The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1895-08-18
NINE F1.uoUs G sBINETs'
Conspicuous Advisers Of fres'"'"
<u,nber.

IL
The Cabinets which take "'' ,beir
in the ability and s1ahoine ~. work
members. the Importance OF w ,s,,rs
which they dd. or in both charac'si,Ss'
were those OF Washington ,,,a,c..
Monre. Harrison. Polk. Fillmore, i 'r,,,s
Litcoln. aud hayes. In w as, ,,,n,-ief-
Cabinet there were only TWO MI tt.,,,l-
ferson, Secretary Of state, anu of pre-
ton. SecTeta4 o. the ,,n,her Was
eminent abiAl.. nut th.st 49,
lust half of the whole CABINET .,odsrs
Jefferson and Hamilton. as the iou" n,ht
Of the two schools OF political 'no .'''sr,
into which the people OF the Couas's
have been divided from the pee.ahs
are sure Of a llace among the HIM. - he
Hamuton's (the treasury Was Ssn.. or.
more important post, dltho *, ,arior rank
usage ana tradition assign sul - STATE
to the other office. the head oi '"'
Department. ,,.-.,,,v weak,
Adams oabiaet WAS inherenuy ,s.s,,st
and MAS rendered particularly iheiis
by the circumstances that most ~ ~.
members thought they owed aiies'r'S ~,
TO Hamilton. Adams enemy, rather - -,
10 Adams. and because Adams se -,
consulted tF~m. Jefferson's CaDlHee' g.,
ever, had two strOns meh- -, -,
rotary of state, and Gallallu' ~ ,nes,.
OF the Tteasury-at the outset, an arst
al
order OF ability IN Caesar n No-....,'G an
Delaware VINO was made Atlolhe, -
eral early in 1891 two years oet't1 ina
f.lson's retirern. Galldun helu ~
Treasury portfolio for rev S,.,,,,
Madison's Cabinet also, but ne sSaiI
won the same measure OF success So
gained I'm Ieffersqu's. Monroe tue ,t,N
rotary Of state for six years uiluer No
son. was not the equal OF MS great PR
decessors In that Office. William H.
Crawford. the Secretary OF war ior
short time under Madison, won his iautelS
in the next Cabinet.
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS ADVISES
With John Quincy Adams, Secretary OF
State; W. IA. Crawford. Secretary oil 'ne
Treasury; John <. Calhoun, Secretary OF
War. and William Writ, Attorney
eral. it Will be seen that Monroe mao
Cabinet which reached as high leNei III
general ability as any which the couh-
try has known.
Adams own Cabinet did not stand as
high ia general ability as the one III
which he served, although Writ was
retained in the post he held under Mon
roe, and Clay was Secretary OF S,dtV.
But Jackson's Cabinet stood lower than
Adams. The demos krateo,' TO employ
Benton's jargon. run the country during
Jackson's reign. ana in harmony win
this condition secOnd-class men were the
sort OF officials whom Jackson in most
cases appointed. A divergence from TINS
principle was made in the case OF Van
Buren,, who was Secretary OF state for
two years Lewis Cass. not yet known 10
fame however was Secretary or War
under Jackson for about six years, ana
Van Burens friend, b. +. Butler, hrst-
class lawyer and an accomplished man,
but not "A national figure AT that time,
was Attorney-General for a time. Levi
Woodbury., who held two posts in the
Cabinet, and who served IN Congress
before and after and on the Supreme
Bench in the end. was a fairly capable
official Woodbury. and Butler are the
biggest names in Van Buren's Cabinet.
W. II. Harrison. a third-class man
himself. had four first-class men-Webster,
Thomas Ewing, Bell and John J. Critten-
denim his cabinet and the SILVER Gray"
Of a later date, Francis Granger, the
P0sfHs stfr-General. was "A parsonage or
considerable ability and celebrity. The
Cabinet which Tyler got after Harrison's
left him was OF a distinctively lower
order. although IL had Legare and Cal
houn for short time In the State De-
partment. Folks Cabinet, with Buchan-
an, Walker Cthe father OF the celebrated
free trade" tariff Of 1916, and subse-
quently. one OF the Territorial Governors
OF Kansas. Marcy and Bancroft (the his
tOrian). compares favorably with all ex-
cept the very greatest before or since its
day.