The President and his cabinet, indicating the progress of the government of the United States under the administration of Grover Cleveland

Front matter

Glass _E £.16 Book- N *3 _

^frrtiQHl UEPeSil

A PUBLIC ^rFICE IF A PUBLIC TRUST.

Chapter I. Cleveland's Early Days . . 17 Chap. II. Cleveland as Mayor . . 29

Chap. III. Cleveland as Governor . . 39 Chap. IV. Cleveland as President . . 55 Chap. V. The State Department . .103 Chap. VI. The Treasury Department . 117 Chap. VII. The„War Department . . 139

Chap. VIII. The Navy Department . . 153 Chap. IX. The Post Office Department . 161 Chap. X. Department of the Interior . 171 Chap. XI. Department of Justice — Department of Agriculture — Department of Labor — Government Printing Office — U. S. Civil Service Commission , .191

Chap. XII. Allen G. Thurman . . . 211 Chap. XIII. Official Documents . . . 229

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Grover Cleveland, President, . . Frontispiece

The City Hall, Buffalo, N. Y., ... 29

The State House, Albany, N. Y., . . . 39

The Executive Mansion, Washington, D. C, . 55

T. F. Bayard, Secretary of State, . . . 103

C. S. Fairchild, Secretary of the Treasury, . 117

Wm. C. Endicott, Secretary of War, . . 139

W. C. Whitney, Secretary of the Navy, . . 153

Don M. Dickinson, Postmaster-General, . 161

Wm. F. Vilas, Secretary of the Interior, . 171

A. H. Garland, Attorney-General,,. . . 191 Allen G. Thurman, candidate for Vice-President, . . . . . . . .211

Residence of Allen G. Thurman, Columbus, O. 217

The Capitol, Washington, D. C, . . . 229

WORDS OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT.

In the preparation of this work, the writer has had recourse to the biographies of Mr. Cleveland published in 1884, written by Gen. La Fevre, Deshler Welch, Thomas W. Handford, and others, to all of whom he desires to express his obligations ; also specially to the heads of departments, chief clerks, and other officers of the Administration, for their uniform courtesy and kindness. The admirable portraits of the Cabinet officers are from photographs by C. M. Bell ; the one of the President, by Merritt & Van Wagner, — all used by permission, for which thanks are now returned.

C. B. N.

Introduction

There can be no doubt that the present condition of this country is a very satisfactory one to the majority of its citizens. That this is largely due to the existence of an honest and thorough business administration, and the enforcement of a statesmanlike foreign and domestic policy, are facts that hardly any but the most bigoted partisan will challenge.

It is equally true that Grover Cleveland has given more time and closer supervision to the duties of his office, and administered the affairs of the country more safely, economically, and judiciously, than any of his predecessors in time of peace. There is no department of the government with the work of which he is not fully acquainted, and all the officers of the government testify to his minute and conscientious inquiry into all matters submitted to him. And yet he finds time to receive all callers at the White House, which he does with that simple, straightforward, and hearty manner which has won him the affection and esteem of all who have come in contact with him ; even his political opponents do

IO

IN TROD UC TION.

not leave his presence without experiencing the greatest respect for their host.

We think that we may dare to assert that no President, since the foundation of the government, has shown greater wisdom in the safe guarding of the institutions of the country, given more encouragement and judicious protection to our industries, inaugurated better or sounder policies, enacted more desirable laws, advocated a more beneficial revision of the tariff system, or administered the affairs of the country with greater integrity or stricter economy than Grover Cleveland.

In brief, Grover Cleveland has been the highest exponent of the great principles of Democracy and economical government. His past is a pledge for the future, and, if he be given an opportunity to carry out the reforms he advocates with such characteristic courage and patriotism, including the revision of the present tariff laws and the reduction of the national taxation, a greater era of peace, prosperity, and happiness than ever known in our annals is before us.

