The Somerset reporter., 1894-07-26
Reforms Quackcry.

1t was Secretary Daniel Lamont Wh0
was to idehlize reform, write, Webb from
Washington to the Boston journal. He
it was who was to drive AWAY all barn.
aeles from the War Department.. to des-
troy the soft service snap. 10 send Il
the front men who have never seen lheir
regiments, and generally to undo pretty
much all that his predecessors had done.
In the noisy, llamboyant proclamation in
which hi, purpose WAS announced Dan
Lamont tool; occasion at least indirectly
To relic upon his predecessors in the
War Office.
There i great dead of difference be
tween Secretary Lamont and his imme-
date prcd'c e>>or in the War Depart
ment. senator Proctor MIS- soldier.
had fought in the trenches. had given
advice at headquarters. and knew The
needs Of the army and of the department
Mr.. Lamont has done none of these
things. If he was old enough to ion tho
army, he did NOT 20. Nor did he send a
substitute like hi> chief. There never
has been a Secretary of W; - entirely
dependent upon hi, Bureau Chiets As is
secretary Lamont, He had no previous
training for the War Department aud lac
has neither taste. disposition nor lime Ia
attend to its duties. lie Is The political
representative ol the Administration ahd
one Of the promoters. or eouservator>.
OF President ClcVrlind's private fortune.
secretary Lamont is the Presidential
syndicate agent. He i, the associate OF
Nm, {. Whitney, of Cal Brice, Of the
of the Philadelphia Traction SNndieate.
lie IS connected with many railroad cor
porations, and with schemes the object OF
which is generally to make money tor
himself, for the President and his friends
His duties at the War Office and his
salary. are Il bagatelle compared with
his private occupations. Accordingly.
the announcement that he WAS to break
up the army ring in the War Depart
ment, and to accomplish 4 wonderful
number Of reforms attracted great
deal of attention.
But some of the smaller fry. the
clerks in the department. We're to hn the
victims of this reform. and all influence
which might be eXcrted in their behalf
to retain them was 10 be dctird The
date liked for the removal of 81 clerks
was June |. The Quarter-master cen
eral. from whose office some of them
were to be removed. protested. But
contarv to his advice. Secretary Lamont
ordered II of the tluartermaster Gener-
ais clerks to be dismissed on June |.
Since then it has been discovered thar
the work could not be brought TO date,
~ required by recent legislation, With
out working the entire force extra hours
each day, which means increased pay or
increase of the force.
Secretary Lamont did not like to re
yoke his action. and he therefore ordered
the transfer of the necessary number OF
clerk. from other bureaus of the Govern
ment. But the new clerks, not being
familiar with the work, could not do it
aS well as those who had been dismissed
and the result is that there are now %
more clerks employed in the Quarter
master Generals Office than there We're
before Secretary Lamont 'reeoguized'
it by discharging Il of the old clerks on
the st of June. Such is "retormf in
the War Department.
But this revolution in tha War Depart
ment has not resulted a was expected
by his friends, 1t was more than Il year
before anything was done. Tim Secre-
tarv Lamont issued about a month aye
an order according to which a great
number of monuments of the soft service
brigade were To tie sent to the 'front.'. to
tlrir regiments. aud Il great number of
War Department clerk. We're To be dis
charged. And secretary Lamont left
Washington, it is said, TO avoid the
storm which was expected to break over
his head Some "a officers We're to be
relieved of duty and sent TO their regi-
ments; but when Secretary Lamont re-
turned to Washington that part of the
order which related to officers was
speedily revised, and instead of sending
"A officers to Join their regiments, all of
the officers named are still at their posts
at Washington, and not A single one has
gone. e