Year: 1874

speedily ''relieved" in regard to money
troubles it will not be for want Of readiness
on the part of our lawmakers. Imitation, re-
sumption and taxation appear in almost equal
proportions in the new bills. Some Of them
have the air of spiteful retorts at parts of the
Presidents Veto Message, and one of them, re-
citing portion of the Message as "whereas," I"
proposes to meet its call for further revenue by
round re-enactment Of nearly all the objec-
tionable taxes levied under the pressure of
war necessities, but since wisely repealed It
is greatly to be regretted that the government
seems in the situation to consider itself as re-
lieved of all the responsibilities that are ordi-
narily supposed to rest on governments in
cases of this nature. Many have thought it
defect in our parliamentary system that it
did not provide regular machinery for the
presentation and support of government meas
ures in Congress; but the absence of such
machinery has never been found to cause
especial embarrassment, though it has been
quite otherwise with the absence of policy.
Ii the government has policy to maintain
there are ways enough to have it maintained
and, indeed. with the Congress and the Ex-
ecutive both In the hands of the same party,
the leader of the House for the majority is
practically ministerial voice on the floor, and
might be supposed to advocate only measures
with which the assurance Of Executive sym
pathy was clear.


At present, certainly, a hitch in the course of
legislation and serious party mishap are the
consequences of want of clear perception in
Congress of the purposes and policy of the
government. Perhaps there will shortly be
an improvement in this respect, for it is
scarcely conceivable, in view Of what has
occurred, that all we have recently heard on
the subject of the impending retirement of
Secretary Richardson can be absolutely with
out significance. We take it for certainty
that there will soon be new Secretary of
the Treasury. Persistent report may often be
of very little value as to facts but when report
of this nature comedies with every ones per-
ceptions as to the propriety of course that it
is asserted will be taken, the report seems to
assume foundation in the general conscious
ness Of what is likely to be true. Mr.. Rich
ardson will probably go out because his posi-
ton at the head of the Treasury Department
seems untenable. Very unpleasant facts have
been brought out by the moiety investigation,
facts which require that his rectitude should
be shown. and his failure to clear away the
doubts that they suggested is scarcely con-
sistent with his presence at the head of the
national exchequer. It is tolerably clear,
olo hot ho ru 1lxys snno nj -.
to this we must attribute the unprecedented
fact that in great parliamentary contest, in
q struggle which enlisted the sympathies and
excited the attention of the people so
greatly as the debate on imitation, there
was no policy at issue that could, by any
license Of speech, be called the policy of the
government. Our financial minister was
nonentity in the conflict He was not only
unknown and unheard of in our greatest de-
liberation of recent years-a deliberation
directly involving the principles that underlie
the administration of his department
while that very deliberation was in progress
he was under discussion and investigation by
a committee charged with inquiring into cor
rupt practices.


With new Secretary Of the Treasury we
could do better than this; for the President,
advised very evidently outside OF his Cabinet,
has boldly left the negative ground hitherto
held, and his veto is itself strongly afirma-
tive financial policy. It presents in few words
all the essential points of the objects to be
attained in giving stability to our money sys-
tenn and confidence to the country, and with
capable fnancier in the Treasury Depart
ment to indicate by what steps we should
reach the points indicated there would be no
further trouble; for there is not in our fnan-
cial condition any difficulty that is great in
itself or that is insuperable to even moderate
capacity; but the difficulties that exist threaten
the future only because it is painfully evident
how little they are understood by those whose
position should be supposed to imply knowl-
edge on such subjects From new Secre-
tary, therefore, if wisely chosen, we have
much to hope


In the anomalous position in which the gov
ernment stands the door is opened to such
misadventures in legislation as happened
with regard to the Four Hundred Million
bill. General Butler answered tor the adj
ministration on the floor Of the House,


and covertly seemed to give notice Of
knowledge that the President would sign
the bill He was stopped by the rules, as
he knew he would be, but not before he had
said all that he intended to say. All that the
rules accomplished was to cover his retreat
to prevent discussion which might have
brought out the fact that he spoke without au-
thority or knowledge in case in which his
adroity dropped words had already influenced
the votes Of all those who were ready and anx-
ious to support any measure the adminlstra-
ton thought necessary. He represented the
government, it was thought-was friend and
supporter of its policy; and yet the measure
that thus obtained great support was reiectad