With the view of placing before our fellow-citizens the practical and beneficial results of the Cleveland regime, and to comply with innumerable requests for more information concerning the past and present of our chief of state, this work has been prepared.

IN TROD UCTION.

II

We shall devote some space to a biographical sketch of our illustrious countryman, and give besides many interesting facts regarding the operation of the different departments which he controls, and for which he is responsible to the country.

It will be shown that under our foreign relations have steadily and satisfactorily improved, that our consular service was never so effective, that the valuable weekly and monthly reports supplied by the consuls are already yielding important results, such as the adoption of the suggestions therein contained by our inventors and manufacturers, with all the benefits which that implies. The effect of the wise and safe financial policy of will be fully established. Under the able supervision of the secretary, the work of the department has been greatly simplified and rendered more practicable. Through the adoption and enforcement of the rules of merit service, there has been secured a great economy in the general management of the department, while the assurance of permanence in office during good behavior has resulted in the best and most reliable work being obtained.

j 2 INTRO D UCTION.

We will show that has not by any means been idle. The appropriations of Congress have been expended advantageously and with excellent discrimination, and to-day the guns and projectiles manufactured in this country compare favorably with those of Europe. Through the systematic work of a navy is being rapidly created which will be a credit to the United States. Had not the secretary been hampered by the condition of things in the department when he entered the office, more would have been accomplished ; but the work achieved thus far inspires hope and confidence in the mind of all patriotic Americans.

A pronounced and decided advance has been made in

THE INTERIOR DEPARTMENT,

particularly in the general land office, through which agency there have been redeemed, from the hands of jobbers and speculators, millions of acres that are now restored to the public domain, and will in the course of time be homes for coming generations. In the Indian Bureau, where good management and economy are the order of the day, and in

INTROD UCTION:

the Bureau of Pensions, Patents, and Education, etc., an equally gratifying state of things exists.

presents a remarkable increase in the facilities for delivering mails, a great economy in the general management of the department, a reduction in the rates of postage, and more rapid and certain delivery of all mail matter.

There has also been* a great and marked improvement in the very important work of

THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, •

under the able and experienced management of the attorney-general. There has been a clearing-off of the accumulated work on hand, and special attention is being paid to the important matter of pardons, every case of which receives, in addition, the careful consideration of the President himself.

The farmers of our land have reason to feel grateful for the work of

THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,

which has done so much for the great practical interests of the country.

The introduction of new opportunities for the increase of our agricultural resources will be fully shown in the account of this department.

Under its zealous, capable, and experienced chief,

THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

is rendering incalculable benefit to this nation at large. This is additional evidence that no point is overlooked, under the present administration, that will benefit our people.

THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION

is enoraored in one of the most difficult tasks ever attempted in connection with the administration of any government. The patience and perseverance of the commissioners deserve all praise, and the result of their labors will convince our readers of the really wonderful progress already secured, cavillers notwith-

standingr.

With such a record as the above, is it not reasonable to believe that the independent thinker and non-partisan voter will unite with the Democratic party to secure a perpetuation of so satisfactory a condition of things ? With Grover Cleveland at the helm of the ship of state, during the next four years, we may look forward to broad, liberal, and enlightened tariff reform measures, to comprehensive and successful financial policies, and to marked progress and efficiency in the merit service of the United States.

No man stands higher to-day in the peerage of public esteem and affection than Grover Cleveland,

IX TROD uc now. i 5

and all true patriots must earnestly desire to see him for another term occupy the exalted position of the ruler of the destinies of the greatest nation on the face of the earth, in which he now figures so creditably and honorably.

THE PRESIDENT AND HIS CABINET.

CHAPTER I.

Cleveland's early days.

That the President of the United States occupies the highest position among the rulers of the world cannot be denied. When we take into consideration the enormous extent of territory, the large and intelligent population, and the varied nationalities represented in this country, this fact must be admitted. While the Queen of England and Empress of India and the Czar of Russia govern millions who neither know nor care as to the personality of their ruler, the sixty millions of our citizens are all interested to know of Grover Cleveland. For that reason a sketch of his ancestry and early life is here presented, with the view of supplying information from authentic sources and in a popular form for the use of the people.

