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Show A NATIONAL DISGRACE. Will some philosophic mind rxpl&'m why it in that tho ave AojericiiQ, when ho Hcourcu ofiiue, immediately sots hirudulf to make mora money out ol'itthaa l ho uimplo salary aud honesty hon-esty coiDtuainri' Li it that tho worship of the "Almighty dollar" haa become bo universally acknowledged that men feol thoy mut how down buforo it at every opportunity, treadiag honor, Bolf-ro.sieot and patriotism in the dust to roach ita glittering elmoo? The country hai become painfully familia: with puhlio acaudals of gross corruption corrup-tion and veuality brought to litfht during dur-ing a couple of year 8 hack; while Credit Mobilierisma, buying aenator-ehipa, aenator-ehipa, trading in judgeships and public defalcations have bcoomo so i'requoat as almost to blunt tho national Bcaae with regard to public virtue and morality. mor-ality. Now tho disgrace haa been carried from our shores, and the venality ven-ality in exposed to tho gaze of Europe in connection with the Viarma Exposition Exposi-tion oommiu.-iioncr?. Inasmuoh as tho Question of a man's honesty or fitnoas lor oflico scorns never to bo raiaed, now; that tho civil service reform rules havo bcon abandoned; and that tho only salient point inquired after iscon-oerning iscon-oerning his successful partisanship, there is littlo wonder that so many roguea find their nay into the public service. And as a result, thia powerful power-ful government is represented, at home and abroad, in too many instances, by men fitter for a penitentiary than for responsible and honorablo office It is publicly charged, and the ohargo is neither refuted nor denied, that a number of the commissioners to the Vienna exposition are in tho pay of, or havo received bribes from, lead ing busiocsE houses in thia country to further their interests. One sewing uiachioo company is alleged to own one of these co tu initio u?rs, irtluonco and conscience, if ho has auy of tho latter, article; and as the disgiacoia exposed, tho opinion may be expected to grow in Europe whiuh hua taken deep root in this country, that anything oan be bought of a government officer, from the passage duty free of contraband ' goods to a judicial decision iuvolviug millione. It ia openly charged, us the telegraph informs us, that Presideut Grant ia aware of the exaotiona which those commissioners luve perpetrated, leaving tho iulereuce that he buw uo particular harm ia it until the matter wra pressed no hard that Jay had to bo instruotod to suspend t It o men from noting, Tho smell of corruption ia blooming bl-ooming exceedingly rank and noisome, and it remains to bo sunn how long the oountry will endure it. If the publio nostril Icarus to relish aod patronize tho effluvia, tho next thing will be for all hands to join in a huge game of plunder, with tho motto, "the devil tako tho hindmost." Wo cannot closo this articlo better than by directing attention to tho dia-patob dia-patob on the subject which appears in this morning's Herald, and adding this clipping from the New York World: Tho Herald prints the following aa a npcoial telegram from Vienna: "Vienna, April JO. Swindling ia reported in connection with the appointment ap-pointment of tho American commissioners commis-sioners to the International Industrial Exhibition to bo held in this city. It is asserted that many of the commis-sioners commis-sioners purcha3ed the position for the siko ol tho honor of appearing in an official character at tho assemblago of tho fair and during its management. Ono of tho gentlemen says ho paid the sum of $j,UUO, but the rate generally charged was somewhero in tho neighborhood neigh-borhood ot Sii.OOO. The majority of the commissioners aro incapable persona. per-sona. Tho moro respcctablo among them aro ongaged in instituting inquiry into tho matter of the swindle. " This is a terrible charge. It supplements sup-plements tho Emma mine and numberless number-less other things. It ia au international exposuro of tho pawnbrokcrago system of government introduced by the Preai-1 dent and those in his confidence. The 1 substance of it appears to bo that our national commissioner at Vienna haa sold, or others unbeknown to him have sold, for money, his recommendations or appointments lor the offices of honorary hon-orary oommisionera of the great republic repub-lic at this gathering of the art, science, and industry of the world at Vienna. The administration must not pause a second in its peremptory treatment of this scandal. If genera! Van Buren . be guihy, let his punishment uod disgrace dis-grace bo as notorious and on as wide a theatre as his crime. If Ac be tonoeoat, iet everybody know of it at once. Every American will hereafter Bhudder at the name of Vieana if this story be t'ua and tho offenders are not exterminated with a rough hand! |