Connecticut western news., 1879-04-23

wrong. they can shift the responsibility to the shoulder of some scapegoat in 1t, with out affecting the standing of the party, civ. il service reform will prove fxrcs and . humbug. As well might railroad corpor. ation, for instance, when an accident has happened through it's ewn culpable neRll- gsnce. throw all responsibility fer damaSes upon e conductor or watchman. =. The law would not tolerate such thing in .this csss, public opinion ought not te in the other. Hold party to rigid accountability and It will be put on its goed behavior and will zee that every man in 1t does his duty. A very plausible argument to aveid responsibility when party has been guilty of any nis- deeds. is this: They say 1t is true we have done those things which we ought not tN have done and have left undone thsae thin . which we ought to have done. but you sught net to turn us out of office for that becaufe the ether party are a big regues ss Ws are and will act As badly. This is plausible but is another great political failscy. Grant that the party to be turned out is just ss bad as the party to be put in. the point is here: If the rognes iL office undeTstand that uR- less they de their duty they will certainly be replaced by the rogues out ot ofi1ce. they will bs very careful 10 do the,r duty and do it honestly. But let them 'undeFstaAd that no matter what they may do they will bs sustained and whitewsshed If needs be. and one of the principal safeguarda to honsss government will be broken down.
 There are several classes of Ecfqrmss and among the most, prominent may bs clssesd the Utopian reformsrs. They dwell princi- pally in political air castles and keep up doleful lamentations about the degeneracy of the times without even attempting to aa- certain the true cause of the-evils of which they complain or to apply practical rems- dy. Another important class is composed of the politicians. They devote tAsir efforts at reform principally in trying how not te de 1t. The most notable instance of this kind of reform was the late civil service rs, form, so called. It became necessary, on account of certain unpleasant developments. to throw sop to tho great public whale. It had become excited aid had to be paci6sd. So civil service reform was devised. It sn- swersd its purpose admirably and-that is the end of it. These ss,uts refoimers probably reasoned to themselves in this way: Something has got to. be dons--the people demand reform. Now the true wsy is to fight fire with fire. Therefore ws will go in for civil service .reform-right over the left. We have heard another plaR fer reform suggested and tbSt is to txtend the term of the Presldtntto eight Or moro yeaIn. This would be about as sensible 70 the man who had sum of money in the house, ssy 94OO. and for fear of being robbed iacreos. cd the amount to $500. If the strife for the spoils depending on preside ntlal elec- tion brought us not long ago to the briHk of destruction, what would 1t not do when the prize was doubled in value. a.
 l 1t is idle to talk about reform until we as- certain what 1t is that renders reform nee sssaiy, and get piopsr disgnoss of tue dis ease. There are great many evils which are not really diseases but onlElbe result of disessk. Thesc have sometimes been trsaS-
 sd by refo, m doctors, when they have sp | p-sred on the surface as uicefEsr sruplions. I wnh the arpIis4sious ef . little salvs CT oint.
 ment which has uriveR tue spoSSS within ! and permitted it ts attack sonss mere vitsl I parJ. as --...S.
 The one great cause swRieIisAss rendered rcform-civil service refsrna, or National reform, or political reforns it makes ps diff ferencs what yon call it--nec.asary. is ihis the fact that 100. 900 ,.fic.s scKttsred over the country, with all the vssi amount of spells and patronage and plnader. sre made to depend every four .ysas on the election i of one man, the President of tue Uuitea States. This is the great evil compared with
 which all others dwindle into comparative insigp' 'ficance this is the Pandora's box ous of which most of our political evils How {; this is the great caucer eating at the vitals of tue Nation sLd which R6 CuDdurspg0 can cure this it is that is stirring up strife and bitterness and hatred and all unchArita> blsness this it is which has filed the land
 with corruption and demorslizatis and has converted government by the people. for the people into au instrument of jobbery sud wvrse this 1t is which has converted Congress into q great National CampAign
 Committee to prepare for the next Presi- dental election and to get up campaign dee- umeRts in the shape of stump speeches. which would be disgrace to the stump aud
 whicb nobody reads and wouldn't have any faith ip if they did {; ,his it is which has made the partisan press of to-day by-word and e reproach. which has destroyed Ito sense of honor. of truth, of feir-dealing and made downright mendacity its chef iastru
 ment of success, and which has filled itscol umns. not with argument. sOt with reason aud common sense, but with bitterness. abuse and representation. Such things must necessarily be terribly demorslixing and that they have been 60 we have abundS ant evidence everywhvfe throughout the country. Our wort passions are getting control of us. Our moral perceptions arc becoming blunted. We aTe-llosing . nice sense of right and wrong, of honesty and dishonesty. The young are losing proper respect for the influence of their parents | and of religion. aud as cons qurnce we zee the churches deserted Aad the Sabbath d.secratrd: Is 1t said thiaaeis rather far fetched But 1t Is true, and follows as nat. urally ss fleet follows cause. The stasam can be easiiy. traced to it's source, and the great question remains, What is the rem. edyf .%
 The disease is s,ubbors one end noth- ing short of the heroic treatment will an- aver. It will p Quirc some such operation as the man performed on his dog-an am
 putation right behind his ears.
 It may bc difficult to apDly the remedy, but its practical le and can bs doAe aRd ssast se done if we would retain tbe govsrumeRt