Morning journal and courier., 1892-07-05
THE PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE.

Presidential Office, and the Powers and
Duties of the Chief Executive of the |
Nation" After the Introductory remarks |
The speaker touched upon the checks and |
counter balances of our government and
compared them with those of England and
France. He then spoke of the burden
which devolves upon the president in re-
lation to the direction Of those great
measures of foreign democratic policy
which, either by the general provisions of
the constitution or by express statutory
enactments, are intrusted to the discretion
of the president. Such is the conduct of
foreign relations. The duties
herein involved are a sufficient burden to
lay upon the shoulders of any one man.
Instead. however, of being thus confined
to the larger and more important fields of
action, the time of the president under the
present system is absorbed by certain
forms of detailed administrative work,
whose importance is entirely out of pro-
portion to the exalted character of the Of
fee. These details include vast number
of minor appointments to Office; the hear
ing and decisions of applications for par
don; the examination, with view to ap-
proval or disapproval, of numerous acts
of congress, many of them of extremely
limited scope; the review of the findings of
courts martial in the army and navy; the
supervision of the details of business in
the executive departments, several of whose
heads have regular days for consultation
assigned to them during every week of the
year; and, finally, the duty of listening to
the views of those best qualified to advise
or best entitled to be heard, in frequent
consultation and deliberation upon all the
subjects above mentioned.
In the earlier period of our national his
tory these routine duties of the presiden-
tial duties were far from onerous.
The speaker then made a comparison of
the small work of the days of 100 years ago
as compared with the vast burden of to-
day which falls upon the president. The
total number of appointments to Office
made by Washington during the frat four
years of his administration, excluding
those pertaining to the military establish
ment, did not exceed 300, and all his civil
appointments, during his two terms of
Office, were not more than 400 in number
During the same period only Is pardons
were issued by the executive, and but 378
acts Of congress were submitted for ex-
animation and approval. The senate con-
sAotoA VI ~ AACAubOL5 hA0 LILO uOuS0 u W.
representatives.
The receipts of the treasury for the year
ending June, 1880, were 81, III ,343. and
the expenditures for the same year were
So, 797, 436.
In 1890 we had but seventy-fve post
masters in all the United States of Ameri-
ca. Neither Washington, nor Adams, nor
Jefferson, nor any of our presidents until
the nation was nearly half q century old,
ever appointed one of these officers. They
were known as deputy postmasters, and
were appointed by the postmaster general.
This continued to be the practice until
1886, when congress passed an act to
change the organization of the postofice
department, by the thirty third section of
which it is provided that there shall be
appointed by the president of the United
States, by and with the advice and consent
of the senate, deputy postmaster for each
postoMce at which the commissions al
lowed to the postmaster amounted to
1000 or upward, who shall hold Office
for term of four years, unless sooner re-
| master ever appointed by a president of
| the United States was Jonathan J. Cod
| dington, for the city of New York, who
| was appointed on the 5th day of July,
1886, gave bonds OF 100000, and held
| Office until 1912.
| In 1902 twelve years after the founda
ton of the government, when our receipts
had increased to nearly SIS, O00,0 900 and
| our expenditures to more than S13, 600 600
| when the Union numbered sixteen states
the house of representatives al members
and the number of postoffices had in
creased to 1, ia. the total number of clerk
in the employ of the government in all thu
| departments was but 1879.
In 1910, when the government had beer
established for sixty years, our population
was %, 900, 900; in 1890 it was IS, OOO, 900
In 1850 the Union was composed of 81
states; in 1890 it numbered 40, and 1892
AZ. In 1850 the national wealth was esti
mated at 100000; in 1890 it had reached
the fabulous sum of nearly $64, ZOO, 900,
OOO In 1850 the receipts of the treasury
department were 100000 and the ex
penditures $37,000,000; in 1889 the re-
ceipts were SAB, 000,O 900 and the expendi
lures 1914. 10000 900. In 1850 our postofficel
numbered over $4,000; in 1890 they wer,
63 900, and had been increasing at tho rat,
of 1000 year for the previous ten years
In 1850 the persons employed in the civil
service of the government numbered SO
: 952; in 1892 they number more than ITO,
. 600. In 1850 the senate numbered 60 ant
the house 1898; in 1892 the senate number
IS and the house 356 members.
Marvellous as has been the growth of thi
country in population and in wealth sine
1850, the duties of the presidential offic
have increased in even greater ratio.
In 1850 executive clemency was extend
ed in As cases; in 1892 there were 552 ap
plications for pardon. Only 1877 laws an,
joint resolutions were passed by tn
Thirty-frst congress, and submitted to tn
president for his approval, while 1882
were passed by the Fiftieth Q8S8-S9) Th
number of postofices whose revenues reac
900 a year, and which are therefor
, classed presidential, has grown iron
!. 227 in 1850 to 1856 in 1892. The othe
presidential Offices have increased in uum
, Der from $50 to / 400, making a total O
1866 appointments directly in the hand
of the present executive, as compared wit
/ 797kofices filled during the four years O
the administration of Taylor and Fillmore
Thus we see the tremendous rapidit
with which the duties and burdens of tn
executive Office have increased and are cor
tinually increasing. 1t is still to one ma
that the country looks as its executiv
head, and yet the demands upon his tim
for merely routine work of the Office ar
increasing in compound ratio.
We are now in position to estimat
with considerable accuracy the burden 9
detailed administration which the presiden
inaugurated on March 4, 1898, will be CON
PEELED to take up and perform.
Since 1890 the presidential postoffce
have increased at the rate of 200 veal
They fall vacant at the rate of 800 veal
At this rate the incoming president will b
compelled to commission 1000 postmas
ters during his term of Office, and in ad
dition will have in all the othe
departments-state, treasury, interior, agri
culture and the department of Justice
not less than 1 500 more officials to select
making total of $500 appointments. Thi
is exclusive of the vacancies that may oc
cur among the judges who hold thei
terms for life, and also of any appoint
ments in the military and naval depart
ments. A very conservative estimate G
l. 100 for all these during the four years cal
ries the total number of appointments t
:. $500. Allowing 312 working days to
= year this gives ,249 for the full term o
< four years, thus averaging Al appointment
each business day through the entire ad
ministration, which is enough of itself t.
occupy the whole of each day.
a If you consider that for each one of tn
I 1900 places there would be on an averag
t three applicants, or 1900 in all, eac
backed by written testimonials and man
Q of them supported by friends who see
: and claim personal interviews with tn
president you will even then appreciat