St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-03-05
THE EIRnT YEAR

With yesterday closed the first year
of the HARRISON administration. Am
pie time and opportunity have been
given to show the stuff it is made of
and what is to be expected of it in the
future. An impartial verdict will be
that up to this time the administration
has been of rather negative than a
positive quality. and that its sins out
weigh its virtues. LII the main, it has
been respectable enough in its way. yet
utterly lacking in those positive quail
tiles which excite popular confidence,
and wholly without those brilliant
traits that arouse admiration. The sins
of the administration have been princi-
pally those of omission, although, in a
few instances, most fragrant OutrageS
have been committed. AS for policy,
the HARRISON administration has none,
TOr has it manifested any inclination
to frame one. The nearest approach
to anything like policy has been Mr..
WINDOWS silver shinplaster scheme.
which, after all, is only a cunning and
dishonest device to demonetiZe silver.
So far as the president himself is con-
cerned, he has said nothing nor sug-
gested anything worth repeating. His
time has been principally occupied with
factiOnal quarres in his own party and
in endeavOring to eXtricate his party
from the fulfiIlment Of the silly pledges
made i'll the Chicago platform. A nOta-
bic illustration of this was the severe
treatment Corporal TANNER received
for trying to carry into effect the prom
ises made to the Grand Army men. Mr..
BLAINE's Pan-American scheme had
brilliant opening, but sputtered out be-
fore it was fairly lighted. The dis
cOvery that the international con-
gress was to be worked i'll the
interest of steamship subsidy, instead
of extending our commercial relations
with the South American states, seemed
to have disguised the delegates about as
thoroughly as it did the American pub
lie. Mr.. WANAMAKER's pious admin
istration of postal affairs has provoked
more ridicule than enthusiasm, while
Attorney General MILLER's studied
efforts to pro ect the DUDLEY gang
from prosecution presented the groSseSt
travesty on the administration of JUS
tice that this country has ever witnessed.
The single redeeming feature of the
HARRISON administration has been
Secretary TRACY'S buSnesS-like man
agement of the navy department. In
stead of affecting to be refOrmer, Gen.
TRACY had the good sense to follow in
the footsteps of his Democratic
predecessor, and, taking up the
work where Mr.. WHITNEY left
off, and following closely on the
line that the latter had marked
out. he has made arecOrd for himself as
the business man of the administration,
and. at the same time, has performed
valuable public service by getting the
navy into such shape that it can be
relied on in any emergency.
Civil service reform has Jared badly
at the hands of this administration: and
as for tariff refOrm,it isn't even thought
of. The president and his cabinet have
been painfully silent with reference TO
any measure proposing reduction of
the taxes or an equitable REIMBURSEMENT
of the tariff. Nor is there any indica-
ton that they have ever bothered their
brains on this subject. They have
given some attention to getting
rid of the big surplus that the
CLEVELAND administration left be-
hind, alftl have been reasonably
successful in squandering it. Secretary
WINDOW has informed congress that
the appropriations for the next fiscal
year must be materially increased; so it
is fair to assume that if the HARRISON
administration has any well defined tax
policy, it is to increase the burthen of
taxation rather than to relieve it.
The general effect of the first year of
the HARRISON administration upon the
country is entirely different from what
its friends promised itshould be. They
promised flush times and general re-
vival of business. Instead, we have
general depression in industrial life
and the most stringent financial condi-
ton the country has experienced in
many years.
Whether the HARRISON administra-
ton is at fault or not, it certainly suf-
fers in comparison with the first year
Of Mr.. CLEYELAND'S term.