El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-02-06

tenn of the Government Before Harri-
sons Time.
WASHINGTON, Feb. g. Special. l-.Sena.
tors and members of congress who pay Wis
its to Canton bring back interesting reports
concerning the policy of the president elect.
l have already told you that Major Mckin-
ley proposes to have peace between himself
and the senate, if possible, and to avert
those little skirmishcs and wars between
the executive and the American house OF
lords which have exerted such baneful in.
fluencG upon recent administrations L also
learn upon excellent authority that Presi-
dent Mckinley intends to give members OF
the house pretty free swing in the nam
ing of pOStmaStCrS and other officials in
their districts, thus restoring the system as
it was before the days of Harrison, when
members of congress were virtually the ap
pointing powers in their districts and rare
", very rarely, indeed, turned down by the
president.
Will Trust His Cabinet.
In addition to the foregoing a prominent
senator tells me Major Mckinley told him
he was going to make his cabinet officers
cabinet officers in fact as well as name
that is to say, he was going to initiate
President Hayes policy of turning de
partment over TO the chief of it, holding
the chief responsible for its management,
and not interfering himself except in case
of large matters or things affecting policy.
Senator sherman once told me that while
he was secretary of the treasury under Mr..
HAYES he would have been as much sur
priScd at the presidents interference with
his management of the department as he
would have been at an attempt on the part
of one of his subordinates to dictate to
him. 1T is the only way TO run the gov
ernmcnt,' said Senator sherman. ''This
nation of ours is now too big for any one
man to attempt to manage. If president
cannot trust his cabinet officers, he cannot
trust any one. He must trust them. And
if he wants good results he must give them
authority along with their responsibility.
Senator Sherman severely criticised Pres
ident Cleveland for virtually making him
self secretary of the treasury, giving orders
to Secretary Carlisle as if the latter were
hired man. That method of doing bust
ness did not coincide with Mr.. Sherman's
ideas of the proper way to manage the af
fairs of this great government Besides,
he said, the secretary of the treasury was
as much responsible to congress as he was
to the president. That official is required
to report to congress, and is really the man
chosen by congress for care of the govern
ment's strong box. Senator Sherman add
ed in this conversation which l am now
recalling that by pursuing these methods
President Hayes gave the country one of
the best administrations it has ever had.
Policy of Harrison and Cleveland.
Every resident Of Washington knows
that Presidents Harrison and Cleveland
have leaned in the other direction. They
exercised constant supervision over their
cabinet officers. Practically nothing of
Importance has been done during the last
three administrations in any of the de
partmentS without previous consultation
with the president. Even in such matters
as the appointment of small rostmasterS,
the postmaster general has been required
to take all the papers up TO the White
House and to go over them one after an
other with the president. 1t is not at all
for matters of second rate i'm
pOrtance TO come to Il StandStill in one of
the departments pending Il conference be-
tween the cabinet officer responsible for it
and the president.
Harrison and Cleveland were hardwOrk-
ing presidents. Nor is it any wonder
that they were. The president of the Unit
ed States who insists upon keeping track
of all the details of the great government
bureaus will not have much time left over
for play. II re are so many really impor-
tant affairs vital matters, for the president
to give his attention to that he should con
trive to throw off rs many details as pos
sible, leaving his mind free for the in
trinsic subjects. If Major Mckinley has
decided to restore cabinet posts to their
orr ginal Importance, he has. in the opinion
of most public men here. decided wisely.
When Joseph Chamberlain, now secre
tary of state of Great Britain for the colo
MES, was in Washington Il few years ago,
he was much impressed by the small part
played by individuals in our government.
He was then known as Il Radical who be
licvcd in greater liberty for the people in
his own country. He was aStOundCd to
find that in the United States Il man count
ed for little and that a party and the sys-
tenn were everything. ''Why,' he said,
there is no comparison between the in
huence of an individual in your country
and in ours. With us the attitude of Il
Gladstone, or of Il Salisbury, or of a Par
nell is everything. Here your individuals
are all subordinate TO the party. No one
man rises to very great influence. You
keep your men down by your system, in
which one man is pretty nearly as good as
another. l would not live in country
was Sir Joseph's conclusion, lin which
the individual is of such little Importance. -
Better Than Machine.
After Major Mckinley had been elected
president 1 heard him ask certain well
his devotion to the fortunes of Il political
the organization was COM
ing on. The public man told him they
were in fine shape. 1T may seem odd to
you" said the president elect, who was OBJ
viOusly in reflec i've mood, but l have
never had machine. Even in my con-
grcssional district, where l had many bit
ter contests, L never had such thing as a
political organization which you would
call machine. Somehow have been able
to get on without one. -
The gentleman to whom this remark
was made had the good tact to say to the
president elect: Il know that to be TRUTH
governor. But you have had what is
good deal better than machine. You
have had an idea, Il speciality. I he Amcri-
can people love man who masters Il sin
gle subject, who devotcs his life to it. They
want none but masters, none but experts.
Although l am known as the head of Il
great political organization, l may freely
say that, if l could. l would gladly cX
change the power which that gives me for
the consciousness that | was an important
man through my association with an idea
or principle. Ideas rule the world, gov
ernOr-idcus rule the world
WALTER WELLMAN.