Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1889-02-25
The Executive Power of the United
States Government.

The great mass of work imposed
upon the executive power of the gov
ernment-embracing so many dis
tinct subjects, and requiring so many
thousands of agents to perform
must be arranged and treated in an
orderly and systematic manner To
expect the president to give it his
close personal attention and directly
superintend the doings of each agent,
would be absurd. The magnitude
and diversity of the work demand its
separation into parts, and the gener-
al supervision or management of each
part must be intrusted to a separate
officer. On this business basis, and
in accordance with the design of the
constitution, congress has divided
the work among even executive de-
| ~partments, each in charge of a gener-
al officer OF ''head of Department."
known respectively, as the secretary
of state, the secretary of the treasu-
ry, the secretary of war, the attorney
general, the acknowledgement, the
secretary of the navy, and the secre-
tary of the interior; and the work of
each department is still further sub
divided and distributed among "bu-
reaus" and "divisions" and minor
s'offices," in charge of lesser heads
or chiefs, designated as ~''commision-
ers,' "superintendents "directors,"
and by various other special titles.
An executive department., then,
properly means one of the grand di-
visions of government work boldly
marked out or suggested by the ex-
press provisions of the constitution.
These grand divisions readily arrange
themselves. The sovereign relations
of the republic with foreign powers,
and its official intercourse with the
government of the states at home
may be regarded as one distinct
grand division accordingly, we have
the department of state. The coin
age, currency revenue, and general
fiscal affairs suggest another great
branch of work hence, we have the
department of the treasury. The
mention of armies suggest work that
in time of trouble is likely to tax the
energy of a separate division; thus,
we very appropriately have a depart
ment of war. The prosecution of Of
lenses against the United States, and
other judicial matters wherein the in
terests of the republic are concerned
constitute a general division, repre-
scented by a department of Justice.
The postal service, as n of the most
intricate and important branches of
government work, certainly forms
another grand division; therefore,
we have the post-office department.
Maritime protection, like the military
or land defense, forms a separate di-
vision; and thus we have the depart
ment of the navy. The various mat
tiers of domestic concern, not covered
in these other departments, but con
templated by the constitution, such
as the census, public lands, patents,
and '1odds and ends," may be con-
veniently grouped into another gen
eral division and thus we have the
very miscellaneous, yet not misnam-
ed department of the Interior.
To some of these executive depart
ments are intrusted matters which,
on their face at least, do not strictly
belong to the grand division to which
they have been assigned by law,
For instance, the "weather bureau
is a bureau of the war department
the work being intimately connected
with the peaceful interests of agricul-
ture and commerce., it is very gener-