The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-12-04


general soundness of its positions than for
strength of reasoning or apt language. On
the great questions relating to the currency
and the public credit it is satisfactory. The
President stands firmly by his sound South
ern policy and he continues to pay to civil
service reform the homage of professions,
which may mean little or much, but can in
spire no great confidence in view of the
recent past.
The President expends more words
on his Southern policy than the oc-
casion called for 1t is beyond the
power of Congress to overthrow or ar
rest it; he needs no additional legislation
to enable him to carry it out; he has no spe-
cifc recommendations to make on the SUBJ
ject; in fact, he could not possibly retreat
from it if he were ever SO much inclined.
When the troops had once been withdrawn
he had no authority to restore them. except
on call by the democratic State governments
which thereupon became established and
non-interference having become an accom-
plished and irreversible fact there is no oc-
casion for defensive argument Half
dozen clear sentences reciting what he had
done, asserting its constitutionality and
pointing out it's sslutary effects in tranquil
lizing the South would have been
better than an argument which looks
too much like an apology. With the
admission Of the other Louisiana Senators
the Southern policy becomes nm utterly
dead question, and the President might
safely have trusted to time for his justifica-
ton. 1t was needless for him to argue in
favor Of what is past recall or to inform
Congress Of his fir0 adherence to policy
which neither lie nor Congress can change.
His defence Of his civil service measures
is the weakest part of the Message, because
he was under the necessity of executing q
retreat. It is not q mastery retreat. There
is no allusion to the famous order in which
he made his FIRST attempt to carry out his
ideas of civil service reform. 1t would have
been awkward for him to have attempted
its defence after allowing it to be defantly
trampled under foot with impunity in
the State of New York, and after
having himself explained it away piecemeal
left. The total silence OF the Message with
reference to that remarkable order is tacit
abandonment Of it and an implied confess
sion that it was a mistake. The essence of
civil service reform. as he explains it in his
Message, consists in exempting the Presi-
dent from the dictation Of Senators and
members Of the House in selecting his
nominees. This is matter SO completely
within his own control that he need not
argue it as if his right were question:
able. In point of fact it has never
been seriously questioned. When m
come vacant there is usually o multitude
of competing applicants, and the greatest
Of all the wearisome and time-consuming
perplexities of every President is the
necessity of deciding among SO many
hungry contestants. II Senators or Congress
men could decide for him he would es-
cape o constant bore. But he is not
at liberty to evade his duty by nominating
the favorite candidates Of Senators without
inquiry. It is childish for President Hayes
to get up a fictitious issue Of this sort for
the purpose of covering his retreat Of his
discredited civil service order. He has him.
self repeatedly recognized the value of ad-
vice from Senator'S and Congressman in
making appointments. His nomination
Of Fitzsimmons was in Difference to
the Georgia Senators. Nobody is
likely to forget the invitation to
the Pennsylvania congressman to select n
Minister to England Advice from such
quarters is sometimes valuable, but no
President, so far as we have ever heard, sur
rendered his constitutional liberty Of choice
after taking such advice as was offered. A
strong pressure is always brought. to bear
on the President in appointments to office,
and if this pressure is usually stronger
by Congressman it is merely because
they are on the ground and have
greater facilities of access. Mr.. Hayes
is the first President who ever affected to
think that his right of nomination was
called in question. The really great evil in
our civil service is the removal Of officers
for merely political reasons. Mr.. Hayes
virtually confesses that he has done this
when he says, II have endeavored to re-
duce the number, of changes in subor-
dinate places usually made upon the
change of the general administration. I"
On the true civil service theory no
changes should be made ut all in SUBJ
ordinate places merely because there
is new President As Mr.. Hayes succeeded
republican predecessor and found only
republicans in Office there was no necessity
for making many changes, even on party
grounds. But on civil service grounds he
had no right to make changes at oil except
for unfaithfulness or inefficiency. Mr..
Hayes request to have compensation pro-
vided for General Grants old civil service
commission is weak, since nothing is more
certain than that Congress will neglect the
recommendation. Civil service reform is