The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-05-30

The documents which we printed yester-
day must be regarded as the first instalment
of civil service reform and sample OF
President Hayes method. 1t strikes US as
a cautious, common sense method. 1t has
the great merit Of keeping quite clear OF
fantastic, sentimental WITNESSES, and pro-
ceeding by o business-like path toward a
sound business end. 1t does not SAVIOR
at all of the pedantry Of the fancy
reformers who have taken civil service reform
into their keeping Instead Of prescribing
a set Of cast-iron rules to be applied at
once to the whole civil service the President
has begun by selecting the most I'M
portant of all the subordinate agencies OF
the government and attempting to make
that model of what other branches OF the
public service ought to be. Nothing could
be wiser. 1t this experiment succeeds
its success will make the way easy
for reforming every Custom House in
the country. If it fails the government
will be spared the modification of seeing
large and pretentious scheme miscarry.
Mr. Hayes is acting with the prudence and
his ores to trial on small scale and tests
their value before making great outlay OF
capital in erecting expensive works. The
leading republican journal of this city as
sailed him yesterday, and denounced his
proposed reform in the Custom House as
worthless, because he has not established
| hard and fast line for removals and pro-
| ~. NAx1s orv711
be more out of place or more absurd than
cast-iron rule in this stage Of the reform.
Instead of committing himself to an expert
ment at large Mr.. Hayes has confined his
initial trial to the New York Custom House,
wisely judging that success here could be
failure here would require him
to revise and improve his method
before imposing it rs a fixed rule on all the
custom houses and the whole civil service.
If it works we'll here it is fair presumption
that it would work we'll everywhere; but if it
fails in this single experiment he will have
an opportunity for rectifying his ideas
before proclaiming them as a universal rule
in relation to the civil service.
The projected reform in the New York
Custom House is an experiment, and it
would be absurd for us to vouch for it's
success while the administration itself re-
CARDS it as merely tentative measure. The
country will Judge it by its fruits, which is
the only sound rule for awarding praise or
blame in public matters. But, whatever
may be the ultimate result, we have
no hesitation in indorsing the caution,
wisdom and foresight Of the Presi-
dent in making trial Of his civil
service ideas in one narrow but conspicuous
field before making them universal rule.
If they succeed in the New York Custom
House it will be easy to make them a success
everywhere, because Of all the strongholds
in which political favoritism overrides
sound ideas Of public service the Custom
House in this city has always been fore
most since the spoils system came
into vogue. Efficient and successful
reform here would demonstrate its
practicability, by the same methods,
in every part of the public service. Secre-
tery Sherman. in his letter Of instruction to
Collector Arthur, hit the nail on the head in
saying to that officer, II will heartily sus-
tain and approve any recommendation You
may make that appears to me to tend to
make the New York Custom House not only
what it now is--the most important, but
what it ought to be-the best managed
agency of the governmeus." AS soon as
this most important agency Of the govern
ment becomes the best managed it will
serve as the chief pattern Of civil service re-
form. Nothing could be wiser than the at
tempt to establish such o pattern before
rushing blindly upon vast and untried sea
Of experiment without chart or compass If
President Hayes can make the New York
Custom House a fit model for all similar es-
Establishments the civil service reform to
which he is pledged will stand on secure
ground. He will only have to pursue the
same methods everywhere whose success
justifes them here to redeem and purify the
whole civil service.
Among the cavils which we notice in the
press there is one from democratic source
which derides the reform because Collector
Arthur is not removed. This is stone
blind exhibition Of party captiousness. Mr..
Arthur is one Of the most honest, efficient
and acceptable collectors we have had since
the introduction of the spoils system con-
verted the Custom House into a party ma
chine. Like all his recent predecessors, he
has been to some extent the slave of bad
system, but we have never had a Collector
who was more willing TO be emancipated or
who would give more jealous aid in intro
ducing better system. The President
could not have perpetrated q greater alb
surdity than the removal of Collector Ar
thur as a means OF enforcing reform in the
! Custom House. 1t would take u new Collec-