The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1871-09-07

) Z aA11ClAlDiN ~ Al1t kIbh llAH evil Wlllci
is no doubt the result Of that genera
spirit Of prOdigalitv and extravaganc,
2 that has everywhere prevailed since
% the war. The Limitation Of local debt
p and taxation is now left 10 the gener
al assembly Il should be placed in
, the fundamental law, above the reach
: Of party influence, where the pressure
Of schemes of taxation and eXpendi-
turs can not come. No one can read
the article Of the new constitution OF
Illinois on revenue and taxation with
out cOngratulating the peOp.e of that
state ON their fortunate escape from
the evils which now affiict Us.
i In many particulars the theory of
representative government has been
improved during the last twenty
years. 10 will not be denied that the
suffrage should be so regulated that
the vote Of every electOT, as far as
/ possible, shall have its dne weight in
the choice of public servants. No cit
izen should feel that his vote is useless,
and every political community should
/ feel the restraining influence Of the
minority party. But how in our state?
! The twelve counties that compose the
! Western Reserve send to tine general
assembly seven senators and seven
1 teen representatives One-fifth
Of the whole body. These officers are
elected by the votes of 5000 republi-
cans. The 1000 democratic voters
on the reserve have not one man of
their choice in either branch Of the
Legislature. In such elections they are
virtually disfranchised. On the other
! hand, there is belt of thirteen cOun-
ties, commencing with Wayne county
ON the southern line of the reserve
and extending to and including
Adams county on the Ohio river,
which sends To the general assembly
six senators and fifteen. representa-
tives. These are elected by 10000
democrats, and the 10000 republican
voters i'm that belt of territory have
virtually no voice in the choice of
their representative utterly pow
erless at the polls. Both the republi-
cans Of this belt aud the democrats of
the reserve should be heard i'm regard
10 the government of the townships,
counties, judicial and representative
districts where they live, and have no
doubt both parties would he better il
this power We're granted. The in
equality and injustice complained of
can be, in a great measure, removed
by adopting some plans for the repre-
sentatiOn of minorities. The expert
ment has been tried successfully, and
would doubtless promote the public
good in the election Of representatives,
judges, county commissioners, town
ship trustees, school directors, and all
officers who can be elected in groups. |
I have suggested these classes of |
amendments only as examples of |
many that might Eo saaaIs. T'i.sr s,t~ 1
not partisan i'm character, and are ad- |
dressed 10 thoughtful men of both par |
tics.
The average age of our American |
at the present time is
less than seventeen years, and l hope |
that Ohio will not wait till her con-
stitution is forty years old before she
attempts to make il more fully in har-
mOny with the spirit and wants of our
time.
The work of the convention need
not be complicated with the passions
and antagOnisms of the presidential
election, for the new constitution
could hardly be ready for the judg-
ment of the people before the spring
of 1873.
And now, feIlOw-citizens, am COM
PEELED 10 follow the fashion of the
time, and consider the relations of the
two parties to national affairs.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
1t is comforting to find that even on
one topic of national policy the two
parties agree. / know that the litera-
ture of party platforms frequently il
lustrates Talleyrand's definition of
language instrument skillfully
to conceal thought :" but |
something is gained when the two
parties put themselves on record as
approving a reform in the civil serv-
ice OF the government. After not a
little study of the subject, | say, with |
out hesitation, that il would be diff |
cult for any man to eXaggerate the !
evils which now affiict that branch of |
the service. The situation is all the |
mere dangerous, from the fact that |
the evil is old and that no one pOlit- |
ical party, administration or depart |
ment is wholly responsible for il. 1t |
is the result of an apOstasy from the |
theory and practice of the fathers, |
which began with Jackson, and has
grown with steady and fearful rapidi- |
ty until the present time. 1t began |
by ignoring the fact that offices were |
created and should he maintained sole |
ly for the service Of the government, |
and by regarding them as the legiti- |
mate spOils of party triumph. We read
with amaZement the story of Pom |
finance minister of Louis |
XIV, who created a multitude of use |
less offices, and sold them 10 tine high |
est bidder, as a measure of revenue
There was a grim humOr in his re- |
mark to the king, when he said, "As
often as your majesty has created an |
Office, so often has God made fool to |
buy it." But that was nearly two |
centuries ago, and he made no pre-
tense Of defending his policy, except |
that it put money in the royal treas
ury. But uncOnsciOusly and by slow |
degrees the people of the United States |
have allowed a policy to harden into |
custom, which is nearly If not quite |
as bad. Ii has come to be regarded as |
the proper thing 10 treat the seventy |
Thousand government offices, great |
and small, as the stock in trade TO he |
used by the leaders of central and loo |
al politics to insure success at elect |
ions, and to reward active party work |
ers. Offices are not actually sold in |
market for money; but they are dis |
tributed for what IL frequently less !
valuable, viz. political service.
In the army and navy service is
honorable, because il rests chiefly up
Oh merit and the continued ability
and faithfulness of the officer. NOtsO |
in the lower walks of the civil service. !
Merit is not the surest road To ap- |
pOintment or preferment, and the |
most devoted and intelligent faithful |
ness * no security against abrupt dis |
missal. II follows that the govern |
ment is poorly and irregularly served, |
and the great body who serve il, espec- |
tally i'm the more subordinate capaci- |
ties, hold their positions by tenure 4
most uncertain and under circum- |
stances most tunfavOTable to their man. I
illness and Independence. The system |
is as debaSing to them rs il is wretch |
ed and inefficient for the government. !
When Andrew Johnson deserted the |
party, all the thorough I
fares were thrOnged with political pill ]
grims on their way to Washington, |
EalAtI 10 tltNOuL LllE EllAIllESL vi j
and demanding a general |
dismissal Of officials, even down TO |
the humblest doOr-kceper and mes
sengcT. Many ofthe numerous changes
made by him We're forced upon him
by the pressure of importunate office
seekers, and he could not resist the
current. Some of his cabinet officers
demonstrated and declared that the
merciless work of decapitatiOn was
sweeping away their most trusted and
efficient officers, and crippling the
work of their departments. But the
brigand cry for spOils, demanded in
the name Of party, drowned all other
voices, and private injury and the
public service were alike forgotten.
In his distress at the spectacle wit
messed in his own department, Secre-
/ tary McCullOch once said:
IF you give me one half that 1t
costs to run the treasury department
Oi the United States, will do all the
work better than il is now, and make
great fortune out Of what can
] save.n
] 1t Is said that some evils are 80 deep
ly seated that they must get worse be-
fore they can get better. Judged by
this rule, the symptoms are favorable;