The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-10-29
as ro A FAMILIAR oUorATIoN.

II
business pressing, Of pleasure TOO tempt
ing, we are rarely at pains TO offer to
correct anything cur esteemed contem-
porary, the Journal, states upon any sub
ject. But as II is usually reliable in its
quotations from other authority, We feel
called upon in psrticular instance, and
in the most friendly spirit, as well as in
the interest OF the public, 10 endtagor 10
correct an error q mis-statement, with
the trust that IL may not occur again.
Twice within q few days the Journal
has made bold TO contrast the putlIc
ute Of Major MCKINLEY and Bully
BRYAN with those OF President CLEvE-
LAND, with a View TO pointing out thar
the latter has Teen the author Of phrases
that will live, white the two formtr have
given expression 10 few so neatly turned
as TO justify the belief that they will be-
come TO gensritiohs ahead, familiar quo
AhAioIrs Ahis iuANiSotihs uNHH"H'''"'AN"'
which we would not gainsly, is weak
ened bY the reiterated statement that
President CLEVELAND is the author of
the very familiar and excellent quota
tion, public office is a public trust"
Our bright contemporary, the Warren
Gazette, piokeG the Journsl up on that
the first time Il was declared. For orr-
selves, we are not at all sure that Presi-
dent CLEVELAND ever wrote or spoke
that phrese-''punlic otiice Is 4 putlic
trust" Or if he aid he only used ii as
thousands Of others have used 1t, ana IL
was original with him not even con.ern-
poraneously qu te aside from con-
sideTations OF It's derivation and origin !
coinage. Tho ninth odi ion OF JOIN
BABTLETT, revised TO 1891. tie pre-smi-
nent compiler of other folks sayings,
credits DANIEL 5. LAMONT. who wes
MIR. CLEvELANp's private secretary before
he became q cs sbinet officer. with deolar-
ing in 1884: "IIe who regards Office as
a publ, trust" wbilsthe Hor. ABRAM
$. HEWITT used the precise language
OF the quotation, "puhlic office is pub
lie trust" in 1893, whom CLEvELASp, he
statesman, wss practically unknown, and
before that, in 1881, the Hon. DopMAS
%. EATON. civil service reformer, said:
"fhe public Offices are a public trust"
SO mucn for contemporary originality.
But neither the idea nor tie Language of
IL was new. As far pack as May 81, 1872,
CHARLES SUMNER OF Massachusetts, was
familiar with the exact phraseology of
the sentiment and did not claim to orig.
mate 1t, as evidenced when he said, "rhe
phrase 'pnbllo osf,ce is a public ,rust hes
of late become common property" In
deed, john T.. CALHOUN IN a speech de-
livered July 13, 1885, declared that "the
very essence of free government con-
siss in considering ciIices ms public
trusts, bes owed for the good of the
country and not for he benefit of an in
divijunl or party." and the idea was
enunc a.ec by THOMAS JEFFERSON in
1907 as foil ws; "whel a man assumes
a public trust he sho uld consider himself
as public property"
We nave no doubt the sentiment in
various forms might be even traced back
to other peoples and Other times, but so
far from President CLEVELAND origins-
ting n, it appears that Colonel LAMONT
had the start in its revival, but that the
phrase "public Office is "A public trust"
was slreaoy "common property" as far
back as 1872 as quoted by SUMNER.
We would not aetract from the credit
due Pr. sident CLEVELAND from introduc-
ing some very happy and timely phrases
into our speecn-''innocuou desuetude, :"
"party honesty is party exrcd ioncy,"
at is a condition which confronts us,
not a theory" and so forth. Our only
purpo'e Il TO set The journal right for
its next reference to nm always inter-
estinz subjsot for discussion and research.