In 1635, Moses Cleveland came to America from Ipswich, Suffolk County, in England ; he died in Woburn, Mass., January 9, 1701, and in the old graveyard of that town are still standing headstones of English slate which indicate the restingplace of Aaron Cleveland, the second son of Moses, and the great-grandfather of the President. He was one of the early opponents of slavery, and will long be remembered as having introduced a bill in the Legislature of the State of Connecticut for its abolition. He studied divinity and became a Congregational minister, and died in New Haven, 1815. William, the second son of Aaron Cleveland, and the grandfather of the President, was a practical silversmith at Beacon Hill, near Norwich, Conn.; he retired from business and moved to New York State, dying at Black Rock, in 1857.

Richard F. Cleveland, the second son of William, and father of the President, was born in Norwich, Conn., 1804. He graduated at Yale College in 1824, locating in Baltimore as a teacher, and while engaged in his duties pursued his studies for the ministry. In 1828, he was ordained a Presbyterian minister in Windham, near Norwich. The following year he married the daughter of Abner Neal of Baltimore, and later on settled at Caldwell, N. J. Thence he removed to Fayetteville, N. Y., in 1841, and in 1847 he was appointed secretary of the Home Missionary Society. Six years afterwards he was installed at Holland Patent, where he died October 1, 1S53, in his fiftieth year. Mrs. Cleveland, mother of the President, died in the same place, July 19, 1S82.

Grover Cleveland was born in Caldwell, N. J., March 18, 1837. The house, a small, unpretending cottage, still remains, and it has attracted many visitors to Caldwell, from its connection with the childhood of the President. The father, grandfather, and great-grandfather of the President were natives of Connecticut.

CLEVELAND'S EARLY DAYS.

When Grover Cleveland was five years of age, his father became pastor of a church in Fayetteville, N. Y., and there the son attended school and was for a time a clerk in a country store, thus growing up among the people as one of themselves. In the character of the President there is evidence of the advantages secured by an intermingling of the old Puritan stock with that of the Cavaliers of Maryland. While the family resided in Clinton, the seat of Hamilton College, he continued his preparations for entering college. His father's health not being satisfactory, another removal was made to Holland Patent, where the sudden decease of the elder Cleveland changed the future life of the son. W r illiam, an elder brother, occupied a responsible position as instructor in the Institution for the Blind in New York City, and, although but sixteen years of age, Grover also obtained employment, through the influence of Augustus Schell, formerly collector of that port. In this position the young man did his duty with faithfulness, and it is doubtless due to this experience with the blind that the President possesses a patience and perseverance for which he has universal credit. After some time spent in New York, he determined to go West ; but an interview with his uncle, Lewis F. Allen, changed his plans, and, through the suggestions and advice of Mr. Allen, he located in Buffalo, entering the law office of Rogers, Bowen & Rogers, as an office boy, upon a salary of four dollars a week, and walking from his uncle's house, two miles from the office, in all weathers. It was a position which, in itself, required detail, and Grover Cleveland soon indicated his natural tendency to system and order, an experience which has largely facilitated him in the control and management of the enormous amount of business which now falls to him to supervise and complete. He was a hard worker, studied his profession carefully in all his spare time, and progressed so rapidly as to attract the attention of his employers. After four years' hard work he became managing- clerk.

It is stated by those who knew Grover Cleveland at this period of his life that he won success by his industry, courage, and honesty. He was thorough in all he undertook, and, once his convictions were formed upon what he believed to be reliable data, nothing could change them. In 1859, when he was in his twenty-second year, he completed his legal studies, passed the necessary examinations, and was admitted to the bar. It was at this period in his life that he adopted a rule to complete every day's work so that it would not have to be done again, and the late hours kept by the President at his desk in the executive mansion bear testimony to the value of a plan which he still adheres to.

