Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1870-03-06
Our Civil Service.

From a lecture upon this subject,
recently delivered at Philadelphia, BY
Mr.. George William Curtis, we make
the following extracts. The speaker
said:
In speaking Of the civil service Of
the United States, by which is meant
all the public service that is not milf
tary OF naval, you will do me the JUS
tice TO think that l am not criticising
an individual, but a system. We, in
this country, should adopt a system
that this service may be more sure
than under the present system. Dur
ing the time of Mr.. Lincoln there was
a man whom l shall call jeremiah
Jones, who was q great bore to the
President. He wanted his friends
placed in Office, and did all he could
to effect that object at ali seasons.
1t is a very ridiculous and alarming
fact that this man appoints all the
minor officers in this country who
work for his interests, and not in IA
vOr of the service of the United States.
If Dean Swift had described a reve-
nue. service by which a quarter of the
whole revenue was lost, we would say
that the satire had lost its edge. This
IS a system that rots the very roots of
the Republic. What our ship of State
wants Is not only to float, but to sail,
and to sail prOsperOusly. Our re
sources are not likely to be increased
by wasting them.
1t is not by money and arms that
we have learned that great States "a
be defended. If we viii have a re-
public we must have parties, so it is
said, and the retainers Of the party
must be sustained by the Treasury.
Fortunately for Us, this was not the
practice of the men who formed this
Government. We should choose self
respecting, responsible and intelligent
men for our officers. The whole num-
Der of civil officers under Washing
ton was but a mere handful. When
his administration began he had not,
of course, as much to contend against
as now. After Adams, who followed
Washington, came Jefferson, the first
Of our party leaders. We are all Fed
eralists, we are all Republicans, said
he, as he entered the Capital.
The pressure upon him to remove
and appoint officers, he said, was
great. The whole number of customs
officers in the United States then was
three hundred less than are at present
in the New York Custom House alone.
Out Of the five thousand civil officers
he did not remove over one hundred,
and he was followed nObly by his sue
CessOrs down to Jackson. Mr.. Jeffer-
son RETAINED from removing for the
reason that others removed, which
was to help his party. He was elected
by the House of Representatives,
through the absence of Mr.. Bayard, of
Delaware. OF course, my friends,
party spirit in this country was always
the same, only it did not bring the
pressure to bear Once as it now does.
In 1911, during MadisOn's admins
tratiOn, Joseph Quincy, speaking of
the pressure for Office that followed
the death of IN incumbent, said there
was great running, jOStling and quar-
reling after an Office. In 1923, at the
opening of the administration of
Jackson, the great war began. Dur
ing the first forty years of the admin
istratiOn there were but seventy-three
removals from Office. After General
Jackson took possession of the Presi-
Dental chair, the removals from office
were counted by thousands for pleas
Ure.
What a great change! Whatever
the practice may have been, the mo-
tive was not avOWed. Presently Van
Buren, was nominated as Minister to
England. lie was supported by
Webster, Calhoun, and other great
men of that time. Mr.. Marcy, the
Senator from New York, also supper
ted him, and advocated the New
York system of politics. There was a
great time in the Senate, and nearly
all the great lights of the country par
ticipated ia the debate, and Mr.. Van
Buren, gained the object of his de-
sires.
Whichever party is victor, the coun-
try is always the victim. 1t is impOssi-
bic for any Secretary to learn the de-
tails Of his Office, because his time is
needed to make appointments. They
all worry, bride and plot. Economy,
patriotism and hOnOr-they were once
words even in American politics.
There IS a do nothing in the town; he
Is known IN every community, by the \
way. He goes into politics, and works
hard for the party, and, after the cleo
ton is over, he takes out his little bill
in a position.
The civil service is more wretchedly
performed, and at a higher price than
any private business. Those who are
in Office regard it as a prize. They
know that they cannot be there long,
and work hard to make it a paying
job while they are there. The officer
is Judged not by the manner in which
he does his duty, but by the zeal with
which he works for his party. The
party in power in this country holds
that the public money paid foz service
rendered shall simply be held ia truss
for the use Of the party, and for moth
ing else, and men suffer in cOuse-
quence.
The reputation Of such a service is
long since ruined. We take no pride
in it any more. L am not speaking Of
individuals. We all know honorable
gentlemen in the civil service, and
they know about these matters bett.r
than we do. These honorable I'D en-
make the service the little that it is.
If the military and naval service had
been carried on as the civil service has
been, where would we have been to-
day. The soldiers and sailors whose
names you honor were not put in
place because they pleased Jeremiah
Jones, but because they had fOughtfor
it. A trust cOnfided to a Representa-
tive of the United States hs.s been sold
for money. You have seen thatff YOU
have read your evening paper.
The country is indj gnant that a
West Point nomination has beensoId.
We are all indignant with that I'M
representative, but we have
him TO act in that manner II
is not enough that Congress should
censure these men, but we shOuld
show them what the people think OF
the matter. Fitness is Of no inprjrt-
in public office. If We are not
1t will o On be the same in
private business. This system de-
preciates the the moral stanGinc Of
the country. Dirty work is not
always OF one kind it is eCntempti-
bic or criminal. From the depths of
our disgrace let us cry aloud for re-
iOrm. Now, Cay friends, what is to
be done for Us IN the future.
Let the people turn out and de-
5troy this foul system of patronage.
why don't the President reform this
system2 Our Hercules is strong, but
ne cannot do all. What we want in
this country is to entrench that VS.
Of Washington in the law. I
Of ne gentleman In New York,
and you probably know q dozen in
this city, who used to sign every pc
tition which was brought to him. and
then wrote private letters exactly to