The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-03-05


/ believed that the interests of the Gov
ernment would be promoted and money
saved to the treasury by the success OF
whatever efforts was making"
II will be remem bered that at this time
Mr. Quincy was the official headsman of
the Cleveland Administration. and his
influence at the White House, and conse-
qnently at Washington, was all-powerful.
He was the assistant secretary OF state,
and yet he has the hardihood to claim
or rather to insist that he honestly be-
lieved that he could divest himself of
his official capacity and as San individ-
uar' secure contracts to promote the
interests of the Government He adj
mits that he was the prime mover in the
formation of company that had
no existence save on paper at
the time the contract was awarded, that
he advised tie company how to proceed
and used his infiuence-as an individual,
of course--to secure the contract, the
company having neither plant nor bona
fide existence at that time, and had
they failed to secure the contract never
would have had. 1t was, of course, as
an individual and not as a
high public official that he secured for
the new company copy of the contract
the old concern had with the department,
and it must have been as can individual
that he read the letter that was sent to
the old contractors asking what they
proposed bidding, and of course as "an
individual. still, when their reply was
received at the patent Office that it was
read and communicated to the new
company.
1t was still as "an individual" that
when the alleged head Of the new COM
pany mentioned" that the chief
draughtsman of the patent Office was
hostile to the new company, that Mr..
Quincy mentioned" this fact TO the
commissioner of patents with the result
that the draughtsman was dismissed.
Ii was still as "an individual that Mr..
Quincy secured additional bondsmen for
the new company in the persons of
Senator Smith Of New Jersey and Mr..
Cable of Illinois, and of course it was as
''an individual" having no beneficial
interest in any stock, or any interest
whatever, legal or equitable, in this
company. nor in its profits, or in this
contract" that Mr.. Quincy, having loaned
money to the ostensible head of the new
company, worked to secure the contract
and push the company into existence.
To man so absolutely disin terested
as this it of course never occurred to Mr..
Quincy that his high official position
ought to deter him from helping his
''friends" secure Government con-
tracts, aud most certainly it never
could have occurred to him that
there was anything improper in having
the commissioner OF patents address a
letter to the old company asking what
their bid would be and then sending
their contract and the information thus
received to the new company, their
competitor
To man so pure-minded as this, so in
nocent, so unsophisticated there is but
one thing to suggest. Hamlets advice
to Ophelia "get thee TO a nunnery" for
you are too pure to mingle with the
wicked of this world. who can see
in such conduct only the
open and brazen shamelessness of man
who being placed in a positition of
honor and trust is determined to work it
for the material benefit of himself and
his friends. A man who can see no inn
propriety in accepting retainer from the
Argentine Government as counsel in
its boundary dispute with Brazil,
TO be tried before President Cleveland,
after holding the Office of assistant sec
retary of state. is too pure n citizen, too
tender a plant to be left out of doors
over night. 1t may never have occurred
to this eminently proper young man
that the wicked people of the world
might misconstrue his motives and
imagine that he was chosen by the Ar
gentine Government because they had
observed his lack Of appreciation of the
eternal fitness OF things when any.
thing was TO .matcrialize for his
welfare, aud engaged him as their coun-
sci solely on account of his
supposed "pull" with President Cleve-
land. OF course Mr.. Quincy knows that
he has never vet demonstrated his abil-
ity MS a lawyer versed in international
law--or in fact in plain everyday COM
mon law. for he has no standing in his
alleged profession, but il would never
occur 90 him that IL was because Of his
influence with the arbiter of the matter
that he was given the fat retaining fee.
Mr.. Quincy has had some experience
as an educator. He conducted "a cam
paign Of education" once. and he must
"a - ......-...l 40 ..xtl.>~ ......,... 90