During his connection with the bar at Buffalo, he was intrusted with some important cases, which were so successfully conducted that he was at once recognized as a rising man in his profession. On January i, 1863, Grover Cleveland was appointed assistant district attorney of Erie County. This position was a close test of his abilities, and the universally expressed opinion of all who knew him was that in that office he did an amount of work seldom accomplished. He still maintained his resolution to complete the day's duties, and often, when it became necessary, could be found busy till an early hour in the morning. During- his occupation of the office, nearly the entire range of duties fell upon his shoulders ; it was just the training he needed, and he went into it with all the zeal of youthful aspirations. He was in attendance at all the grand jury meetings during his three-years term of office, and presented in full a large majority of the cases. However, before the three years had elapsed, the people of Buffalo were so well satisfied with the colors of Grover Cleveland that he was unanimously nominated for district attorney by the Democrats of Buffalo, at the age of twenty-nine, but was beaten by his intimate personal friend, Lyman K. Bass, with whom he afterwards formed a law partnership — in 1866. Mr. Cleveland formed a partnership with the late mayor of Buffalo, I. V. Vanderpoel, which lasted till 1869, when he joined the firm of Laning, Cleveland & Folsom. In 1870 the friends of Grover Cleveland suesfested his name as candidate

• rr

for the office of sheriff, and, without any effort on his part, he received the unanimous vote of the Democratic party, and was elected for three years. The office of sheriff is the most important executive office in the county, under the system in the State of New York. The duties of this position were filled by Mr. Cleveland with the same attention and business-like fidelity that he had always shown in such positions as he had held either in public or private life. In this, the first important executive position which he had filled, he did justice to himself and to those whose confidence he had secured, and by

THE PRESIDENT AND HIS CABINET.

whom he was elected. While holding this important office, Grover Cleveland's habits were simple and unassuming, the fees of the sheriff's office were sufficiently large to admit of saving some money, and, had he been ambitious in that direction, he could have been a rich man.

At the expiration of his official term as sheriff, in 1873, he became a member of the firm of Messrs. Bass, Cleveland, and Bissell, with Lyman K. Bass and Wilson S. Bissell as associates. This was a strong and popular firm, and commanded a large and lucrative practice. In 1881 a new firm was formed, Mr. George J. Sicard being admitted as a partner under the firm name of Cleveland, Bissell & Sicard, which still exists. It was in this position that Mr. Cleveland secured a permanent reputation in that section of the State of New York for legal acumen and intellectual honesty. His management of cases was distinguished by sound views, direct simple logic, and a thorough mastery of all their intricacies, which secured for him the respect of his own profession and the admiration of the public. These qualities, combined with the fidelity and independence of his official action, naturally secured for him the general respect and esteem of his fellow-citizens. The best evidence of this are the numerous statements that have appeared in type, voluntarily contributed by citizens of western New York.

Judge George W. Clinton, the son of Governor De Witt Clinton, and vice-chancellor of the University of New York, chief judge of the Superior Court, before whom Grover Cleveland frequently appeared, says of him : "As a lawyer he was known both as a counsellor and an advocate, and he often appeared before a jury. In his jury addresses he never fired over the heads of the jury in rhetorical eloquence. He addressed himself to them directly, as an honest, sensible man speaking to his fellows, and he won his verdicts by his close and full argument, and his thorough knowledge of all the evidence in the case. He was strictly honorable, and never endeavored to take petty advantages of the opposing counsel or of the jury. So keen was his sense of honor and justice that it would have gone against the grain of his character to have tried to mislead a jury if justice was opposed to him. I certainly never knew him to make the effort. When he began practice his reputation as a lawyer was respectable. It rose gradually among the profession until at the time he became mayor he can truthfully be said to have been eminent at the bar of Erie County."

