The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1882-06-04
DEPARTMENTAL REFORM.

~ the Edttor " the Sptd1y HooH.
SIN; Will you give place in your paper
for suggestion concerning the somewhat hackneycd
subject OF civil Service RetormY | have observed
your upon this question: aud 1t has gratiHcd
me to see that You entertain SO many Views In cont
mon with myself Several members ot Congress have
prepared schemes said to be equal o the task Of em
mating the evils which most OF are Obliged TO ad
NIT exist. have examined the bills this subject
now pending, aud have observed one thing that ar.
| pears to me strange. An those who to have
thought the subject sufficiently to elaborate plans
OF reform view the evil from the same standpoint
and from what cannot help thinking is the wrong
| standpoint. They all agree that the main wrong TO
he Iighted Is the unfair distribution Of the patronage
between the various States and sections which they
| declare now exists. They recite that Whereas
| common Justice requires that = an citizens
shall he allowed equal opportunities, -
ETC., etc, therefore in short, opportunity shall
he cquazcd. Now, 1t has seemed to me that this
unequal distribution Of offices Us tho least of the evils
| with which the civil Service is beset. Those who
hold differently proceed upon the false assumption that
1t bcncnts the indv Id ual to put him In once. This
is only true where the appoiuce is Of little or no
value to the service. otherwise the contrary Us true
Indeed In the present condition Of the Civil Service
| look upon 1t as little better than crlmc to bring
| young man from one ot the states to put him In
| Office here. There are many, many witnesses in
| Washington to testify that speak the truth. Hut
certainly II unequal opportunity to get into the
vice can he called an evil II Is one that cannot I've
| feInedied SO long the candidates for clerkshps
from this city number ten times many from the
whole territory west Of the Mississippi River and so
long as one class of never asks for nat
ronnre AT all whIlc another class never ceases to ask
| for 1t.
In considering this subject have been led To think
that the proper way of looking at 1t should he with
view Of securing the most ecicnt service TO the Gov
| etnment upon the most reasonable terms without
taking into serious account whether the majority of
| the servants came from the East or the West the
| North or the south from Tennessee or New York
If fair distribution of patronage is The only cons,ero
ton to I've taken Into account then my suggestion
| will be of little yaIuc lint I shall assume that not
equal division OF spoils but efficient service is the true
desidcratum. Proceeding upon this ossumpt,op. l
| believe few will deny that such efficiency will he best
promoted by securing the tenure of his office to the
servant and by holding ont to him soma hone or ,p
ward for faithful service This is so true TO omouut
almost 70 an axiom put under tho tbeorv or tbe
peudnr bills these considerations arc ,nole of
secondary impnrtancp n can sr,rr,,v be ,Iou,,ted
that to establish these tuvn taI nronostors
securIty or tenurn and reward for ,vo oI,,,
have to rut entirely loose from the I., that clark
| >hips can Ia, roded ,e nav far ,,,,itic,, so,vIco
usirg tho civil sarvco no , ec,t m ro,itic,, ci,t IN
terurIse must he discontinued If tho scrv,,r cver
TO regain healthy tone II ia to secure those two
| ends that offer nv suggestion. Dut before lo,np
| so let me preface IT with few wrr,s I'm r,rorl ,o
what conreiyr to lie tc condition nC opiuInp nu ,his
suhtact in tI,e Iecis,,ture or toJ,y nd my iudr
mcnt Is la sod, upon very c,roru observation courr
with excellent crportuuit,es for o,serviup.
