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Despotism And Servility

Despotism And Servility image
Parent Issue
Day
3
Month
October
Year
1842
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The number of psrsons wïio dnecily or indirec:ly reccive offine from the Président of the I United States, including clerks and other eubordinatcs whó are dependent on eniploy from the government ror ihe rneansofsubslstcnce has been estimnted nt fony or fifty thousand. Thïs" number ie constantly augmentins wiih the inc.-ease ol our population. nud the settlement of the public Innds. We have not now the menna of presenting our reader with n list of the numbeis occupied inench department ofgovernment. But the postma3icrs form no inconsiderable portio:i of the whole body. being some twelve-thousandin nnmber. disíribúlrd overeve y State nnd Territory. These forty or fifty thousand officials are dependent, eithcr enitrely or in part. pon the Executive for their empioyment. and hold their situntions more or less at his will. Such being the case. we can readiiy imagino, frotn our knowledge of human nature, thnt persons thus dépendent on ono map for their diily bread, would wish to pleapc one who possessed so great an influence over their deetiny4 Tliis disposition would naturally manifest itself in somo by an utter servility of spirit, and bnundless sabmission 10 éxecutíve dictation: while in others it would lio restrained by principies of moral rectitud, and feelings of personal self respect But a disposition to comply with the dermnds of government to somp extmt, would be found in every bosom. very larcre portion of these are men of education and character. and possess, from their persom) abilitips, as wel! as their official aitüation. much 'nflnence with their fèllow, cirizenn. Nor does the Executive iiifinenié stop here. There nre constantly 40 or 50.0)0 asptran's for thes very situatinns held by orhers. We may trtily presume tliat they too will bc desirous of being on good terms with the covernment. and if riot ac'tively subservient. ihey will yet rpfrain from making war on the measures of that power on whose will thoir hopes depend. In addition to this, by the gift of covernment patronage, more or Icss of the influeminl presses can be subsidizied in cvery State in the Union, and thus this powerfi-1 engine enn bc diroctly enüsied in the support of Executive nieasures. and any de6Íred impression p oduced simultaneously on the ntindsof hundreds ofthouands. Such is a faint outline of the means of influence possessed by the Executive from the appointing power. It is obvious that the mere desiro exiating in the minds of the office holdeio to secure execuiive favor,indspendently of any direct effort ön the Executive to control the action of his subordinates, wouid exert a potent influence in favor of the govörnment. But this Jatter element ofpo er haB not Inin dormant. Since the acceseion of General Jackson, attempts have been c;ntinually made to control the actions and reguhtc the opinions of those holding office. Remováis were then extensively ir.ade on the simple ground of holding political sentiments adverse to those of the President. TIiíb was loudly exclaimcl agtinst by the opposition os proscriptivo and uhjriBt. Duririg tlie Presidential 6truggle of 1840. the oflice-holders were gener.'dly engaged wiih much acüvity in the warm political conicsts of that period; and doubtless in 60me instances. to the nejjlect of their officinl dutiee. Whcn the whigs came in to power, they feit indignant at the vigoious opposition they had experienced from the incumbents of office, and one of their firs'. measures was a prohibition to engage actively in political contes's. An mfracííon of this rule should subject the offerider to expulsión from ofiïcC. At the snmë time, the whigs practiced exiensivcly the very thing they had so loudly denounced in the democratie party - the ejectment of men from office on account of théir rjoluical faith. During some seven or eight months in which Francin Granger was postmaster general, seventeen hundred remováis were made, and he has lately declared that had he continued in office hc would hare removed three thousand persons more. - These remováis, we eupppse, were m ide in nearly every case, on the grotind thnt the incumbent nJhercd to the Deinocrat9. or that he had acied efficii-ntly as a pnlmciin. Since the split in the Whig party, occasioncd by the votoes of President Tyler. he is nifikini havoc amonsr his political enetnies, ihe Clay wbtge hy continued remováis from oflice. They complain much of proscription. and the removal of faithful ncumeetiis. But they have no reason to complain. They are but receiving that measure which they have meted out to oihers. Thus wesce. that the removal