Mr. Milburn, a well known lawyer of Buffalo, states as follows in reference to Mr. Cleveland : " He is a fine lawyer. He is incapable of wilful wrong, and nothing on earth could sweep him from his conviction of duty. That he is thoroughly honest cannot be questioned, and he has always been regarded as an able and safe man in every relation of life." Mr. James N. Matthews, editor of the leading Republican- paper in Buffalo, utters the same sentiments : " I know of no Democrat better equipped for the position for which he has been named than Grover Cleveland. He is an able, honest, and incorruptible man. He is self-reliant, and has excellent judgment. He has long stood in the front rank with the very leaders of thought and action in this part of New York." At this time, 1881, there was a strong revolt against the management of the municipal affairs of the city of Buffalo, and in this condition of affairs the old party lines were to a certain extent disorganized. It had been badly ruled by a combination of Republican managers, and many voters took exceptions to an extension of this fraud and mismanagement. The city was ring-ridden, its revenues were stolen or wasted, and no mayor had been found, for many years, who possessed the courage and ability to attack these abuses. To secure such a mayor was no easy task. There were many who were profuse in their promises, but such pledges had been so often broken that the citizens intended that no one should be promoted to the place who could not give good security by means of an unsullied reputation and a good record. At this time the Democratic party was the party of reform, and Grover Cleveland participated in a movement which he believed to be just and right. As sheriff of Erie County, he secured administrative reform, and the respect he received from his fellow-citizens on retiring from that office is the best testimony to his success. A candidate for mayor was needed whose honesty should be unimpeachable, and whose courage would enable him to stem the torrent of political corruption. The people turned to Grover Cleveland as the man for the occasion. At first he declined ; he did not desire the nomination, but suggested the names of several prominent Democratic citizens as far more available than himself for the position. However, the strong pressure brought to bear by

CLEVELAXD'S EARLY BAYS.

some of the best men in Buffalo at last convinced him of the importance of his acceptance of the nomination, and he did so. There can be no question but that in this case the office sought the man. At the Buffalo Democratic City Convention in 1881, in accepting the nomination, Grover Cleveland placed himself upon a platform which appeals to-day with equal force to the entire voting population of these United States. He said, " Gentlemen of the Convention, I am informed that you have bestowed upon me the nomination for the office of mayor. It certainly is a great honor to be thought fit to be the chief officer of a great and prosperous city like ours, having such important and varied interests. I hoped that your choice might fall upon some other and more worthy member of the city Democracy, for personal and private considerations have made the question of acceptance on my part a difficult one. But because I am a Democrat and because I think no one has a right at this time of all others to consuit his own inclinations as against the call of his party and fellow-citizens, and hoping that I may be of use to you in your efforts to inaugurate a better rule in municipal affairs, I accept the nomination tendered to me. I believe much can be done to relieve our citizens from their present load of taxation, and that a more rigid scrutiny of all public expenditures will result in a great saving to the community. I also believe that some extravagances in our city government may be corrected without injury to the public service. There is, or there should be, no reason why the affairs of our city should not be managed with the same care and the same economy as private interests. And when we consider that public officials are the trustees of the people, and hold their places and exercise their powers for the benefit of the people, there should be no higher inducement to a faithful and honest discharge of public duty.

" These are very old truths ; but I cannot forbear to speak in this strain to-day, because I believe the time has come when the people loudly demand that these principles shall be sincerely, and without mental reservation, adopted as a rule of conduct. And I am assured that the result of the campaign upon which we enter to-day will demonstrate that the citizens of Buffalo will not tolerate the man or the party who has been unfaithful to public trusts. I say these things to a convention of Democrats, because I know that the grand old party is honest, and they cannot be unwelcome to you. Let us, then, in all sincerity, promise the people an improvement in our municipal affairs, and, if the opportunity is offered to us, as it surely will be, let us faithfully keep that promise. By this means, and by this means alone, can our success rest upon a firm foundation, and our party ascendancy be permanently assured. Our opponents will wage a bitter and determined warfare ; but, with united and hearty effort, we shall achieve a victory for our entire ticket. And at this day, and with my record before you, I trust it is unnecessary for me to pledge to you my most earnest endeavors to bring about this result; and, if elected to the position for which you have nominated me, I shall do my whole duty to the party, but none the less, I hope, to the citizens of Buffalo."

