New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-08-17
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
GAIL HAMILTONS PAPERS. s
XVI.
Mr.. rAroX's PROOFS OF HIS MINISTRY.


might be quoted" but he does not quote it. or
tbe "few sentences which he selects from
the massp this is the first, which is, neither
overwhelming, nor is it evidence "0f the
officers employed in the New-York Custom House.
a Is beliered a majority Of them hare no
,eol qualifications for their places" But II is be-
lerea also that for majority of the places in the
New-YOrk Custom House and in the Departments
generally there Is no need of any special Qualifca-
tons For the greater number of clerks IN the ser
vice of the Government. fair business education.
fair business ability ard fair moral character, are
the only special qualifications needed. This is
mart of the plan Of our Government. Simplicity is
one essential idea of a republic. Our costly public
schools are established for the purpose OF preparing
every citizen to take his part in seeing that the
Republic receive no detriment. The underlying
idea of our State education Is that every man shall
be fitted for the common duties of the State. The
town governs itself by town-meeting. If it
wants a soldiers monument, it selects sculptor
wherever 1t can find him. but three farmers are
made selectmen, and lawyer and butcher and
farmer and a carpenter are school committee, and
the yarety-stOrekeepers clerk is made treasurer,
and the shoemaker becomes oYerseer of the poor
Nobody has any special qualifications for his office,
Int there is no need of special qualification. All
have the common school education which is neces-
sary and all become more intelligent citizens by
holding the responsibility, and all things are
done deoently and in order, and on the whole the
town is well governed And next year OF the year
after they all 60 back to private life and new set
comes in-unless for some special reason the citi-
zens prefer to retain special officer, IN which
case they retain him year after year. long as they
choose but by new election at every annual town
meeting. So every man in town takes his place IN
turn and learns what every American citizen ought
TO know-the practical action of government.
This NAV give us a good deal of prentice work,
but it educates and elevates men, and man is not
made for government; government is made Tor
man. Man is the end. government is only the
means. The great British Empire in the hands of
a few people may run more smoothly than our good
old Republic where every mothers son may have
hand at the driving-wheel but 1T puts
mighty life into the mothers sons! And
the old machine goes pretty WELL too!
What right OF reason has Mr.. Eaton to attemIt to
prove his statement that the Departments were
tending more and more " into something like asy-
lums for incOmpetents by a declaration concern
ing the New-YOrk Custom House, which is equally
true and equally without dishOnOr, regarding every
organization Of town-Offcers in the country Does
Mr. Eaton mean to debar American citizens of In
telhRence aud integrity, who have been educated
In the common schools of their cOuntry-does he
propose to debar them from the hOnoB and
emoluments of the country on the ground
that they would tend to convert the Depart
ments into asylums for incOmpeteDts
Observe that Mr.. EatOn's overwhelming evidence
makes no definite charge of iliteracy or stupidity
but only it is believed" Not a single case which
be cites gives a name or a definite fact, but only
general statement which is hardly more than an
IN. "a. al wit
challenge In Congressional debate in 1868" is part
Of his overwhelming evidence that the Departments
we're "tending more and more into something like
asylums for incompetents - "Why is it that snug
Vlers are the chief impOrtersi 1t may
as we'll be admitted, and stated in sharp popular
phrase the smugglers too smart for the revenue
oficerslr It would be interesting to know what
impetus Mr.. Eaton proposes TO give to the cause OF
general education in this Republic to enable our
public school scholars to outshine the Snug
Glars in smartness / should like to see
tLs connective examination papers prepared
by Mr.. Eaton TO test candidates fitness
for watching all night city roof to detect Illicit
distilhng OF for providing around IN ships hold to
capture bales of silk OF for diyning which part OF
lady's toilet is panier proper and which part Is
stolen yalenciennes!
Professional " Civil Service Reform is a made-up
y
There has never been any great popular demand for
1t. any national enthusiasm, any profound interest,
any sufficient cause. number of men OF
more or less prominence have spent great
deal of breath in showing that there ought
TO be such demand, number more have
spent great deal Of strength IN trying to whip the
public into making such demand, and number
more, of whom Mr.. Eaton is chef seem to have
settled down into the belief that the people have
made the demand. But the people themselves have
never been wrought far up beyond the point OF the
good old farmer Who asked If he were not going
to hear the elegant lecturer on Civil Service Re
form, and replied leaning, like Jacob on the top OF
his staff, as he wiped the perspiration from his
brow, "Cfvll Service Reform. Les sec. THAT'S
about the mode Of appntIn' clerks, amt it y
II il very hard to make the American deep Doll
like pot over the mode of appintin' clerks. do
rot mean that Civil Service refOrmers are neces-
ssrly deceivers have no doubt that Mr.. DorInan
B. Eaton honestly thinks himself TO be engineering
great cause But the very yioleuce Of his efforts
to prove that 1t is great show how small and forced
1t is. The causes with which be compares it, by
way Of dragging it up into good society, are
the very ones that thrust it down. Slavery
was real aud gigantic wrong. Under English Eco
nOmical reform lay a wide Chat-mOss Of extrava-
gance that gOrged the hard earnings OF the people
and gave no sign. Under Parliamentary reform lay
mass Of rotten boroughs tanning all the political
air Our Reformers have pOunced down upon an
organization which is demOnstrably, and
upon their own avOwal, as high level
for intelligence aud purity as the whole sur
rounding country The Civil Service develops no
more corruption no extravaganza. no less con-
science no less capacity, than the Military
Service the Legislative Service, the School System,
the Agricultural College, the Church Estab-
hshment. To select the Civil Service for Re-
form is purely arbitrary. There is no more
reason why it should be singled out for re-
prOach and obloquy than the Banking the Betting
or he G..-.In.. .ol...ol au.Annn WLen illLIa