New-York tribune., 1899-07-20


p.rsonally General Alger is by no means an
,nuorthy man. without being a great man. he
Sas Intelligence. and upon fashlight views many
srauacations which command respect, besides
.n,ch he is largely endowed with the natural
.ohton for public appreciation He doubtless
we'd so TO administer the War Department as
% satisfy his chief. strengthen his party and
I've the war successful we'll as to further
-. own ambition. 1t would be absurd to imag-
~, otherwise. for those who have had oppor-
,rn,ty for close observation are aware that he
,ss much gratifed with his elevation to the
sreat office which he has now resigned That
se has failed TO meet public expectations cannot
Ne ealnsaid whatever he may think of his OWN
achievements or the estimate the President NAV
Mace upon them. II the Republican party has
been in any wise strengthened by General AL
ger's administration of the War Department.
the fact is hard to see.
No doubt many of the official derelictions laid
nj Ayers door have been greatly exaggerated
yet the boldness of his challenge to point to
,ngle error Of omission commission during his
short career has been punctuated with many OF
them, and some Of them Of serious proportions.
The chief one was his contempt for law. which
has been trampled upon m departmental ad-
sninistraton under the pretended necessities Of
"a war emergency"
OUTCLASSBD BY THE OFFICE
Yet. after all, it appears upon careful analy-
sis that the main trouble with Secretary Alger
IS that he largely outclassed by the Office
he was Unexpectedly called upon to fill. That
seems to be the verdict the people have arrived
at The remote while specific acts OF unsats-
factory administration were the immediate
cause Of the active hostility manifested toward
him in all quarters of the country. both in and
out Of the Republican party. He did not prove
himself in the War Office strong man for
time of great emergency. A man Of ease and
wealth. and somewhat disqualified by physical
weakness for hard work. his first great error
was in shifting the detail work Of the Depart
ment upon other shoulders. At the very outset
he turned over the entire civilian personnel OF
the War Department to the charge Of Assistant
Secretary Meiklejohn, who has been playing
horse" with it ever since.
General Alger's weakness shown in an
other way. He makes merit Of his sand" In
fight, yet the very moment he entered the
Department he began to lick the hands that
had smitten him In the Presidential campaign
OF 1892 when he had a personal following
which, while not sufficiently numerous to secure
his own nomination, perhaps made him for
moment dangerous to the denomination or Pres
ident Harrison. He was scotched-shorn Of his
strength-by the War Department ring. which
made ducks and brakes of his reputation and
influence by Illuminating the deadly story OF MS
Civil War record. By his consent, and pre-
sumptively on his recommendation, the men
who struck him that mortal blow were made
brigadier generals and otherwise aided in
their ambitions. In short Alger failed because
he did not keep his hand on the throttle. He
has been a mere tool in the hands of the ou-
resucracy. which has used him, and now. limp
and useless, casts him aside. Although he seems
totally unaware of the fact, IN various forms
he has made a spectacle Of himself junketing
around over the country on pretended inspec-
tion tours. accompanied by retinue OF lesser
officials some of whom notably an Army aloe
de camp, are unwarranted by law
THE ALLIANCE WITH PINGREB
II is not so much any one overwhelming spe-
ofc fault that allied Secretary Alger and caused
the public gorge to rise against the men as
general deficiency" And this is more clear
" illustrated than in the Pingree alliance which
both the contracting parties announced some
weeks ago. OF all the political developments OF
dozen years this Pingree deal was the most
Astonishing Both Pingree and Alger hastened
TO deny that II had any foundation. 1t was in
deed. of such character to lead some per-
sons 10 doubt the assertion that the President
was really incensed at the alliance, and 10 sug-
gest the thought that it was really a trick to
create a new situation which would compel the
President to demand the Secretary's resignation
and which would in turn "let down" the Secre-
tary before the public after all the pyrotechnics
about not retiring under fire"
on several occasions before today 1t is said
Secretary Alger placed his resignation at the
disposal Of the President the tender in each
instance being verbally made as the result Of
some crisis in the many storms of criticism that
have at intervals almost overwhelmed the war
Department. General Alger was never very per-
sistent about the acceptance Of these offers
in fact. if made at all, they can hardly have
been made in entire good faith, for seem
always TO have had string attached TO them
They may be said. in other words, TO have been
made in a Pickwickian sense. Under such cir
cumstances. nothing naturally came or the so
called designations. which never reached the
dignity or formality Of being committed TO
writing
HIS PRIVATE AND PUBLIC LIFE.
General Russell Alexander Alger was born In La
fayette Medina County Ohio. on February r. 1886
Left an orphan at the of twelve. he worked on
farm until he eighteen. earning the money
in the summer to attend the Richheld Academy in
winter He then taught school and studied law at
Akron and was admitted to the bar in 1889 He
began the practice of law at Cleveland but soon
removed to Grand Rapids. Mich. and engaged in
the lumber business
He became a captain in the "a Michigan Cavalry
at the beginning of the Civil War. While attack
Ing the Confederate rear at Boonesvlile, MISS, @ on
but he escaped on the same day: On October l6 he
was made lieutenant colonel of the 9th Michlgan
Is 1853 when he was appointed colonel Of the 6th
MsG yay a IN enefa %
He was wounded at s M6 iS
on July 1853 On July H. 1862 aor ne General of
volunteers In August 1889 General Ager rr,y was a
scsd GGmmdsT nn in fo9 Sef one oi yea sne 'fA"0
's sh6ry after es he war General Ager removed
from Grand Rspids TO Detroit, where he again en-.
tered the lumber business He Is she nesg Uf
Companv These companies own and operate ex,
ensve timber tracts and NILS NJ anada IN TSsir pine
In the Georgian Bay district OF Canau@r bnn8red
forests alone comprise more than one hu'iuieu
square miles ..n,o,,ous IN nol-
tics in 1884 he was elected Governor OF See eanG
but aid not seek reelection IN 1850, .,df Al % norni
nation In the latter part Of January: IS ctns W%s
announced at Canton that PresloeeS- aecsnfed The
War portfolio
NO WORD OF PRAISE FOR ALGER-