St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-04-16
JEFFERSON MATERIAL1zED.

If the shade of the immortal JEFF
ferson, returning to see what trib-
ute his followers were paying to his
memory on the day noted as having
witnessed his birth, and how they
maintained his principles and poll
cies, had f1oated into the hall where
the Minneapolis Democrats were
banqueting the other night, the glow
of honest pride that would. have
suffused his face as he listened to
the panegyric of Col. Reeve would
have changed to chagrin as he heard
Mr.. Ankeny proclaim the doctrine
that to the victors belong the spoils,
a chagrin deepened by the applause
that followed.
Could he have found voice we can
imagine him gravely rebuking the
speaker and applauders, and remind
ing them that, if they held such
views, the celebra ton of the natal day
of another statesman would be the
appropriate place to vent them, not
his. when I took the high Office of
president" we can fancy him tell
ing the banqueters, 81 found every
office filled with FederaGsts and not
a Republican, as we were then called,
among them. So apprehensive, in
deed, were our opponents of our in
coming that they packed the fed
eral bench against us, my retiring
predecessor sitting up until midnight
to sign the commissions of the
judges. We repealed that law be-
cause we believed it ubiquitous and
needless, but we did not follow the
precedent set by these precursors
of a bad system, and re-enact it
to let me fill the places with our
partisans. That was not my concep-
ton of the fit use Of government.
Let me remind you, oh, Demo-
Gratis, how, guided by my Democratic
ideas of government and it's civil
service, I acted as your first presi-
dent. Before my inauguration 1
assured my people that no man who
had conducted himself according to
his duties need fear me, as those
who had done i'll need have no
hope, whatever their political prin-
ciples may be. I did say that as va
cancies came they should be filled
with those Of my party until an
equilibrium was reached. Pressed
by my people for place then, as my
successors fhave been, I directed
that removals from office of our op-
ponents must be as few as possible,
be done gradually, and be bot
toned on some malversation or in
herent disqualification. Mere diff
ference in political principle, if prac-
ticed within the range of the rights
of every citizen, where the character
and fitness of the incumbent were
otherwise good, I held was not
ground for removal.
ut has grieved me to see my sue
cessors depart from this sound view
of our public service, and have seen
with satisfaction and increased hope
for the future of the republic
which it was my happy lot to be
able Ito aid in founding, the return to
the practice of the views I initiated
by the sterling Democrat who now
sits in the chair I once filled. 1 adj
jure you, my children, to be true to
the traditions of our party and to
that conception of a republican gov
eminent I held and acted on. as
you would insure the perpetuity of
our institutions, and I warn you
that in this spoils of Office system
you have just now so thoughtlessly
applauded lies the danger of the
blood-poisoning of the republic"
Then sadly the shade vanished.