Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1882-12-23

From our regular correspondent,
WASHINGTON, ID. G.,
December 2lst, 1882 ]

The Capitol is pretty nearly given
over to civil service reform, For
some time there has been nothing
talked about, nothing thought about
and nothing written about but civil
service reform, and if it could be
made up into clearinghouse hash,
we would have to eat civil service
reform. There has been considera-
BILE amusement, il not instruction,
Sn following the debate in the SEN
ate. Mr.. Beck and Mr.. Pendleton
have been making Rome howl to
some extent, each having a great
stake in the discussion-Mr. Pendle-
ton, the prospective presidency that
has danced before his eyes for the
last fifteen years, and still keeps him
awake o'nights, and Mr.. Beck to re-
lieve himself of certain uni ust char
ges of undue interest in whiskey leg
islation. During the entire session
he has been filled with an honest
mans rage at the aspersions aud al
lusions cast upon him, and when he
gets up to defend his bill and respond
to himsy objections or amendments
to it he is about as angry an old
gentleman as one would wish to see.
He put on the frown that signifies
he wants to eat somebody up, his
deep, sonorous voice trembless he
gesticulates with both hands and
keeps the acting Vice-President
wide awake for sometimes whole
hour. Mr.. Pendleton is also deeply
in earnest. He is more like Mr.. Tur-
veydrop than ever, with the addition
of brains. He follows Mr.. Beck's
fierce onslaughts with his most SUI
perb air and most courtly grace. He
denounces Jay Hubbell and his gang
in rounded periods and polished SEN
fences, and sits down bland and I'M
ruflied, while Mr.. Beck glowers in
his seat, looking like an old grizzly
that has been trifled with.
But these two Senators have not
done all the talking. Mr.. ingalls,
don't like Pendleton bill, and said
he didn't go very much on civil SER
vice reform anyhow. He thought
there was a good deal of cant and
juggle about it. Mr.. Voorhees, ex-
pressed himself as much of the same
opinion. He said the real demand
was for penal laws to punish wrong
doors IN high places, not for con-
| trivance TO wrong Government
clerks. He ridiculed civil service
examinations aud gave the following
as "a few of the questions concocted
by IA commission under Secretary
| SchurZ: Name the four largest
islands on the globe" "Give approx
imatrly, the latitude of Washington
and London, sin what direction is
HAVANA, Cuba, from Washington,
ID. or" "What State of the Union
extends from the latitude of Boston
to the latitude of Richmond ~
"Where are the principal table lands
of the globe 7" Give the course
which a measure must take TO be in.
troduced 10 Congress. and supposing
it to be vetoed, TO become law OF
the United States" Bring up all
your young men," said Mr.. Voor-
irees. from all the States, and il
they can answer those questions they
may get 500 clerkshlp. Then the
examiners passed 10 mathematics
and one of the questions was, Two
thirds Of seven -ninths Of what mum
Der is one eighth of what number is
one half of eight and two-fifths, di-
vided by fourteen and seyen-tenths
less than fourteen and tw0-sev-
enths. Another was, "A mar
weighing seventy-two pounds runs
with velocity of six against stand
ing but not resisting man whose
weight is ninety-six pounds, what il
the result - OF course this raised q
laugh, and Mr.. VOORHEES, said thai
if Senators wanted this humbue
continued they might vote for it
but he would not. Then there wa
quarrel raised by Mr.. Mcpherson
who made the remark, on the au'
thority of Pendleton, that the de
partments were filled with idl'
clerks. Window said he was tired
OF this sort OF thing, and when h
asked Mcpherson to name one o
two the latter told Window thai
that was pettifogging way of deal
ing with great public question. l
/ would be- hazardous, perhaps, To pre-
] dict the final fate Of the PendletoI
: bill, but it is believed great man!
will vote for it who have no heart II