successors.

The Washington Cabinet and the Scandal relates-perhaps not without some tangible basis for its assertions—that one of the Presidents once thus discharged the majority of his Cabinet, for the sole reason, as alleged, that they would not compel the ladies of their families to associate with the wife of his favourite minister, whose cause he had somewhat quixotically espoused, in spite of her being generally tabooed.

The members of the Cabinet, or, rather, the Heads of Departments, the most of whom are officially known as Secretaries, are nominated by the President immediately after his inauguration, and usually confirmed at once by the Senate, which either sits a few days after the 4th of March, for this and other purposes, or acts upon the nominations at the commencement of its next session-the nominees in the meantime being invested with legal powers under the Presidential appointment. very seldom that the Senate questions the propriety or policy of the Executive selection-whichever party chances to be dominant in that body yielding its preferences as an act of courtesy ; and the unfitness of a nominee must be notorious and unquestionable, or party spirit must run very high, before such a violation of partisan comity would be likely to occur.

It is

The Secretaries receive an annual salary, uniform in amount, which has been for some years fixed at about 1,6667. This salary is, however, of trifling consideration when compared with the honour of the position, and especially the vast patronage that accrues to the incumbent; in the distribution of which, if he necessarily makes some enemies, he is at least enabled to reward his old personal and partisan friends, as well as to attach new ones to his individual interests.

Most of the Departments, as at present constituted, were established immediately after the adoption of the Constitution; while others have a more modern origin, having been formed in consequence of the increasing business of the nation, and, in fact, from others that had become over

American Secretaryship of State. 63

burdened with multifarious and complicated labour. For several Administrations, the Cabinet comprised only the Secretaries of State, the Treasury, War, and the Navy, and the Attorney-General. President Jackson was the first to summon the Postmaster-General to this high dignity; and, when the Department of the Interior was created, only a few years ago, its Secretary was also admitted to its Councils. The Cabinet, therefore, now embraces five Secretaries, the Postmaster-General, and the Attorney-General-neither one of whom takes formal precedence of the others; the idea of a Premier not being tolerated among these dignitaries.

It is true, however, that the Secretary of State, by a very natural, and, indeed, inevitable process, has come to be regarded something in the light of a Prime Minister, and really assumes and exercises, to a great extent, the functions of that European official. But there is, as will be presently seen, a wide difference between the real Prime Minister of England and the nominal one in the United States. The former is the actual head, not only of the Cabinet, but of the Government itself; while the latter is merely one of the members by courtesy of a consulting body, of which the President, who alone possesses any positive power, is the Chief. The moral influence, however, of the Cabinet upon the conduct of any Administration is publicly felt to be so great that it is invariably held responsible for all executive acts. It may, in short, be regarded as the Government de facto, though not de jure.

It may seem strange that the VicePresident, occupying, as he does, a position apparently of such vast importance, is not admitted to the Cabinet Councils of the Administration of which he is a member. Such, however, is, and always has been, the case. The man who, by the accident of a day, may find himself suddenly invested with the supreme power of the nation, unless such accident occurs, is really the weakest and most unimportant among all his official col

leagues. He occupies, indeed, a high and honourable post as President of the Senate, for which he receives a salary of 1,6667. per annum; but little or no patronage is connected with this office, and he cannot even vote in the body over which he presides, except when a ballot results in a tie. Even his presence is unnecessary; and, during illness or absence, he delegates his authority to some member of the Senate; or, if he dies, that body chooses a presiding officer from its own number. Beyond this, except that in Washington society he ranks next to the President, he possesses no powers or privileges whatever. His exclusion from the Cabinet is, perhaps, the result of a wise policy, or, at least, not an unnatural

one.

