The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-01-17
PUBLIC GIFT GIVING.


The workingmen at the Franklin mine
recently presented their superintendent
with valuable watch and chain as an
expression Of regard. When the war
broke out nearly every cornstalk captain,
before he left his state, was given a sword
by his company or by his grateful and adj
miring countrymen, who preferred the
rage to the cruel war rather than compel
the government to resort to draft.
Every railroad superintendent who has
done his simple duty by his employers and
employed is always in danger of having
gold watch given him by his men, who
can i'll spare money for baubles at home.
Every foreman in machine shop is in
danger of like embarrassment. There is
no sense in this custom. The persons
who receive these gifts are generally manly
fellows, who are really embarrassed by
watches, sealskin caps and silver tea sets
given in this way.
An upright employer or superintendent
of labor can accept with pride the respect
and friendly feeling of his men, but public
gifts Of this sort only make a stock presen-
tation scene, with its memory of fulsome
compliment, sickening to all parties con-
cerned. The presentation" nuisance
deserves to be abated. Sometimes state
legislatures are the scene of such perform
ances. The speaker of the House gets "a
present" at the close of his official term;
the members ''pass the hat" and he is sur
prised with shower of silver.
If he is conviyicl he is given silver
pitcher and goblets from which he can
temper his toddy 70 the tenderness of his
stomach exasperated by the irritation of
the alcoholic bronchitis; if he is not con-
viyial he is given gold watch and chain,
and sometimes even the obseluious door
keeper is given a silver watch of cost
commensurate with his limited official
usefulness and inferior political influence.
If the speaker is on the eve Of matrimony
he is given silver tea set; sometimes, if
the "gift" mania runs high, even the pages
get present"
The thing has come TO be a nuisance and
subject for ridicule among sensible men,
and of late no collection is taken
up for the departing speaker, the
urbane doorkeeper or the nimble
and lively Ariels of the tempest
in a teapot" tossed legislature. Of
recent years il has begun to dawn on
the legislative mind that there are other
| and more decent and decorous ways of
acknowledging the urbanity and ability OF
the presiding officer than by making him
| present in silver or gold.
The simple vote of thanks. gracefully
| expressed and cordially voted, is the only
legitimate compliment that is worthy of
acceptance by public officer outside of
| his legal official emoluments. The whole
business of puplic gift-giying to holders
of business or public trusts is always q
| silly and generally sordid act. Duty to
| business or political trust cannot hon.
orably accept any gift more palpable than
| praise or more tangible than thanks, and
| a man fit for a respectable trust shrinks
| with sincere disgust from holding out his
hands publicly TO catch a silver teapot,
| tossed to him by coarse-haired commit
| tee Of corrupt or vulgar local politicians,
| or from bending his neck to the moose of a
| gold chain and watch, offered him by fell
| lows who believe that duty can be bought
with brides and public virtue bewitched
| with picture book.
1t should be the rule OF self-respecting
| political leaders, great and small. never to
receive gift of any kind; this rule would
be salutary protest against a degrading
and debasing habit of treating every pub
| lie man as if he was an African chief or q
| Sioux warrior who had to be propitiated
| by q present of calico, beads, rum
and gunpowder, in order to secure
| his good behavior or his grateful
remembrance that he knows he did his
! duty. because his silver presentation"
teapot and his time-piece both remind
| him of it.
He knows whether he did his duty
| when he sees his present, and if he is a
man honest with himself he strongly
! suspects that if he had really done his
whole duty he never would have been
thought worthy of present.
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