of political enemies, and the appointment of political friend?. merci; brxmise they are suck, is a principie smctioned by the continued practice of Whigs. of Dcmocrats, and of Mr. Tyler, and unless rebuked by the people. bi-is fairtobecome a powerful instrument of executive dictation thronoh all coming administrations. The dactrine of late secms to be officiaüy promulgnted as a paf of an es'ablished system. Mr. WicklifTe. tlie P. M. Genera!, is stated to have written to some one in New York enbstantiülly tbis : '"Washington, , 1842. Sir - If yo'tir posmasfcr. (ar any ofh'ts clerks. ) inr. to wag ais Tosgue ngainst the ndmírristrniion. lot me know it, and the procedure will be corrected"Theextent to which this eystcmof scrviliij is cnrried can bc surmised froni an article lately pubJislied by Jonathan Roberts. It nppinrs ihnt Roberts was appointed Collector at the Custom House at Pliüadclphia, by President Tyler, and has been removed by him. Mr." Ftoberts says : " Since my accêptance of the office down to the present time, I had been studiously reserved wiih regard to party politics, had habkunlly supjressei the uttermce of my own opinions, and had inculcated the same course on others."' He wrote to the Secrctary of thr Treasury, respecting the retnoval of some of his sabordinates : "1 have no partiality for them which would induse me to hesitatö a moment to comply with the wishes of the President i n their removal. ifanycreditabe evidenoe was given tliat tkvj had tpoken lightly of him!!" On another occasion, whón nsked by President Tyler how many of the persons employed in the Custom Houee were Clay men. the answer was, thut l'none to my knowedge had nvowed themselves such, for I had folowed his instructions in enjoining silence tipon all political topics." Thu6 it appears that speakng lightly of the President, avowing himseif a Clay man, and not keeping süence on all politial topics are crimes which subjects the offender o expulsión from office. TruJy thi is ; 0rou(.l tú wulk in. Hu ..ius, have a mercei)ay p rit who wiil rorego the (ree ex]juetsk'n oí liie eenI ütnenrs on tho higlníst iiueroots o!" hia rotnury lor the shRo Of any oflico President Tyler can be6tow. Now, we contend thnt thissystem of despotiam on one side, and servility on the other is nll wrong, and tlungeroua in it8eff;cts lts temlency is to makc every man who holris office the mere tooi pr instrument of executive wiii. Il ia un inínngemnt of the riahts of cit;7.cns. In nccepiing un oflvc ', a nnn does nol cease to be n einzen. It is not only his right. biu his-duty. to exposé and withstuml every mensure óf the ndmin81 rat on which is vvoig, or whfch 8 calculaiefi to injure his couritry. Tlte I'rosid.'iit lins no more rig'ut lo order a Post M'ister to keep silence respecting a Taiiffor a Nntionnl Bank, ihcn he lias to forbid his discuesing the subject of religión, or any of the sciences. There is nó more próprièty in debarring his subordinates from nttendingpoütieal meetinsrs, üi'd taking a part in ihem, thnn in ihose of a religious chnrncter, and any nuempt to do8 is a degree of tyranny evcry noble-minded man should resist. If ihe nieasures of Government are right and proper, they wiii reeeive support ; if rot, they ought to be pot down. Tyrants m!y have reneon to fear discussion. Il is no part of n Presidoni'6 busincïs to inquire imo the onininus or acts of ihosc holding office under him, so long as their official duties are faithfully discharged. Besidea, if he may enjoin silence on one topic, why not on onoiliei 1 ïi he inay commnnd them not to vVag tht-lr toriguns agaihst his d-jin;?s, why mny he not requiro their nee in shouting lus prnise 1 A commnnd to do the one is no greater strctdi of abit ary power thnn a command to do the other. We are told thnt President Jeflerson made but three inquiries respecting candidnies for oflice - "Is he capable - Is he faithful- Is he honest?" intending to appoint none to office who did not posse3S these requisites, nud reniov none already appointcd uuless deficiënt in cap'acity, fidelity. or integrity. It may well be doubted whiithèr hia 6ucces8;rs can find a safer rule of r.ction We have inimduced ihis subject to the nolice of our readers, been use many jieople entertain erroneous views respecting it. und !)ccause it disiIns one proof of the groWing cüiruptiön oj the old poliiical parties. We do not see that there is any hope of a eiormatiorl. A port'on at lenst of one party avovv that the spoils belong to the viciors, whiJe t!ie other party, though not disiincily avowing ihe principie, are not backwnrdin carrying it into practico. Let the Liherly pnrty, in the beginning, tnke rigiit ground on this subject, and eieadüy and eiiectually maiiitain it.

Article

Subjects
Signal of Liberty
Old News