The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-02-19
TO MIR. CLEVELAND.
A Keen Edged Letter by
Judge Edgerton.
WHY EAcH WAS REMOVED.
The Presidents Defense In the Ear-
simore ..ssn'' gevfewed-His
Inflated Idea Of Himself.
WHY ZACH WAS REMOVED.


Of efviiserviee commissioner. has written
"a epea letter 70 the president. He viii
sAy. Efnaag sther tAsngs:
4 was izssehted 70 yoa for the snly a--
DoiufSse ctf5ce ever Essz. Veg now g.
clare by yoar action that you regres The APP
Fso1EElaent- !. with equal right, can say /
regret me aceSptAnee. Year regret was
never male known 20 sae br yoa IN aur
wesa o. atte-&nee or action. Until now az
the close OF your administration. and on
Tne day befors NJ removal | presume
there we're prr6eAttal political reasons
Hky yoa did nos lzAke the removal until
after the election. IN this regard. * xoala
almost szeE - If yen were willing TO play
false with the Mug 70 enable yosl 70
win with the Democrats
Ine resast os the eSeeEsun placed ycu In
dilemma frcra which few people wo.zid
IN re &1AaEz h1E 70 Exswienfs eEesu<ez4ss
You found man on year hands whom the
MlgwHmrs nsd declared war up81 and an
enemy 20 shetr ciyts servzee nsforl sheo-
rfes. and your plan Of becoming their rep
reseniatsge IN rhe future uould be weak
enE1 unless : firm assurance Of y0ar n8et- !
IT, 20 fne1r czslse coaiG be secured. Ae-
eordlagsy Is appears thai yoa decided Gren i
the removing Of the head Of the e0mfsafs- |
sion and deeming Them Esos1 good enough 1
NugwaEap Tor fheza. you therefore de-
r2Ssl4ed x1y resignation that YOU might an {
rseant hlgn, apparently as al st0neuenf for /
foar previous Ia2cI0l
MIR. President. with due courtesy ID the !
high once yca hold. allow me 10 say you i
are very peculiar Eata-s positive man.
positively wrong or positively right and 4
Therefore 81 unsafe man fn trust and that /
element IN your character believe led 70 4
yonr defeat Pope says tie most positive /
mea are TIE Tsost cre1uio1s, since they 1
raust believe theanseive and advise most
with fhetr fellow aatferers aud worst enc
EnIes. Being one Of that kiEsd OF positive i
men yourself. yea have some men of ike I
character aroRud you, who are positive /
oniy In their malice and eonceff. The /
Germans say there is Eothing man will /
not believe IN his own favor. You were /
ececHlous enough 20 helieve voa were !
elected president by the Mugwumps. and !
therefore seE pernltssd them &C malign I.
your real friends and to Hatfer yol into l
3 policy which led 20 your defeat You /
ara q man who woald not permit
your real friends % admonish yoa with free
dom and confidence, and the result is you
have suffered from want OF friends. and I,
your wrecked and wFefched greatness has
discovered that there Is no true success In I
life without the power and blessing uS |
friendship. You believed your will and 1
the power 20 eslforce il was ADORE ali pow !
egs, bar the viii Of the people, expressed |
Ia the constitutional way, has taught yUu |
that there WAS wiser and 0eiser way than (
thai chosen by you Y0a VIII De cefasared i
and condemned because yog Put no trust
In yoGr own party. bglt believed yourself 80 i
be better than yonr own aud greater than I
ali parties. foa have ascertained that the I
mas were not made for the one. Yen can
Ead as many reasons for removing me as 4
Tie Democratic party, through an indifer-
euee which Was simply rctalzat0ry, had !
for removing yeH- / snail be quite willing j
10 remain with you IN the gloom OF defeat : !
The judge proceeds 10 give bis under /
standiag OF the civil service law, and con
tinaes. Il do not ask you to give any /
reason for removal. ] know. and 50 do /
you, that the oaly one You could give /
would be that il was your viii. for II you !
attempted to give AMI other your previous !
words would prsve ii untrue. IN my In /
terytew with you before the removal yor !
expressly diseiaired having any reason /
for II except my refusal 10 resign 70 enable i
you 10 make Mr.. Thompson s nomination. |
Removed Is a word of far-reaching po-
tency, especially when the record does not |
explain, and | ara conscious of this and |
deeply pained by the Consciousness that
the people have the right 10 know fhe
truth in al matters OF this kind, and for
this reason only do l address you I can
not, Ike You. take q prayer for relief
10 the public such as the article
seemed 20 be in the Baltimore Saa OF the
18th. This is the 6rst time in the history Of
the government that an outgoing President
has found II necessary TO assert through
the newspapers his particular work during
his term of Office and his claim upon his
party and country for approval Between
the lines can be read special plea for re-
election. | can foiut to anolhes removal
than mine, beyond parallel, TO so down
through history when shall be forgotten.
Before do so let me refer as proof of your
ignorance of public opinion. and not of
yoEr Indifference to Il, 10 what you say In
the Saa article of Mr.. BErnes of Missouri,
IS oae Ros guilty Of the annoyance 10
by country members OF congress
in introducing 20 ycH their constituents,
because he always presented his eOHsftrn-
ents at pahiic receptions II Mr.. Barnes
were living he coald tell you another rea.
son, which he often told 10 Others; that he
had been rudely treated by you snd b ad
10 respect for yon personally, and ascribed
the defeat OF the Democratic party 10 your
ignorance OF IL Ii was necessary that you
should make some such explanation for
your attack Hpon way back members,
but you were unfortunate in the selection
of your witness-one of the ahlest and
nohiest Legislators in congress
II was on the floor OF the house uf rep
TesearatiyeS during the time the votes OF
the electoral college were counted: and
heard the announcement Of the result,
that ReAlam. n Harrison was duly elected
president OF the United States. but the
words that burned deep through the empty
boxes of the administration ceuld net be
officially added, though known 90 De t-us,
III EsaGS Oh U(VfEf GsEfEkA0l. fT&n0fx<2.
by whom and for what cause removed
The answer Is now being made iu every
home and every business boSse In the
land. aud history viii insetihe IL npon ali
its records
Judge Edgertcn attributes Cleyeiand's
defeat 10 hts disregard OF n. opSuisu aud
advice OF tie most eminent men ef his
party. and 10 his political ingrsutnde. and
continues - follows in she statement
of your puzzle acts. ~ printed Ia fGe >aa
article. referring 30 thss declaration, Mlea
Mr.. Cleveland came into Office he iaand
THE departments siled with ineotnpetents
who had found pes sfaaneRt lodsmeRs there
I through fayoritisFss, etc. how can you say
yqr found the departments Elied with
incompetentS and YET retained ali
iH Office during your administration
There IS q mistake somewhere. Did you
not know. Mr.. President, THAI aeazEy three
f01rsns OF az the persons aow in ofisee Ia
] the departmental service were there in
isssse Yes VIII saon have no power OF re-
mos a.. and the places they bold win nos
be sabsscs 20 year CLEARING 0Qt egforts
Iou aayf saus yoar eyeS - the fact that
these clerks have beca active 2ad success
fal IN aiding you IN yavr own clearing cut,
AEG the Tss0T civslse7sfec sligfbscs still
have The wide scope yen have secared for
thsFn on outside, While the sncosnpetcats
are rejoicing within. Non do Hos under
stand tie civil service law. Mr., President
rs examinations are 1ot Ea ade Tor those
inside. but for thasr outside Year theory
IA actioG would defeat the isw. 1on have
not dared 10 sega 0Es the i8conpeteuts.
fnsge Edeertoa concludes with crit