CLEVELAND'S EARLY DAYS.

The result of such an address as this may easily be imagined. Speaking, as it did, to the sound, practical common-sense of those who listened to it, the effect was like magic. Every independent reform voter felt that his own views would be carried out to the best interests of the city of Buffalo. The truth of every word uttered by Grover Cleveland was at once admitted, and, up to this time, not even his bitterest foe has dared to question the perfect honesty of his opinions. No better evidence of the non-partisan feeling in Buffalo can be produced than the following, from a leading editorial in the Buffalo Express, a well known and prominent Republican paper, — "The Man for Mayor." " Circumstances seem at last to have brought to the front the right man for this great place, and it only remains to be seen whether the people will have wisdom enough to put him in it. We know Grover Cleveland. Nearly all of his fellow-citizens are aware of his distinguished abilities and reputation as a lawyer, of his great personal worth, of his unswerving uprightness, and of his high moral courage. But we know something more than all this. It has happened to us to have personal experience of that sleepless vigilance, that tireless devotion, that singular penetration, and that broad good judgment which Mr. Cleveland has always displayed in the interest of his clients, and from which so many have reaped the reward of a righteous verdict. If he is mayor, the city will be to him as his client, — as a client standing more sorely in need of all his best endeavors than any one he ever served before, — and woe would be to the man that should attempt to rob or -otherwise wrong her." What better statement can be put before the people of the United States than the evidence that this honesty of purpose, this decision of character, this care for the public welfare, has consistently been the aim of Grover Cleveland, as mayor of Buffalo, Governor of the Empire State, and President of the United States !

Chapter II. Grover Cleveland As Mayor

Reform was the watchword which elected Mr. Cleveland mayor of the city of Buffalo. This election was in itself an almost unparalleled triumph, demonstrating the confidence which the people had in his integrity, and his special fitness to carry out the needed reforms in the city government, and it settled the issue of the hour, that it was possible to secure by a popular election that kind of integrity and sagacity that would administer the people's affairs with the honesty and discretion that was necessary to good government. Upon his inauguration as mayor, he took occasion immediately to reiterate the principles of action which he had affirmed in his speech accepting the nomination. So soon as he was elected, he devoted his time to a careful study of the departments of the city government, and he made it clear, too, that in all of these and in all subordinate positions he was firmly determined that the principles he had laid down for himself should be implicitly obeyed by others. In his inaugural message to the common council of Buffalo, on January 2, 1882, he set forth these principles in the following vigorous and direct lanoaiag-e : —

THE PRESIDENT AND HIS CABINET.

To the Honorable the Common Council of the City of

Buffalo.

In presenting to you my first official communication, I am by no means unmindful of the fact that I address a body many of the members of which have had quite a large experience in municipal affairs, and which is directly charged, more than any other instrumentality, with the management of the government of the city, and the protection of the interest of all the people within its limits. This condition of things creates grave responsibilities, which I have no doubt you fully appreciate. It may not be amiss, however, to remind you that our fellow-citizens, just at this time, are particularly watchful of those in whose hands they have placed the administration of the city government, and demand of them the most watchful- care and conscientious economy. We hold the money of the people in our hands, to be used for their purposes, and to further their interests as members of the municipality; and it is quite apparent that, when any part of the ftinds which the taxpayers have thus intrusted us are diverted to other purposes, or when by design or neglect we allow a greater sum to be applied to any municipal purpose than is necessary, we have to that extent violated our duty. There surely is no difference in his duties and obligations whether a person is intrusted with the money of one man or many. And yet it sometimes appears as though the office-holder assumes that a different rule of fidelity prevails between him and the taxpayer than that which should regulate his conduct when as an individual he holds the money of his neighbor.