Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1882-12-20

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In recent speech on the civil SER
vice reform, Senator Pendleton said
chat the head Of one Of the depart
ments of the Government had said
that there were clerks in his depart
ment for whom he could not find work
that he did require one clerk of a
higher grade, and that if he were Civ
en- that one he could drop the seven
teen without impairing the efficiency
Of the service; but that the political,
social, and personal pressure was so
great that he would be obliged to re-
tain and pay them, though he had
nothing for them to do. Was there
need to prove the fact known to all
men, that a systematic pressure has
been brought to bear upon the clerks
in the departments to extort from
them a portion of their salaries, and
need anybody wonder, that under such
Il system the Government .elt that
they had bought and paid for their
Offices, and that the faith of those who
eXacted these contributions was pledg-
ed to their retention? The system in.
evitably demoralized all concerned
the clerks, the officials making the ap.
pointments, and the Senators and
Representatives eXerting pressure
to secure appointments for their
friends. Who could forget the scene
represented in the Senate chamber
last session when the Chairman of the
Committee on Appropriations stated
that the appropriations amounted to
S292,000,000, and that this amount
was only 100000 in excess of the
expenditures of the preceding year.
The expenditures Of the government
this fiscal year were $402,000,000,
nearly 50 dollars a head for every
man, woman and child in the United
States-more money probably than
was appropriated during the first forty
years Of the existence of the govern
ment. Seeing these enormous appro-
priations the people sent up a demand
for revision Of the tariff and of the
internal revenue laws, and reduction
of the taxation pressing SO heavily
upon them; and the Republican party
answered this demand by repeating
the duty OH perfumery and the stamp
tax upon checks, and sneering at the
efforts on the Democratic side for a
reduction of taxation. 1t was these
methods Of administration by the Re-
publicans that made it possible for
the Democrats and other citizens who
priced their country higher than their
party to elect the Democratic State
ticket in Ohio, and sixteen out of
twenty-one members of Congress. He
wished to impress it upon his Demo
cratic friends that they would receive
and retain the peoples confidence only
in so far as they answered honestly to
the demands of the people. The
pending bill was the commencement
Of an attempt to meet one Of those
demands. Its underlying idea was
that the Offices Of the government are
trusts for the people; that the per-
Torrance of the duties is to be in the
interest and for the interest of the peo-
pie; that there is no excuse for the ex-
istence Of an office or the payment of
salary except that it is necessary for
the welfare Of the people; that every
superAuous office should be cut off,
and every incompetent officeholder
dismissed; that the employent of two
where one will suffice is robbery, and
that if salaries are so high as to justi-
fly the levying of contributions from
2 TO 10 per cent, they are too high
and ought to be reduced.
4 Republican Steal Shown Up.