Th, two Iousas or ,,or,r,ss oro comr,se r nearly
fnur hundred onn,Icnon c,p,,nr rro, widely SON,
rated Of country and eycry
Of nolItIcoI ppIuion Hut on ills uuesion of p,,rc
| ,,t. ,.. -, ,,,,, 49,, -, -, ,,t,
|
| those who never hunt at all; second those who hunt
little when they are driven to 1t ry clamorous nrp-
c,rts ,h,,, th ,r,,ic ,y,, INN, ,vi,i,on
| -, 80 Wv -, " y ', - W. -, 49, " ",
thusiasm and enjoy the sport. The first class Is the
smacs the second by far the largest while the third
can lie described like the osuuIto ag little hut full
Of I,,,noss :, Tn hath -, ,,, ,,asa ~,
" o"''"S ~ u''" VI Wv" ,"''''V. ''''''' Any ie-
'let from 'he necessary OF psSlhlty pt pace-huhhg
would be undoubted boon. To the latter class it
wpuId he a calamity To the former r,trnn,ra "a
, | , ,,r ,,,,, H.. , ,,,, , -, -. -,
'o,t' 'eB"ue" ny sol"' WIN so"' "'''re" "'s''y'
ny others with positive dislike anu disgust. To the
latter patronage Is tho wine Of life. My suggestion
tben has for it ohiert nat nuv to iuurnva tho cii
oe,'e' o"' " fee'e many s"o" "''''o' sEn'iouieh
III noth Houses oil congress from what Know they
regard as nuisance we'll nigh in,olerable. And 1t Is
,l1itcu,Iv ipter,,eJ Il, enrIv. , small lint no,,i,,
, | -, ~ ' ~ .'
cious ana active minority OF the power |" violate OF
cripple the civil Service Of the people In the interests
of false political morality. have put my sugCes-
ou into hc form of a iII ,dor,Inp ,Io prnam,,, and
Z 49, -, -, 20 w. ~, ~
enactment melhoi Oh Tue o'her measures now pending
on this subject, for the purpose Of contrasting and
conparIng them the more conveniently should any one
.,,n, ,,,
,. -. -, ~ ~, - ,,, "
.ops icSN',' "o''s" 'cic'o " '''''eS.s 'nlr"re,
,'i '''o y''''i! " Wv o"E'Ee' y" l'''o-n"h'ns.
"''o '"'"o "''o' '"0 WV" n,S"''"'""o,' 'i"'r
oot'e o.'i'' ,Al''oo,'" "'"u "o ''''o
"S 'o'p'u 1t, 'o''o ''"''''' '''ie' ""a'
; i "e'oNo W po d E'eH' e'h'
ID" " r'"'s'' ' rtpi ,, .ie 'Ni' 'e'N''e VI '''e
Whereas the heads of the several ExecutIy, lie.
partmeuts are responsible TO the President to Con-
gress AMI to the people ior an ecient aud honest
|h i i " r III HAIR n,s. ann, n n'i ", ~ ~
shomd Tor this reason le allowed the greatest froc
dom, consistent with existing law in the selection of
Is tnoSc VINO are TO ASSIST them IN tlaSaolhe the public
! amc of nunlIc Lmtv %v riyi scryants ia I.
10 hy a permanent tenure of office; therefore,
II BE It enacted by The Senate mi House Of Repre-
e S1","ntts W ths Ohitth n'ttS ~ o9hgrcSS dSSem-
o,y ,5a,n.r os % oii,,,r IInea oS n,,n, m @ ,i w.,
of United States court 10 solicit or ask for tba an
pontment of any clerk or other employ in any of the
"a Executive DEPARTMENTS located Mt WASHINGTON CITY
Il, District Of Columbia: PrOpffed that this sectI0,
shall not lie construed so as to prOhIbIt slc, membe,
: or Judge from recommending n person for employ.
10 ent N the request OF the President or any of iii,
.y heads Of the Executive Dcpartmentg,
- sECg Appointments 10 the CIyiI Service In tn,
70 said Denartments shall be made 10 the lowest grad,
= I'm the rst Instance and as far ms Iogle for prr
s%na mtnSsi "r nr e sir @ i"r wT,
a made for merit alone.
II sEo. 3. Ile term OF once re- OF & tncI tmpole sall b
10 @ H. h" i " I', IL I 'S f ',t W. ,e'' ="
& ~, oI saiG n ,iI 'i o s,i i ri, m W. , m w.,
,nr ~, dIsnies,i ~ " ' " ~ " W. '
II ''i VI "''",o''i'
ri oeile'ei inc ABOVE suggestions were carried on
In good faith the principal evils would be cllmnatC
from civil Service in the Departments 1t is per