New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-08-24
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
GAIL HAMIDToNs PAPERS.
REFORM LOGIC.

yVn
Civil Service IS shown to be honest and competent
they fall back upon the aggressive and unscrupu-
Ions shirt of mercenary partisanship." Corrup-
tiop y and incompetence" crumble away before
tbe invincible onset of Arabic numerals, but par
4isansbipy is bogy that never fails to scare
Hence when the cry of corruption and ignorance
hos lost its mower the divorce of patronage from
politics1 NAV still reDd the patient heavens.
Here | take Issue with the refOrmers. root and
branch, IN every way in which issue can be TAKEN
The Civil Service should not be divorced from poll
tics. and cannot be divorced from politics. lnpoh-
tics il will always be- for it is the frst-born child
and right-hand man of politics. The only question
Is. shall it be in politics openly, honorably, re-
snonsby. and 80 recognized, shall it be IN slyly
evasivelv. Observation-Disclosures and hypocnt-
ieal.
The reform leaders, the very men whose watch
word il is do not believe IN it. They profess to
maintain that man shall be secure inhis tenure OF
office as long as his personal character remains I'M
furnished and the performance of his duties satis
factory" but when. the pinch comes they turn
man out of his Office for his opinions Just as heartily
as ever did General Jackson, and would do it just as
promptly If they dared. What the Civil Service re-
formers mean by the divorce of patronage from
notifies is the divorce of patronage from Republican
politics and its swift marriage to Reform politics
fiji death them do part. In his amOrOus pursuit OF
Office no lover shows himself more ardent, more
versatile, more inexhaustible, more pure Of moral
s0ueamishness. more untainted with personal
dignity. more unhampered by common sense than the
Civil Service former But his politics he quietly
abstracts from the realms of politics and puts INTO
the domain of morals and religion and so, clubbing
himself the only true Red Cross Knight, and bis OPP
ponents mere mercenanes and eorruptonlsts Is
nothing deferred by his own greed and grab for
bfofr with
ing force for the divorce of patronage from politics
Let me select single instance from the innumer
able caravan of instances.
The chief cornerstone of reform was IN the de-
claration of Governor Hayes in his letter of accept
aDce that the officer shall be secure in his tenure of
Office as long as his personal character remains I'M
furnished and the performance of his duties sats-
factory If elected" said Governor Hayes, shall
conduct the administration of the Government upon
these principles"
April 81, 1877, HOrpa's WeekIy. newspaper con-
ducted with great ability devoted to Civil Service
reform and admirable in almost everything but ITS
politics made the assertion regarding President
Hayes's course: Nothing has been done which was
not fairly foretOld by his letter of acceptance"
On March g, preceding, HdrpaS Weekly declared
that Gin declining to renOminate Mr. Simmons 1.-THE
Office of Collector of the port of Boston
the President has shown his sincere regard for the
principles which he has prOfessed. Mr..
Simmons did his official duty vigorously, and was
man of good personal character. large
number of merchants and some of the
politicians who opposed his appointment have yet
requested his denomination the ground that he
has been a good Collector
ia logical pyramid can stand on its apex more
directly than this it has escaped my observation.
The President SAYS an officer shall stay in his
Office as long as he is a good officer.
Mr. Simmons is a vigorously good officer
Therefore the President shows his truth to his
principles by turning Mr.. Simmons out.
journal of civilization that perform this act
of deglutition with impunity need not shrink from
anything which barbarism may offer for its diges-
ton.
| have not altered have but arranged and con-
centrated the reasoning of my reform logicIan. In
terspersed among his premises and conclusion, comes
the sauce which makes is possible for him not only
TO swallow his concOctOn, but to make it go down
sweetly as the grapes of Beulah. The Presidents
purpose says this heroic refOrmer, for whose self
abnegation protest ] have an admiration second
only 10 that which we feel for the fair young Ouch
ess May clingug to her husbands knee, his srrup,
70 his foot. springing at last to his saddle and
riding with him over his castle-wal to the head
long death below -" THE Presidents purpose is
to put the Customs Service on business basis. To
hands of those who think" Tally no! what
is thisf From the hands of those who think? The
appointing power concerns itself, then not simply
with the performance Of official duty and with per-
sOnal character but with the thoughts OF its officers.
Reform will have a complete divorce of patronage
from politics but Civil Service officers must think in
unison with the President
Thisis the absolute and only charge which this
reformer brings against Mr. Simmons, and upon this
ground il fully juStfes the President for turning
him out of Office. The only point on which Mr..
Simmons is asserted to think differently from the
President is Civil Service reform and Harpa's
Weekly specifically declares that this point he did
not carry his own think" into practice. but acted
on the Presidents think" "When the new Admin
istration came in Mr.. Simmons fastened
70 say that he would carry out any instruc-
lions looking to the reform proposed by the Prcsi-
dent. he has, we believe, taken no open
part in politics within the year. except at The instance
of the Attornev- GeneraLD But " be unquestionably
thought that the Custom House ought to be pOliti-
cal machine" The solo question for the President
was whether he had a fair right to expect that the
reappointiuent of Mr.. Simmons would practically
take the Custom House out of politics.
Here is another syllogism waiting to be precipi-
tated in the crucible Of reform.
The President wants TO take the Custom House
out of politics. and cOnfne it TO business.
Mr. Simmons has confined 1t to business yigOF-
ously, except when ordered by the President
through the Attorney General to take it into poll
tics.
Therefore the President shows sincere regard
for his principles by turning out Mr. Simmons.
Oh Duchess May, how much better figure you
would have made IL, instead of elingng with such
frantic CLASP and strain TO the Of this sorry
Rosuante of reform you had stad inside your castle
walls and spake out right ranly unto all the
Ir,la Of Ioinh rising nm with ecnrnfnl ewes "a YOr