The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-12-22
SENATOR VOORHEES,

Dan Voorhees,, talked his hour and half In
his old familiar way, making MIR. Pendletou
and Mr.. Bayard feel very uncomfortable, fol
they.said: SHe is hurting the party" Mr.,
Pendleton nervously twirled his fingers DUR
ing the whols.of the speech and wore very
anxious look. He became restless when
Voorhees, turned the battery Of his sarcasm
Upon Pendleton's position and accused him
ef disloyal act to the masses of the Demo-
cratic ofice-seekers who have been a genera
hon out of Office. Pendleton had said that
the vital forces, manly as well as physical Of
public men are spent in seeking Office.
Voorhees, denounced Pendleton and the sup
porters of this bill for such jeremiad, when
they themselves, all their manhood lives, he
said, had been persistent seekers after Office.
GThe bill" said Mr.. Voorhees,, proposes a
Democratic administration of public affairs
with Republican will annexed"
Mr. Voorhees, said the bill provided for ad-
mission by competitive examination to only
the lowest grade of public Offices. Therefore
the treatment of the bill in the senate seemed
to him to be much ado about nothing" The
zeal of the Republicans for q reform of the
civil service seemed to result from death-bed
repentance, brought about, not by hat
red of their sins, but by fear that
they would not be allowed to indulge
in them much longer, and the Demo-
Gratis were soothing the sufferings of the
deathbed with the esthetic Cruel Of politics.
VINO had ever heard of any political scandals
occurring among iowergrade clerks? They
were not the public officers who figured in
star-route or whisky ring transactions. Yet
this bill proposed to examine and regulate and
replace these poor minor officials, leaving the
strong, arrogant, corrupt higher officials I'M
disturbed. The real demand of the people
was for penal laws to punish wrong-doers in
high places, not for contrivances to wrong
al rtyo Ia ~ Sc Ill 10
cause he desired the offices for Democrats.
but for the reason that it practically denied to
tho Democrats the right to compete for any Of
the higher Offices He read and commented upon
q number of questions which candidates had
to answer, he said, without the aid Of
memoranda, such as: sName the
four largest islands on the globe. Give ap-
proximately the latitude of Washington and
London In what direction is Havana, Cuba,
from Washington, D. c.? Give the course
which measure must take to be introduced to
congress, and, supposing it to be vetoed, to
become a law Of the United States" Bring
up your young men," said Voorhees,, @from
Mississippi and Alabama, and all the states,
and If they can answer those questions they
may get 500 clerkship." naughter.l Then
the examination passed to mathematics, and
one of the questions was: @Two-thirds of
seven-ninths of what number is one-half of
eight and two-ffths divided by fourteen and
seven-tenths less fourteen and tWo-sevenths!"
[Laughter1 If the senators wanted this hum
bug continued, they might vote for it, but he
Voorhees) would not Nevertheless, he was in
favor of q reform of the civil service, and he
had proposed practical measure for that pur-
pose at the last sesslOn-namely: an amend
ment to the constitution of the United States
providing that postmasters, revenue collect
ors, judges, marshals and United States dis
trict attorneys should be elected by the people.
He would not be hypoeritlcal about the sub
ject If the Democratic party should come
into power it ought to purify the service by
oficeholders, excepting only soldiers who had
served their country and been injured in its