Evening star., 1925-06-30
A New Principle of Office
Holding in Our Government

Smith got the idea of making the
leadership of the Democratic party
a family affair between the two of
them-or rather, on the death of one
or the other. as for instance. when
the hatchet is buried in the skull OF
the opponent.
To furnish food for thought for the
easy-going political sentimentalists
quote from the writings and acts of
Thomas jefferson on the dangers of
hereditary Office holders"
Nepotism.-'I am Influenced by
neither personal nor family interests,
and, especially, that the field of public
ONCE will not be perverted by me
into family property"
Nepotism.-"In the course Of trusts
I have exercised through life with
powers of appointment, 1 can say
with truth and with unspeakable
comfort that 1 never did appoint a
relation to Office and that merely be-
cause / never saw the case in which
some one did not offer, or occur,
better qualified
Nepotism.-'The public will never
be made to believe that an appoint
ment of a relative is made on the
grounds of merit alone. uninfiuenced
DS ioiiiils VIEWS, IOE Cdl lney ever
see with appreciation offices the dis
posal of which they intrust to their
Presidents for public purposes divided
out as family property
Rotation in OfTice-"To prevent
every danger which might arise to
American freedom by continuing in
office the members of the Continental
Congress it is earnestly
recommended to the several provinces,
assemblies or conventions of the
United Colonies that in their future
elections of delegates to the Cont
mental Congress one-half at least of
the persons chosen be such as were
not of the delegation preceding - ."
Rotation in Office-""The second
amendment Go the proposed Consti-
tution), which appears to me essential.
is the restoring the principle of neces-
sary rotation, particularly to the
Senate and Presidency; but, most of
all, the last The natural
progress of things is for liberty to
yield and Government to gain
ground"
Rotation in Office-"That there are
in our country a great number of
characters entirely equal to the
management of its affairs cannot be
doubted. Many of them, indeed, have
not had opportunities of making
citizens: but many have had, and the
only difficulty will be to choose among
them. These changes are necessary.
| too. for the security of republican
government. If some period be not
| fixed Ito limit the time an Office may
| be heidi, his office, though nominally
elective, will, in fact. be for life:
and that will soon degenerate into
| an inheritance"
| Rotation in Office.-"I am sensible
of the kindness of your rebuke on my
determination to retire from office at
a time when our country is laboring
under difficulties truly great. But if
| the principle of rotation be a sound
one. as 1 conscientiously believe it TO
be with respect to this office. no pre-
text should ever be permitted to dis
pense with it. because there never
will be a time when real difficulties do
not exist, and furnish a plausible pre-
text for dispensaIon."
| X
| Only recently President Coolidge
took the States to task becal use they
allowed, in fact, have almost com
PEELED. the Federal Government to
exercise purely State activities.
This new disposition to elect TO
office, or to appoint to office, the next
OF kin" by the State without consider
ing the proved abilities of the next
of kim" is practically positive evil
dence that the States are, to use a
slang phrase, slipping. One can
Hardly imagine George Washington or
Abraham Lincoln or Andrew Jackson
asking that their wives or sons or
daughters be appointed or elected to
serve out the remainder of their term
Of off1ce in case OF their death, no
matter what office they might be
holding. With them 1t would have
been question Of special fitness
not one of sentiment.
AS a Nation we are always shouting
more democracy" but in the political
action of the majority we are demand
ing that the Federal Government as
sumo more and more of State gov
ernment and family government re-
sponsibilities. Give the office to the
twife, give the offioe to the son-we are
too laxy to worry about II.