National Republican., 1882-12-21
THE SENATE AND HOUSE.
Senator Vest Makes A Vigorous Assault on the
Civil Service Bill.
There's Plenty Of Need for Reform, But
the Time is Not Propitous.
Other Democrats Join in the Demand for Delay Till
They've Had Chance,
Mr.. Robeson's Amendment TO the Postoffico
BILL Nodded and Adopted.
THE SENATE,

com mu01CHu1On 1TOh UIb secretary OF Ine
treasury, transmitting report in relation to
horbor and other charges upon American and
foreign vessels. Also a communication trans
mitting the report of Prof. Hilgard showing
the progress of the coast and geodetc survey.
MIR. HoAR EXPLAINS.
Mr. Hoar made an explanation in regard to
the bankruptcy bill as reported from the
judiciary committee. He had seen statements
in the newspapers that the committee had
recommended a provision that dealing in
failures should be in itself an act of bank
ruptcy. This was a mistake. The provision
recommended applies only to persons who are
actually insolvent. Unless so qualified it
would, of course, subject to involuntary bank
ruptcy great many persons who owe no
debts at ALL and perhaps never contract any.
Mr.. Hale, from the committee ON appropria-
tions, reported without amendment the house
resolution for holiday recess, and proposed
to have it considered, but an objection by Mr.
Conger set il over Mr.. Hale gave notice that
he would call it up early to-day.
AT the close Of the morning hour Mr.. Alli-
son called up
THE CONSULAR AND DIPLOMATIC APPRoPRI-
ALTON BILL,
and the seuate proceeded to consider it,
The amendments reported by the commit
tee on appropriations were agreed to except
the provision that nothing in the act shall be
construed to extend the time within which
the French and American claims commission
shall make its final report and expire. =
On motion of Mr. Pendleton, with the ap-
proval of Tie committee on foreign relations,
an amendment was added, approprating
5000 to enable the President to extend diplo-
matte relations with the governments of east
Asia The hill was then DasSpl
THE PENSACOLA NAVY YARD.
Mr. Jones, of Florida. offered a resolution
which was agreed to, directing the secretary
of the navy to inform the senate whether, in
his judgment, any further appropriations are
necessary to put the Pensacola navy yard in
a state of efficiency, what is the condition of
the dry dock there, and whether it is in
condition to be used for the purpose for which
it was constructed.
Mr.. Jones said he had observed that the
Pensacola navy yard was one of those that
the secretary of the navy thought should be
abolished, and he made n brief argument to
show that this yard, the only one on the Gulf
of Mexico, "our great Mediterranean sea-"
was of great Importance and ought to be
maintained for the protection of the COM
merce of the gulf and of the Mississippi val
ley, having its outlet there.
THE CIVIL SERVICE BILL
being under consideration, Mr. Pendleton
offered an amendment striking out the pro-
vision that original entrance to the service
shall be in the lowest grades, and providing
that appointments in the departments shall
be apportioned as nearly as possible among
the states and territories and the District of
Columbia upon the basis Of population.
Mr.. Vest said he had agreed that this bill
should be reported to the senate, not because
he believed its provisions would remedy the
evils existing in our civil service, but rather
rs means of emphasizing his conviction of
the urgent necessity for reform. OF that
necessity there could be no question. Money
had become most potent factor in American
elections, and the civil service was used by
the republican party as one means of raising
money for political purposes. The great
trouble now was that reform of the civil SER
vice was expected from men who are in their
hearts opposed to it. 1t was idle to give this
infant into the hands of nurse who desired
its death, and then to expect it to grow up
into healthy manhood. The republican
party, judged by its record was opposed to
civil service reform. Gen. Grant, in 1871,
had recommended certain regulations almost
identical with the provisions of the pending
bill, and what had become of those regula-
tions?
Mr.. Allison said that as he understood it
the pending bill simply proposed to enact into
aw the practice now followed in most Of the
departments-notably the treasury-in regu-
lating promotions.
Mr.. Vest said every senator knew that the
regulations to which Mr.. Allison referred
amounted to nothing When Mr.. Schurz was
secretary of the interior he had made an at
tempt to put them in force, and they were os-
tensibly in force now in the treasury depart
ment yet no democrat could get an appoint
ment. And the first assistant postmaster gen
eral had recently announced publicly that the
offices in that department were to be used for
the benefit of the republican party, and
- tta, don 9 ntl,u ft,,,
President Grant had announced his reforma-
tory purposes in 1S7l came his second admin
istratiOn, based to q degree upon the spOils
system. Then came that which the distin-
guished senator from New York, no longer in
the senate, called the "snivel service reform
of Tother Fraud Hayes AN administration
whose first act was to reward with offices yield
ing $291 ,000a year the men who, for its benefit,
had stolen the sutfrages Of sovereign states.
Mr.. Vest read the letter of Casanave,
member of the Louisiana returning board in
1876 to President Hayes, asking to be re-
warded for his services in that capacity, and
remarked that the extent of the degradation
of our politics was shown by the fact that
man holding public position could dare to
address such letter to the president of the
United States; man who had aided in
throttling and sitting the voice of the free
people of Louisiana dared, in the capital of
the nation, to demand money from the presi-
dent for these services, and the money was
paid.
Next came President Garfeld's administra-
ton. Garfield in all his public utterances
had denounced the very abuses now sought
to be remedied by legislation yet no sooner
was he nominated for the presidency than he
began correspondence with Mr.. Dorsey, the
secretary of the national republican commit
tee and now the chief of the star route de-
fendants--a correspondence breathing the
spirit of the "spols" system, the burden of
it being money! Money must be obtained
more money for the democratic state of In
diana And Dorsey was afterward toasted
by the gentleman who is now president of the
United States at a banquet given at Delmon-
CO.'S and presided over by Gen. Grant, TO do
him honor for having successfully corrupted
the suffrage of that great state. 1t had been
charged that the democratic party had for
merly practiced this system of political assess
ments. But he dehed gentlemen to produce
from the annals of the democr attic party any
such infamous document as the highwayman's
letter, dated in Philadelphia, signed John
Cessna, chairman, and addressed TO Office hold
ers, demanding 2 per cent, of their salaries,
and threatening chat at the end of the cam
paign list of tlOse who had not paid would
be placed in the hands of the heads of de-
partments. The senators from Maine and
Iowa (Messrs. Haleand Allison), now so ardent
for reform, were at that time members of the
republican committee and had no rebuke for
the authors of this document.
Mr.. Allison said the circular purported to
have been issued by the chairman of the re-
publican state committee of Pennsylvania,
nd m 30 o1