the boss and the machine-第27章
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appointments〃 of John Adams he refused to acknowledge; and he
paid no heed to John Marshall's dicta in Marbury versus Madison。
He was zealous in discovering plausible excuses for making
vacancies。 The New York Evening Post described him as 〃gazing
round; with wild anxiety furiously inquiring; 'how are vacancies
to be obtained?'〃 Directly and indirectly; Jefferson effected;
during his first term; 164 changes in the offices at his
disposal; a large number for those days。 This he did so craftily;
with such delicate regard for geographical sensitiveness and with
such a nice balance between fitness for office and the desire for
office; that by the end of his second term he had not only
consolidated our first disciplined and eager political party; but
had quieted the storm against his policy of partizan
proscription。
During the long regime of the Jeffersonian Republicans there were
three significant movements。 In January; 1811; Nathaniel Macon
introduced his amendment to the Constitution providing that no
member of Congress should receive a civil appointment 〃under the
authority of the United States until the expiration of the
presidential term in which such person shall have served as
senator or representative。〃 An amendment was offered by Josiah
Quincy; making ineligible to appointment the relations by blood
or marriage of any senator or representative。 Nepotism was
considered the curse of the civil service; and for twenty years
similar amendments were discussed at almost every session of
Congress。 John Quincy Adams said that half of the members wanted
office; and the other half wanted office for their relatives。
In 1820 the Four Years' Act substituted a four…year tenure of
office; in place of a term at the pleasure of the President; for
most of the federal appointments。 The principal argument urged in
favor of the law was that unsatisfactory civil servants could
easily be dropped without reflection on their character。
Defalcations had been discovered to the amount of nearly a
million dollars; due mainly to carelessness and gross
inefficiency。 It was further argued that any efficient incumbent
need not be disquieted; for he would be reappointed。 The law;
however; fulfilled Jefferson's prophecy: it kept 〃in constant
excitement all the hungry cormorants for office。〃
What Jefferson began; Jackson consummated。 The stage was now set
for Democracy。 Public office had been marshaled as a force in
party maneuver。 In his first annual message; Jackson announced
his philosophy:
〃There are perhaps few men who can for any great length of time
enjoy office and power without being more or less under the
influence of feelings unfavorable to the faithful discharge of
their public duties 。。。。 Office is considered as a species of
property; and government rather as a means of promoting
individual interests than as an instrument created solely for the
service of the people。 Corruption in some; and in others a
perversion of correct feelings and principles; divert government
from its legitimate ends and make it an engine for the support of
the few at the expense of the many。 The duties of all public
offices are; or at least admit of being made; so plain; so simple
that men of intelligence may readily qualify themselves for their
performance 。 。 。 。 In a country where offices are created solely
for the benefit of the people; no one man has any more intrinsic
right to official station than another。〃
The Senate refused Jackson's request for an extension of the Four
Years' law to cover all positions in the civil service。 It also
refused to confirm some of his appointments; notably that of Van
Buren as minister to Great Britain。 The debate upon this
appointment gave the spoilsman an epigram。 Clay with directness
pointed to Van Buren as the introducer 〃of the odious system of
proscription for the exercise of the elective franchise in the
government of the United States。〃 He continued: 〃I understand it
is the system on which the party in his own State; of which he is
the reputed head; constantly acts。 He was among the first of the
secretaries to apply that system to the dismission of clerks of
his department 。 。 。 known to me to be highly meritorious 。 。 。
It is a detestable system。〃
And Webster thundered: 〃I pronounce my rebuke as solemnly and as
decisively as I can upon this first instance in which an American
minister has been sent abroad as the representative of his party
and not as the representative of his country。〃
To these and other challenges; Senator Marcy of New York made his
well…remembered retort that 〃the politicians of the United States
are not so fastidious 。 。 。 。 They see nothing wrong in the rule
that to the victor belong the spoils of the enemy。〃
Jackson; with all his bluster and the noise of his followers;
made his proscriptions relatively fewer than those of Jefferson。
He removed only 252 of about 612 presidential appointees。* It
should; however; be remembered that those who were not removed
had assured Jackson's agents of their loyalty to the new
Democracy。
* This does not include deputy postmasters; who numbered about
8000 and were not placed in the presidential list until 1836。
If Jackson did not inaugurate the spoils system; he at least gave
it a mission。 It was to save the country from the curse of
officialdom。 His successor ; Van Buren; brought the system to a
perfection that only the experienced politician could achieve。
Van Buren required of all appointees partizan service; and his
own nomination; at Baltimore; was made a foregone conclusion by
the host of federal job…holders who were delegates。 Van Buren
simply introduced at Washington the methods of the Albany
Regency。
The Whigs blustered bravely against this proscription。 But their
own President; General Harrison; 〃Old Tippecanoe;〃 was helpless
against the saturnalia of office…seekers that engulfed him。
Harrison; when he came to power; removed about one…half of the
officials in the service。 And; although the partizan color of the
President changed with Harrison's death; after a few weeks in
office;Tyler was merely a Whig of conveniencethere was no
change in the President's attitude towards the spoils system。
Presidential inaugurations became orgies of office…seekers; and
the first weeks of every new term were given over to distributing
the jobs; ordinary business having to wait。 President Polk; who
removed the usual quota; is complimented by Webster for making
〃rather good selections from his own friends。〃 The practice; now
firmly established; was continued by Taylor; Pierce; and
Buchanan。
Lincoln found himself surrounded by circumstances that made
caution necessary in every appointment。 His party was new and
composed of many diverse elements。 He had to transform their
jealousies into enthusiasm; for the approach of civil war
demanded supreme loyalty and unity of action。 To this greater
cause of saving the Union he bent every effort and used every
instrumentality at his command。 No one before him had made so
complete a change in the official personnel of the capital as the
change which he was constrained to make。 No one before him or
since used the appointing power with such consummate skill or
displayed such rare tact and knowledge of human nature in seeking
the advice of those who deemed their advice valuable。 The war
greatly increased the number of appointments; and it also imposed
obligations that made merit sometimes a secondary consideration。
With the statesman's vision; Lincoln recognized both the use and
the abuse of the patronage system。 He declined to gratify the
office…seekers who thronged the capital at the beginning of his
second term; and they returned home disappointed。 The twenty
years following the Civil War were years of agitation for reform。
People were at last recognizing the folly of using the
multiplying public offices for party spoils。 The quarrel between
Congress and President Johnson over removals; and the Tenure of
Office Act; focused popular attention on the constitutional
question of appointment and removal; and the recklessness of the
political manager during Grant's two terms disgusted the
thought