New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1873-01-30
civil Service Reform"
Ten ThuTIov Weed Opposes the Theory
- Imir%etirsbie and T,schievcus.

T. fis E4tar ftis Nr,- T9-i Nra,I:
Civil Service Reform n theory. X
suggestive OF relief for all the evils connected
with the appointments t. office in all the
civil departments OF the Government. Ii is
the great panacca for existing political abuses.
Most Presidential elections have promised
Important reforms. The last invention oi
politicians was civil service reform" Il
originated with Senators in Congress. who.
by their d.lgent efforts in procuring appoint
mentS Tor relatives aud friends. generally In
utter disregard Of fitness. did much 70 render
civil service reform necessary and popular
The din raised in Congress and BY the "Libc-
raj Republican" and Democratic journals, be-
wildered and bcSuilcd the people so generally
that the Republican party Was constituted e.
acccptit a. an issue in the recent Presidential
canvass. Bat now that this theory is about
to bc tested, however plausible a. a theory.
it Will be found utterly imrraCticablc. Or. if
1t be carried into arbitrary effect, it will oc-
cdsion abuses far greater than any we have
hitherto experienced.
This phrase of ''civil service" was uaugu-
rated by and exists only in dcspotic and mo-
narchical governments. In England it en-
aJlcS the aristocracy 10 establish their de-
pcnGcntreiatiYcs in permanent and profitable
Offices. sinccurcs, and pensions. Bat 1t j.
inconsistent "iih, and rrpUEaaH, to. 4 rcuub-
lcan form Of government Within the n-auh IF
all it, citizens. The attempt to close 1'r
doors aud avenues which lead to civil svryi.a
appointments against nncty-ninc out oi
every one hundred clcctor: will certainly and
signally fail. ToeXprcSs the idea in another
!orn.any attempt to create a privileged class.
or to build up an oilicc-hOding arist0cracv.
Will prove discredltabiy abortivc Daring
the l!r,t thirty or forty years after the inau-
euration at West Point, for the education Of
young men who were TO become the officers
OF the regular army, that institution excited
strong popular jealousy in and out Of Con-
gress. On several occasions the House of
Representatives all but refused the annual
West Point appropriation. Indeed, but for
the opportune occurrence Of the Mexican
war, where the valnc Of military education
was so triumphantly indicated, the school
in which Grant and sherman. Thomas,
sheridan, &C., were educated might have
ceased to exist. But what is indispensable
to the army and navy is quite unnecessary
to the civil service" of the Government
The programme now attempted TO be carried
0ut Is scarcely less absurd than one which
should render all citizens Ineligible for - civil
service" who had not received a COLLEGE
education. And yet nothing is better known
than that large percentage of the graduates
oil colleges are to be found among the dr0nes
and inbcciles of society. No stronger Illus
tration Of the faulty Of the "ciyl service re-
FORM Is needed than the fact that neither
the late Dean Richmond nor Commodore
Vanderbilt could pass an examination for
subordinate Office i'll the custOm-housc.
Ii all the people have not right to COM
pete for the hOnors and cmoluncnts Of Office,
Republican institutions are a sham and a
fraud. The Senators and journals that have
hOWied longest and l0udcst in favor of "ciyil
service reform" would be the last to adoDt it
ii they had obtained power Indeed. no man.
when he came practically to deal with the
question, can fail to discover the mpossibiltv
OF adhering to it. The great burden Of the
cry against President Grant was that he had
filled the ''ciyil service" with incompetent
and dishonest men. And yet the effect Of
now applying this ''civl service doctrine
will be to keep all these unworthy incum-
bcnts in Office for an indefinite period. 1t
converts the departments at Washington,
the cuStom-hOuses and post Offices in our
large cities into close corporations. When Il
vacancy occurs in an important office, the
President, instead Of being ut liberty to east
his eye over the Union to find the most ca
pablo and deserving man, Is required to APP
point Il subordinate. IN many instances this
would work well enough, for it is not unlic-
queDtly the case that a subordinate, by long
experience and wcll-tIied integrity, is cnti-
tied to promotion. | have often, in such
cases, urged the appointment OF subCrdinatcs
to fiji vacancies occas0ncd by death or res
ignation Of heads of departments. prevailed
upon President Lincoln, through the late Sec
Rotary Seward, to appoint the late VIM. Il.
Taylor, postmaster in this city, on the
grounds that he had served honestly and
faithfully as chief clerk and assistant for
twenty-five years, was capable, and, although
not an active politician, hal ALWAYS voted the
Wing and Republican tickets. When the late
Preston King died, urged the appointment
of his deputy, Mr.. Clinch, rs collector, be-
cause having creditably discharged most Of
the duties under half u dozen Administra-
tons, knew that his appointment would be
acceptable to our merchants. And for kin.
dred reasons, again, when Gen. Dix resigned
the Naval Office, urged the appointment of
his capable and mcritoriOy!s deputy. Mr..
Franklin. These, however, are exceptional
cases. As a rule, had ''ciyil service doc
trinc obtained at the close of the rebellion
what would have been the fate of several
thousand wounded Union soldiers, who, in
reward for their patriotism and galIantry. are
now rscfully employed in our cus.om-holIscs
and post Offices:
President Grant was enabled 10 dispose
satisfactorily ol the lirst civil service uucS-
ton arising since his reelection, in obedience
to the new policy and against politicians,
merchants, bankers, etc, of Philadelphia,
simply because the deputy whom he appoint
ed postmaster was a gentleman of acknowl-
edged ability and integrity, whose personal
claims and fitness were generally recognized !;
but he will very soon encounter obstacles
that Will render obedience to the "ciyii scrv-
ice" regulations quite impossible. For cy-
ample: 1t is generally understood that Sec
rotary Fish will retire from the State De-
partment on the 18th OF March. Ii the Prcsi-
dent is to be bound by ''civil service REFORM
Secretary Fish's successor will be Mr.. Hun
ter, the very capable and meritorious chief
clerk OF the department, who has discharged
these duties for more than forty years. Nor
does the rule rest here for President Grant,
successor, in framing cabinet. will be linn
tied in his selection TO the subOrlinates in the
different departments of the Federal COY
ernmcnt. II the civil service reform
should be established as a result of the
| Presidential election Of 1872, NAV we not
fairly assume the Procr,Istean philosophy a.
the rule by which to determine the qualiica-
tons for civil service" in 1876? And the
sooner these facts are comprehended by Con-
grcss, by heads Of departments, and BIZ the
| President himself, the easier il will DO T. re-
| store to common sense view of their duties
l and rpSDuuSI1ilIflss i in no IaiiF