Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1893-03-20
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Washin gton, Mar. I3, 1892.
4 SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE OF THE MONITOR

Washington, Mar. u, 1892.
One of the most difficult roles ever
attempted by public man is that of
setting himself up as being better
than his party. This the friends of
Mr.. Cleveland have persistently done
for him ever since his entrance into
National politics, and the claims of
his worshipers about his having re-
fused to make one single promise
during the last campaign have been
louder than ever since his last inaug-
uration. Well, the idol has been
shattered, and in view of the whole
world. One of the most prominent
nominations to office he has made
Ex-Governor Gray, of Indiana, to be
minister to Mexico-was the result of
a bargain made at the Chicago con-
vention, not, it is true, by Mr.. Cleve-
land in person, but by his personal
representative at that convention,
Hon. w. @. Whitney, of New York.
The terms of this bargain were that
Gov. Gray was to Withdraw as a
Presidential candidate and throw the
Indiana delegation to Mr.. Cleveland,
and in return was either to have
place in the cabinet or a first class
foreign mission, if Mr.. Cleveland were
nominated and elected. That bar
gain has now been carried out by Mr..
Cleveland, just as any other politician
would have carried it out, and it is
about time there was a cessation Of
the talk about his being better than
his party.
Mr. Cleveland's ingenious method
of knocking the army of office seek
ers out by sections, as it were, shows
that he is wiser man than when he
was President before, and has furn-
ished no end of amusement for those
not after office, as we'll as for the Of
flee seekers not in the prescribed sec
tions. First, he disposed of the sec
ton that were after the offices held
under four years commissioner by tell
ing them that no official would be re-
moved until the expiration of his
term, except for cause. Next he
jumped on the section that held office
under his first administration, all of
whom were here ready and willing,
not to say anxious,to again affix their
autographs to the official pay roll, by
telling them that none of them would
receive an appointment, unless it
were in some exceptional case where
special qualifications were demanded
that were not possessed by any new
applicant And his last Knockout
was directed at the democratic edi
tors who are hankering after the Off
cial flesh-pots. His words ON this
subject are herewith quoted for the
especial benefit of the editors of your
democratic contemporaries, who
might otherwise make the mistake of
expecting an office. II have been
surprised,'' said Mr.. Cleveland to a
Congressman who called on him in
the interest of a democratic journa
list, ''to notice the very large number
of newspaper men who have made
application for office. / remember
that during the recent campaign, and
in fact during almost the whole of the
last administration, the democratic
newspapers charged that in the APP
pointments of Whitelaw Reid, and
other journalists Mr.. Harrison was at
tempting to substitute the press. Now,
don't you see that I should be laying
myself open to precisely the same
charges if were to honor the drafts
made on me by newspaper men9 do
not like the idea, either, which the
editors of little democratic papers all
over the country seem to have, that
they are entitled to the Office of post
master in tn cir town.