A Vice-President, virtuous and conscientious as he may be as a man, although he may not speculate upon the possible demise of one who alone stands between him and the object of his honest aspirations, might, without doing very great violence to the code of political morality, shape all his conduct with a view to the succession. As presiding officer of the Senate, and that only, he possesses little power, and has comparatively few opportunities for ordinary intrigue; but, as a member of the Presidential Cabinet, he might, if so disposed, prove a perpetual firebrand. It is to guard against such contingencies as these that, I suppose, the doors of the Cabinet Council are closed against the Vice-President; and I may safely add that, so far as my experience and observation reach, the usual personal attitude maintained by the two highest officers of the nation may be best described as one of "armed neutrality." President Jackson and Vice-President Calhoun quarrelled outright.

The statistics of the Cabinet are not without interest; and some of them possess a significant importance that will readily suggest itself to the reader.

Except in the two instances when the Presidents died in office shortly after their inauguration, there has been but one Administration the original Cabinet of which remained intact to its close. President Pierce retained the same Ministry

with which he started during the entire four years of his official career, and in this respect stands alone among American Presidents. John Quincy Adams ranks next-a single change only occurring during his Administration, when he was compelled to appoint a new Secretary of War, having selected the original incumbent to represent his Government at the Court of St. James.1 On the other hand, General Jackson changed his Ministers so often that no less than twenty different persons occupied the six Cabinet chairs during his term of office. More or fewer changes have occurred under all the other Presidents-Washington having had fourteen different Ministers, John Adams twelve, Jefferson thirteen, Madison twelve, Monroe eleven, Van Buren ten, Tyler sixteen, Polk nine, Fillmore nine, and Buchanan eleven. Mr. Lincoln's cannot yet be counted. It is but fair to say that, in many instances, these changes were not the result of any difference between the Presidents and the members of their Cabinets-the retiring members still remaining connected with the respective Administrations, and accepting other important official positions at home, or in the diplomatic service abroad. In others, however, and particularly in that of Jackson, they must be unhesitatingly attributed to the fact that the Ministers refused to sacrifice their own convictions of what was right and proper, in certain

Mr.

1 It may be well to mention here a serious error of M. de Tocqueville, who stated, in his famous work on Democracy in America, that "Mr. Quincy Adams, on his entry into office, discharged the majority of the individuals who had been appointed by his predecessor." This assertion is entirely incorrect. Adams retained, throughout his term of office, no less than three of the six members of his predecessor's Cabinet, viz. :-the Secretary of War, the Postmaster-General, and the AttorneyGeneral. As to the others, Mr. Adams himself had been Mr. Monroe's Secretary of State, and, therefore, was compelled to appoint a new one; while Mr. Monroe's Secretary of War, Mr. Calhoun, was Vice-President during Mr. Adams's Administration, and, consequently, his old office was vacant; and, lastly, Mr. Crawford, who had been Secretary of the Treasury under Mr. Monroe, although he had been Mr. Adams's competitor for the Presidency, was offered the same post by his successful antagonist, but declined to accept it.

political emergencies, to the opinions and demands obstinately persisted in by their Executive superiors. The whole of Jackson's first Cabinet, with a single exception, having espoused the cause of Vice-President Calhoun, who had quarrelled with the President, were 66 permitted to resign," after little more than two years' service; and, in 1833, Mr. Duane, then Secretary of the Treasury, was summarily ejected from his office, by the same President, solely because he would not, in compliance with his peremptory dictation, remove the Government deposits from the old Bank of the United States. His successor, Mr. Taney, was made of more flexible materials, and was rewarded for his obedience, two or three years later, by his grateful Chief, who appointed him Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

It has been persistently averred, and is now, probably, universally believed, that, in the construction of the different Administrations or Executive Governments, the South (to use a sectional term) has always predominated over the North-in other words, that Southern men have always been in a majority in the various Presidential Cabinets, and have, therefore, been able to direct and control the policy of each succeeding Administration. I find, on a careful examination, that such is not the fact. The balance has been very equally preserved, and, if anything, has been rather in favour of the North.

The whole number of different actual incumbents of the various Cabinet offices, from the inauguration of Washington to the accession of Mr. Lincoln, has been one hundred and forty-three; of which seventy-one were from the Southern and seventy-two from the Northern States. In two of the departments the South has predominated over the North, and in two others the North over the South, while in the other three the Cabinet offices have been equally divided. To be more particular: Of the twenty-one different individuals who have occupied the post of Secretary of State during the time mentioned, thirteen have been Southern and eight Northern men; of No. 37.-VOL. VII.

the twenty-three Secretaries of the Treasury, nine Southern and fourteen Northern; of the twenty-eight Secretaries of War, fourteen Southern and fourteen Northern; of the twenty-four Secretaries of the Navy, twelve Southern and twelve Northern; of the eighteen Postmasters-General, seven Southern and eleven Northern; of the twenty-five Attorneys-General, fourteen Southern and eleven Northern; and of the four Secretaries of the Interior, two Southern and two Northern.

The result is about the same, in whatever way the Cabinet statistics are dissected. Washington had fourteen different Ministers during his Administration, of whom six were from the South and eight from the North; John Adams had twelve, who were equally divided between the two sections; Jefferson had thirteen, six from the South and seven from the North; Madison twelve, equally divided; Monroe eleven, four from the South and seven from the North; John Quincy Adams seven, three from the South and four from the North; Jackson twenty, eleven from the South and nine from the North; Van Buren ten, four from the South and six from the North; Harrison six, equally divided; Tyler sixteen, nine from the South and seven from the North; Polk nine, four from the South and five from the North; Taylor seven, four from the South and three from the North; Fillmore nine, five from the South and four from the North; Pierce seven, three from the South and four from the North; and Buchanan eleven, six from the South and five from the North. In five of these Administrations, therefore, the South has predominated over the North, and in seven the North over the South, while in the other three the division was equal.1

1 The aggregate of these numbers is one hundred and sixty-four, instead of one hundred and forty-three, as stated in the preceding paragraph. The difference arises from the fact that, in the former statement, I counted only the individuals who had held Cabinet offices, some of whom retained their positions under more than one Administration. general result, however, is very nearly the same, the division in the latter instance being -Southern, eighty; Northern, eighty-four.

F

The

Presuming that the policy of an Administration is indicated by the construction of its first Cabinet, the following results are attained :-The Cabinet offices under Presidents John Adams, Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, Van Buren, Harrison, and Tyler were equally divided between the North and the South; under Washington and Pierce the North had majorities of one, and under Taylor, Fillmore, and Buchanan the South had similar majorities, under Madison and Monroe the North had majorities of two, and under Jackson and Polk the South had the same majorities. The balance in this case is apparently in favour of the South-Mr. Buchanan's Cabinet, the last in order, just turning the scale.

I leave any inferences from these facts and figures to be drawn by the reader himself. As to the probable answer to these singular statements viz. that, in spite of their correctness, the South has always contrived to secure and exercise a superior influence in the councils and legislation of the nation-I do not know that I am called upon to express an opinion. I prefer to content myself with recording, I believe for the first time, the inevitable facts.

Technically speaking, there is no such thing as a "dissolution of the Ministry." The bond between the Executive and the Cabinet is a very slight one, and its maintenance depends mainly upon the caprice of either or both. The former may remove the latter at his pleasure, and they, in turn, may sever the connexion at will, singly or in a body. A Presidential intimation, courteously or coldly expressed, is usually sufficient to ensure a resignation. On the death of President Harrison, the precedent was established, without any particular formality, of affording the Vice-President, his successor, the opportunity of reorganizing the Cabinet, and the Government was virtually dissolved. In this instance, as well as on the death of President Taylor, the Presidents ex-officio retained for a short time the Cabinets of their predecessors, but managed eventually to oust every member, and supply

their places with their own personal friends or partisans.

In 1833, Mr. Clay made an attempt, in the Senate, to bring the Cabinet and its Councils under the surveillance and control of that body, which actually passed a resolution calling upon the President for the production of a certain paper alleged to have been read by him at one of the Cabinet meetings. General Jackson, however, promptly and rather indignantly refused to comply with the demand of the Senate, and read its members a characteristic lecture respecting his own rights and their duties. The matter was not pressed, and the inviolability of Cabinet proceedings has never since been questioned.

In social life at Washington, the members of the Cabinet take high, but not the highest rank. Generally, they need not recognise the presence in the city of any individual, however distinguished, until they have received a visit from him in person, which they may acknowledge either by card or otherwise. A Senator, however, on his arrival at Washington, may send his card to a Cabinet Minister, who is expected to pay him a personal visit in return. It is customary for each of these functionaries, in imitation of the President, to hold a public levée on New-Year's Day, and to give, at least, one grand fête during "the season." The attendance on the latter occasion is almost indiscriminate, invitations being sent to all persons, whether acquaintances or not, who choose previously to leave their cards at the Minister's private residence.

It might be expected that I should make some reference to the Administration and the Cabinet of the present President, Mr. Lincoln. I feel some delicacy in so doing, as that dignitary and his Ministers have been placed in an anomalous and most difficult position, and could not be expected to have pursued exactly such a course as they would have done under more favourable circumstances. My object, also, is to avoid, as far as possible, all subjects of a purely personal character, and to deal

only with general facts. I may, however, compromise the matter in this instance, by simply quoting a description of Mr. Lincoln's relations with his Cabinet, and of the general conduct of his Administration, as written by one of his warmest partisans, and published in one of the first American journals of the day. The New York Evening Post (conducted by Mr. Bryant, the American poet) says:

"We pretend to no State secrets, but we have been told, upon what we deem good authority, that no such thing as a combined, unitary, deliberate Administration exists; that the President's brave willingness to take all responsibility has quite neutralized the idea of a conjoint responsibility; and that orders of the highest importance are issued, and movements commanded, which Cabinet officers learn of as other people do, or, what is worse, which the Cabinet officers disapprove and protest against. Each Cabinet officer, again, controls his own department pretty much as he pleases, without consultation with the President or with his coadjutors, and often in the face of determinations which have been reached by the others."

For one, I am willing to accept this testimony, not only by reason of the source whence it emanates, but also because it appears to be fully confirmed by certain facts and occurrences that are open to the observation of the world. I

may add that this revelation is only what might have been expected; for Mr. Lincoln has not only unnaturally grouped together in his Cabinet representatives from the different factions into which his own party is divided, among whom exists the most serious antagonism, but has actually admitted to its councils, as the Secretary of, at present, perhaps the most important Department, a well-known political opponent, who was actually a member of the preceding Administration, during the existence of which the great national outbreak was engendered, and permitted to thrive to full maturity.

gress, approved the 15th of September, 1789. Previously to that date it was denominated "The Department of Foreign Affairs," a title not then so strictly descriptive or appropriate as it would now be, as it had charge also of many matters purely domestic, from the management of which it has since been relieved by the creation of the Department of the Interior. Originally, its jurisdiction was equivalent to that assigned in England to the Foreign and Home Offices combined, and a portion of the functions of the latter it still continues to exercise.

The local habitation of this Department in the City of Washington by no means corresponds with its vast importance, ranking, as it undoubtedly does, as the chief of the sections into which the Government is divided. The building, which is of moderate size, is constructed of plain brick, without any attempt at architectural adornment, and is only two storeys in height. It occupies the north-east corner of President Square, in the centre of which stands the President's house, with which it has a direct communication by means of a private avenue.

This edifice is one of four, of uniform size and character, erected early in the

history of the Capital, and situated at

the respective corners of the Squarethe three others being then assigned to the Departments of the Treasury, of War, and of the Navy. The ancient Treasury building has disappeared, and given place to one of more elegance and greater dimensions, while, for one of the bureaux originally subordinate to the State Department, a structure almost palatial has been reared in another part of the city; and still this Department itself-the real right arm, or very brain, of the Government-modestly retains the simple shelter which the severe taste of the founders of the nation deemed most in accordance with the proposed character of the new Republic.

Internally, the building is well and conveniently enough arranged; but, even after the transfer of so much of the 1 The Patent Office.