
That is my opinion of the law, and, acting at
times II. |
strained to look with disfavor upon the attempts
to extend il 50 as TO include every branch Of the
governmental service when such extension was
not required, but really an embarrassment to
the business Of the service and brought into
the commission subjects really foreign to its
purposes. No commissioner could change
the law, and il was never pro
posed to make any change But the
rules made by tho President could include
almost every subject in the governmental serv-
ice There were differences Of opinion in form
ing the rules TO b submitted to the President.
Once adopted by him, they were enforced, the
differences only existing about the proper sub
iects to be acted upon under them. These diff
ferences existed, and, with absolute fidelity to
the law, were calmly discussed.
ONE IMPORTANT SPLIT.
In one important case l differed from the
commission, and have been quite generally de-
nouuc d for doing so by mugwump papers and
'the spirit Of the law" reformers, though up
he'd by the practical reformers and the law
itself. refer to rule iv, section 3, which reads:
service is made, a written statement OF the
cause OF dismissal must be filed with the order
Of dismissal and become part OF the pubic
records This was proposed by Commissioner
Lehman and adopted by Commissioner Oberly,
who, after advising. with several mugwurnps in
New YORK, submitted it TO you. with other rules
for your approval
REJECTED BY TEE PRESIDENT.
You rejected it, and differed by doing so with
the majority Of the commission, but agreed
with me. You were severely ceusured by the
same newspapers which have demanded my re-
moyal. The records Of the commission only
will show wherein differed with my colleagues
on the questions considered, and there cannot
be found on any page one word which shows ms
TO he violator OF the law, or TO justify any
charges Of such violation made against me by
anyone and il had not been associated with
man whose whole life is a protest TO existing
things there never would have been any criti-
csm.
Mr. Edgerton then reclrs TO his removal,
and says he don't care for any other eason
than that assigned by the President. but
that the people have a right 10 know the
truth in all matters Of this kind, and the
record does not explain it.