The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1903-06-01
Demonstrated That Public Office
is a Public Snap
PEOPLE CALLOUS TO FRAUD
There Is No Doubt That Gross and
Reckless Extravaganza Does Honey.
comb All Great Departments
of the Government.
BY wATTERsoN srEALEY.

BY WATTERSoN STEALEY.
Washington. May s1.-(Special. while
the President has been prancing and
smiling through the west, an investlga-
tlon has been in progress in Washington
that up to this writing has developed
some startling disclosures of the way the
public business has been conducted and
since he came into office. One sensation
has followed close upon the heels Of
another. and the end is not yet.
This man Machen. who once lived in
the same city that gave air to Mr.. Cieve-
land, is up to this time the chief con-
spirator in carrying out the idea that
public office Is private snap He left
Buffalo quite young man, and migrated
to Ohio. In 1894 his Buffalo friends got
him appointed to position in the post
office department. He was smart,
keen, slick citizen. He knew all the
points In the game and played them for
all they were worth. He always kept an
anchor to the windward and his ear to
the ground. When Mr.. Cleveland went
out and Bryan was nominated. he knew
that his interests were on the monied
side and, of course, he Topped over to
the support of the Republican candidate
for President. Since March l. 1897 he
has been a stalwart Republican. In 1897
| he vas fully intrenched in his position,
and as master of every departmental
detail Immediately began to cultivate the
| influence of men over and under him. and
succeeded with rare tact and more than
| ordinary ability In building up In the
postoffice department a perfect smoothly
working machine that he knew would
sooner or later accomplish much in his
| own interests. That he succeeded the de-
| velopments already disclosed and those
to be disclosed hereafter will show. How
| long Machen has been profting by his
system in the pogtoffice department has
| not yet been brought to light. Nor is 1t
| known, or rather has It been disclosed
who have been the big men aiding him In
his corrupt practices.
! There la no doubt, however. and subse-
quent disclosures will doubtless prove it.
that Machen has had good, strong
| working ring of influential men, not only
| In the government service, but out Of it.
| One man who always had the entrance
| of the White House and was a frequent
lodger there Is thought to be Machen's
| chief outside intermediary. This is
reflection inslnuation on the late
President, Mr.. Mckinley, for he was an
| honest man. although at times he was
surrounded by schemers who were on
| the make. The man alluded to during all
| of the administration of the late Presi-
| dent was up to his elbows In Jobs big
and little. Another man mentioned in
the milking of the government COW for
all that II was worth occupied under Nc
Kinley an important and influential gov
| ernment position Things may come out
later making public the names of these
! two men, and, IL they do, another sensa-
tion will result Up to this time their
names have not been found upon
| paper"
People Grown calIous.
The people seem to have grown so cal
lous of anything In regard to fraud and
corruption In the public service that 1t
Is extremely doubtful that the scandals
here and elsewhere will have any polit-
| ical effect. When the government ex-
penses began to increase enormously un-
der republican control. and there was
no doubt that gross and reckless extrav-
agance honeyconbed all the great depart
| ments of the government where contracts
were let an old and honest servant Of
the government was asked what in his
| Judgment would be the result If this
| rank corruption were unearthed, and the
| public could see II In all of its enormity.
| His reply was this: II do not think IL
| will amount to much, or gain for us
many votes In an election 1t seems to
| me somehow that the people of late years
are Indifferent as to what the parties in
| power do. They have idea that the
more money congress appropriates legit-
| imately or for any kind of job, the bet
! ter II is for them. That which would have
/ shocked the public a decade or genera
! ttou ago is now passed by slghtingly. The
| statements after the close of each repub-
! lican congress of the large increase In tina
| expenditures OF the government have
been defended nearly unanimously by the
republican newspapers. no matter what
| they amounted to. and the republican
masses have nearly to man stood up 70
/ their party organs"
The frauds in Cuba, Porto Rico and the
| Philippines, which have gone on from "
| to the present time, have scarcely caused
a stir in the country. II they have not
| been defended and condoned they have
| been passed over as natural conse-
| ouence that follows a war and acquisition
| OF new territory. 1t is we'll known here
| from the reports Of General Miles and
number OF other honorable men connected
! directly or indirectly with the govern
ment, that scandalous proceedings, gross
extravagance, II not rank corruption.
still exist in the Philippines. This Is so
we'll known by the subordinate onicers
Of the army and the example has been
so pernicious that Generalization exists
to no little extent. There Is hardly
day that the newspapers 90 not cnrohlcie
instances where a subordinate officer has
gone wrong, and has either been forced
/ to resign or been courtmartialed and dis
missed from the service. These are
mostly young men. who are drawn into
the temptation by the daily Illustrations
i OF fast living. bad habits and the gross
and inexcusable extravaganza that sur
rounds them.
| FOR the last four or five years In Wash
inRton and other places where the arm
of the government extends. loose business
methods have prevailed. Not only has
| this been noticed In the postofice depart
ment but in the treasury and the IN
terror departments. 1t has only been
few months since the commissioner OF
the land office was forced to resign for
rendering an opinion In which 1t was be-
lieved he or his friends were interested
| Secretary Shaw of the treasury found
|
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