Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-09-22
BLAINE AND SCHURZ
What the Former Has to Say in Answer
to the Latter's Savage Attacks Upon
Him in the New York Post.
A Bitter RejOinder-The Weaknesses Of
Schurz's Political Life Stripped
OF Their Sham Covering.

| ork EteHulg Iost, 10 which he invited Mr.
: Blaine's special attention. The reporter
pointed out some very harsh and severe
comments made on Mr.. Blaine's recent re.
marks touching civil-service reform, and
called his special attention to the following
extracts from the Posts articles referring tc
Mr.. Blaine personally:
This is important as coming from a politician
who has hitherto professed to consider the reform
| a somewhat ridiculous subject, and who, when be
came into office last year, under Garfield At one
service abuse. That his speech proves that his
opinions on the subject have undergone any
he thinks other peoples opinions have
He has practiced eivfIserviee abuses all his life
and risen By mesHs Of them. IN his management
Slate politics. through a period of over twent!
period, uttered word to indicate that he did no
consider the sPoiis system good one while sneer
body who protested against it.
When he came into office as a member OF tbs
administration, far from giving his mind to re
form, he plunged into spols. and ,0auol0ed In then
using erery Office he could lay hands for De reigoTc
OF his hencimen and hangers-on. iCithout shame o.
versity and tells reformers that he believes in re
form, but is overwhelmed by The difficulties OF the
subject.
THE EAR-MARks OF CARL sCHURZ.
Listening very attentively, Mr.. Blaine
!. said:
You need not have named the paper
from which you read. 1 would have known
it was the Euening Post. There is a tone Of
coarseness in it-'a loose expectoration Of
| epithets' as Mr.. Sumner used to saw which
is almost inseparable from the professional
reformer. Criticising with reckless freedom
everything and everybody, his own style is
at least very far from refined, and in this
particular instance absolutely vulgar. Mr..
Carl Schurz is the responsible editor of the
Post, and 1 think am justified in assuming
that he is the author of the abusive and in
snlting Language, to- which you have called
my attention. He is gratuitousIy and stu
diously off nsive in all he says"
What called out such display Of tenn
per-" inquired the reporter.
| "The apparent cause" replied Mr.. Blaine,
"wss a speech 1 made during the Maine
campaign before a m ass meeting at Winter
port. After reviewing Governor Plaisted's
groundless pretensions as a ciyil-serylce re-
former, / indicated the conduct of the Re-
publican party OF Maine in the matter of
Federal appointments, and then very briefly
added .ome general views in regard to the
civil service which l have long held and
never violated in my practice. Forthwith
such papers as the EUcnin1 Post fell to
abusing me, and asking what right had to
express my opinion on eivil-service reform,
10 which the professional reformers seem to
assert an exclusive patent. My own nrac-
tice in relation to the civil service of the
country has been on higher plane Than Mr..
Schurz can assert for himself"
"Well, then, you do not admit" said The
| reporter, Shat in Garfields Cabinet you
plunged into spoils and wallowed IN them
for three months like 4 rhinoceros in an
African pool?'"
"Slanderous chsrges," replied Mr.. Blaine,
care nearly always couched in reckless Ian
guage. L am of opinion that a discreet
reader who knew nothing whatever of the
facts would conclude the above statement
was false"
"Do you mean yourself to say that it is
false?" asked the reporter.
UNTRUE IN WHOLE AND IN DETAIL.
81 mean," answered Mr.. Blaine, "to say
that it is untrue in whole and in detail,
meanly and maliciously untrue; SO sbso-
lutely untrue that there is not one fact or
| shadow OF fact 10 sustain it."
"You notice, said the reporter, "that the
Evening Post charges that you used every Of
fee you could lay your hands on for the re-
ward of your henchmen and hangers-on
without shame or scruple"
YES" said Mr.. Blaine, sit is all of the
same swash- buckler style of indecent and in
defensible assertion. / challenge Mr.. Schurz
TO bring forward not a hundred, not fifty, not
| twenty, not ten, not five instances of the kind
he charges, but challenge him 10 bring for
ward one-just one. propose to put him to
| the lest OF MS responsibility 10 the public as
journalist, and of his veracity as private
| gentleman, who Is bound to be careful in his
| statements"
"Yoa limited that your practice in obeying
| the requirements of sound civil service
had been more consistent than Mr. Schurz's."
"Yes, and / mean that in Its full length
| and BREADTH" said Mr. Blaine 81 will offer
my administration of the State Department
| during the ten months was Secretary against
that of Mr.. Schurz during his four years in
| the Interior Department, either as to general
conduct or special appointments"
| A SPURIOUS REFoRMER.
| "Do you mean that Mr.. Schurz violated
his own civil-service rules in the Interior
Department."
81 do mean just that" replied Mr.. Blaine,
81 mean that after a great flourish of
| trumpets as to system OF competitive ex-
aminations in the Interior Department, they
were quietly abandoned by Mr.. Schurz. And
during the last year he abandoned them
even as applicable TO promotions from one
grade to another where the competitors were
few and the examination practicable. He
fell back en- the old rule and promoted
those recommended by the chiefs of the di-
visions and heads of bureaus"
"This statement will greatly surprise the
public, Mr.. Blaine. Why, we understood out
here that the Reform Club In Boston gave to
Mr.. Schurz great reception and dinner be-
cause he had conducted his department ac-
cordiug to the rules of a reformed civil SER
vice."
81 know nothing about that" said Mr..
Blaine, "but / know that / am speaking
facts. 1 know, moreover, that during Mr..
Schurz's last year in office he appointed
some 1900 clerks in the Census Buresu with
out a pretense of competitive examination.
And If over competitive examination was
applicable it was in these cases, where
quickness at figures was the required faculty
in nine-tenths OF the sppointees, and tina
was easily determinable by examination.
Not only did Mr.. Schurz make all these APP
pointments against his own vaunied rules of
civil service, but he m ade them in violation
of law, in not even requiring the prelimina-
nv examination prescribed in what is known |
as the r. M. T. Hunter statute of 1857"
"Why, you are making out a heavy bill |
of civil-serviee indictments sgsinst Mr.. |
Schurz"
"Wen," said Mr.. