The interference of Members of Congress in the petty
appointments and employment of laborers in the navy yards is annoying and
pernicious. The public interest is not regarded by the Members, but they crowd
partisan favorites for mechanical positions in place of good mechanics and
workmen, and when I refuse to entertain their propositions, they take offense.
I can't help it if they do. I will not prostitute my trust to their schemes and
selfish personal partisanship.
SOURCE: Gideon Welles, Diary of Gideon Welles,
Secretary of the Navy Under Lincoln and Johnson, Vol. 1: 1861 – March 30,
1864, p. 327
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