The Columbus journal., 1893-06-28
Washington Letter.
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[From our regular cOrrespOndent.]
If there is any one class of govern.
ment employees who ought to be abso.
lutely secure in the positions they hold,
no matter how often or how radical the
change in the administration and heads
of departments. surely the Union vet.
Grams shOnld be that class, particularly
the crippled ones. This is not matter
into which politics should enter at all
Long ago congress enacted law stating
in the most explicit language that these
men, should be given preference in all
branches of the civil service, but am
sorry to say that this administration has
violated that law right along whenever
some position. outside OF the classified
service, which was held by veteran was
wanted for Democrat, and not satisfied
with that, Assistant Secretary Simms
took advantage Of the lack Of appropria-
tions by the last congress, which made
the dismissal of sixty-eight clerks from
the general land Office necessary, to dis
miss number of crippled veterans
among them. It was needless act Of
cruelty, and it doubtless seemed all the
harder to the Union veteran who had
left leg or an arm on some battle field
to know that he has been discharged
from the service of the United States,
f.r which he fought, by an ex-confeder-
al, who ut the same time was fighting
'against it.
Two Of these crippled veterans, with
only two legs between them, who were
dismissed called upon Assistant Secre-
tary Simms, who himself lost a leg on
the confederate side, and who was once
governor of Mississippi, to ask for rein
statement, and il the conversation which
was reported to me as having taken
place between them really did occur,
and 1 believe it did, the veterans GER
tainly had insult added to the injury
that had previously been done to them.
When they pleaded for reinstatement
because Of their crippled condition pre-
venting them earning livings for their
families outside of the government ser
vice, Mr.. Simms told them that there
were many crippled ex-confederates
who had to earn their living without en-
ployment from the government and
without being helped out by pensions
from the United States. Your cores
pondent does not believe in reviving or
keeping alive the prejudices of the war,
but he does think that the treatment
meeted out to these Union veterans is
an everlasting disgrace to this admins
tration. The son OF confederate officer
said OF the discharges Of Union veterans:
These men gave four of the best years
of their lives to the preservation Of this
government, and if 1 had my way it
should he high treason to dismiss one Of
them"
Although the officials at the state de-
partment still maintain silly air of
mystery about the resignation Of Minis
ter Paramount Blount, the man who
achieved more nOtOriety in one minute,
by lowering the American flag in Hawaii,
than he had been able to get in all his
previous life, there is little doubt that
he has resigned and that his successor
has been selected. He never would have
been made minister at all except to at
tempt to legalize the illegal acts he per-
formed while acting as "my personal
representative" a position unknown to
the constitution or laws Of the United
States. There are reasons for believing
that his resignation was not voluntary,
but was requested by the administra-
ton for several reasons, chief of which
is its anxiety to crawl out Of the awkward
position in which BlOnnt's acts, while
acting under it's carefully prepared in
structions, have placed it.