New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-19
1 - nLNucAILLc nNLGE-

Oar Democratic friends are really beginning
10 talk bu .iuc-s an the ma trr of Civil Service
reform Now that they have no show - cary
INTO cGcc, the peculiar reform they were adj
vo,ltins with tongue in check before election
TO vic, reform which turned out all Republic
can, and pit Democrats Ia their placcs-,ome
OF them are disposed to aeitatc the subject Of
a real reform ou, that Will actually hinge
the Tenure of Office upon integrity, capacity
and fidelity instead ol upon party service. Ii
l~ c'i,itr. it VIII be observed, to set such a
reform iu motion now :han 10 was before tl.c
Presidential election. There Wits more or ICES.
puuug about 10 by Democratic orator, and
newspapers during the campaign, but il wa.
such evident c'ap-t.ap that they hardly pre-
tended TO be serious about Il or 10 keep
straight comtcnducc while they talked about
il. How could they when they knew that
there was not man IN the wbo.c party but
understood that Democratic success meant an
ovcrtunug of tho public service f'om
top to bottom. with total disregard
OF the tests %. integrity capacity and fidelity
IN the removals, and regard for nothing under
heaven hat services in the appointments
They knew, every mothers son of them who
discussed the subject, that if The party should
ever gel the idea that the leaders were sin
ccrc in III If professions, and that they would
actually undertake genuine reform OF the
public service, hundred thousand torches
would go out Incontncntly, a million hurrahs
for Hancock would die away in million
throaDs and from the stampede tlat followed
there would be left scarcely Is corporal's guard
supporting the ticket.
Now that the election IA over, however. they
cyincc Il disposition to treat the subject scr-
ousy Not that they are particularly solicit
GUS for the Improvement of the service: there
is no election near enough at hand just now
for them to make that pretcncc. They are
immersed in the consideration of schemes for
party advancement since their defeat 1t is the
future of the party, not of the country, that
they are anxious about They see, or think
they see that their proposed reform, which
was simply change, cut both ways in the
late campaign that while it enlisted thou
sands of hungry Democrats in a raid upon the
Offices and squeezed hundreds of thousands of
dollars from ambitious persons who were will
ing to invest in such lottery for the chances
of official prizes, it at the same time alarmed
all the present holders of Offices, who, from
the simple INSTINCT OF SclI- pltSciN con-
tributed willingly and Literally and cxered
themselves actively TO keep the party in
power which would retain them IN their
places They think they have discovered that,
after all. the cry Of "No quarter and free
"plllage" is more apt to arouse the holders |
of places to II desperate determination to hold |
out to the last IN their defence .han 10 in |
spire with courage and united purpose the |
soldiers of fortune engaged in the siege. 1t |
is from this point of view that the present |
discussion proceeds. Having discovered too |
late that the inspiration of an expected division |
Of spOls was not sufficient to insure success |
to the ours, they are now applying themselves |
to the discussion of plans for weakening the |
ms by removing their fears of being put to |
the sword without mercy.
The new plan for reforming the Civil Ser |
vice has party advantage solely in view. The !
discussion reaches no higher level. And it |
must bc confessed that the persons engaged |
in it use great fankncss and candor, and |
make little prctcncc of considering the good |
of the service or the welfare of the public.
The proposition so far as it has taken shape,
is that the present Democratic Congress should |
make the most OF the opportunity afforded by |
the short session to establish such reform in
the service as will commend itself to those
who are known rs the special advocates of |
Civil Service REFORM. thereby putting the
party in the position of honest Civil Service