The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-31
Breaking Up the Cabinet.

! Once in a while, when news is scarce
the Washington correspondents of some
| of the republican papers turn their at
tention to breaking up Mr.. Cleveland's
! cabinet, A day or two ago the President
| Secretary Gresham and few friends went
/ down to Chesapeake bay on a duck hunt
ing expedition. The following day several
of the republican papers had long dis
patches from Washington, in which ii
was stated that 1t was generally under
stood that the purpose of the President
was not to hunt ducks, but TO
break to Secretary Gresham the
news that his presence in the cabinet
was no longer desired, because his man.
agement of the Hawaiian trouble had not
been creditable to the administration.
That this remarkable story had no foun-
dalton whatever must have been apparent
to every well-informed reader of the dis
patches which contained it, Why should
the President invite Secretary Gresham
to go down to Chesapeake bay in order to
tell him that his resignation from the
cabinet would be acceptablel Could he
not tell him to much better advantage at
the white house2
But the President has never limited that
he was not satisfied with Secretary Ores
hams management of the Hawaiian
affair. On the contrary, there is every
reason for thinking that he is not only
satisfied with it but that it is in entire
accord with his views and wishes. 1t is
only few days since he sent a message
to congress in which he stated fully what
his administration had done in respect to
Hawaii, and he made it clear that he be-
lieved that the policy that had been pur-
sued, since he became President, is the
right one. Those who gave the
message a close and careful read
ing were convinced that the Ha-
waiian question had been dealt with
wisely. Many democratic congressman
who had been inclined to think the Presi-
dent had made mistake were satisfied
that he had not, and expressed a deter
mination to stand by the administration.
Indeed, the message had the effect of
uniting the democrats in congress in sup
port of what the President had done in
respect to Hawaii. They commended and
approved it, and expressed themselves as
being ready to uphold the views it ex-
pressed. What nonsense it is, then, to say
the President wants to get rid of Secre-
tary Gresham on the alleged ground that
the secretary has brought discredit upon
the administration by what he has done
in connection with the Hawaiian matter
Those newspaper sensationalists, not
satisfied with announcing that Secretary
Gresham is to go out of the cabinet, de-
clare that the President is not on friendly
terms with Secretary Hoke Smith, be-
cause of the latter's pension policy, and
that he purposes dropping Secretary
Smith from the list of cabinet officers.
There is about as much truth in this
statement respecting Secretary Smith as
there is in that relating to Secretary
Gresham. 1t is not improbable of
course, that one or both of these secre-
taries may leave the cabinet, but if
either does it will not be because of the
reasons alleged. The President has
found no fault with either of them, and
there is nothing to justify the belief
that he would like either or both of them
to resign.