Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-09-07
NUMBER II.

Judge of the result of the policy, yet have
no hesitation in saying that it L. the duty o
the Republican party to give the President
a warm and hearty support, until we ART
satisfied by results that it il not accomplish
ing what he honestly believed it would ae-
complish."
Mr.. Joyce referred as follows to his LOuisi-
ana experience: On arriving in Louisiana.
he did not cOnfine himself to the informa-
tiOn which was prepared, to the exsmina-
ton OF witnesses, the perusal of sworn aft
dayits and other documentary evidence, but
by talking with the negro and the alleged
"bull-dozer, learned a good deal about the
management of elections. lie could not
come u any conclusion, except that at the
Presidential election the cOlOred people IN
some portions OF the State. at least, had
been ''bull-dOZed" to such an extent that
they had not exercised the right of freedom
at the polls, as We do here in the North ;
that II the people had been permitted to vote
ialrly the State would have been carried by
the Republicans, both for Hayes and
Wheeler and Governor Packard, by a hand
some majority. lie also learned in his per-
sonal Investigations that the colored people
were getting heartily sick of existing things,
not OF the Republican party, but OF the way
they were treated by the whites. They
were sick OF prosecutions and were ready
Tor any change, and in many instances were
even willing TO vote the Democratic ticket
as the only means of bringing personal
safety to themselves and families.
What do you think will be the result of
the Presidents policy? ?''
"lf the Southern people are now really in
earnest, | think it will bring about a better
state of feeling between the two sections,
IN which case it seems to me that the policy
will work out good result. of course it
can't be expected that We should long have
a Republican form of government if we are
compelled to maintain its authority over
the Southern States by standing army. Ii
the Constitution is to be respected each
State must be allowed to control its own
local government in its own way"
IL have talked with q great many men
and have yet to find one who can tell me
what other course the President could have
taken with any hope of success
There Is not man in the world who
regrets the necessity Of adopting this policy
more than myself. | look upon it as a
grave experiment. We had tried the policy
of uphOlding the government of the South
ern States by the army. and from the fact
that these States had slipped away one BY
one, until we held only three of them, and
these three only by the slightest possible
tenure, it looked to me as though that
policy had failed to accomplish its design,
and during all this time the bulldozing and
intimidations was going on in the States
where the army was situated and under the
very eyes of the military force
Nv hat about civil service reform?''
president Hayes is going on in good
faith to reform the civil service. Ii the
Democratic party wins at the next Presiden-
tial election it will go in FOR the spoils of
office, and then we shall have record which
will commend itself to all good men,
w hat will be the effect in the State OF
the Presidents order to Office -hOlders?"
81 don't think the separation of the
ofice-holding element of the State from the
party machinery will iniure it. 1t won't
amount to row of pins. Ii the Office hold
ers don't work others will. Leaders will
always be found. | think the plan of di-
vOrcing forever and entirely the government
officials from this kind OF work good thing
The Government service should be kept
clean and pure, and not be mixed up with
other matter. Every Office holder should
devote his entire time and attention to the
public work. What | say here, refers
to the country at large. In our State | am
impressed with the honesty OF our officials
and the purity of the service. We have no
such thing rs an Office holders's clique here,
and cOnst quently the order was not needed
here; still the nature of the civil service
elsewhere makes the order a desirable one
The most perplexing question in civil ser
vice reform is to fix upon a period during
which perfectly competent man shall hold
ofica ~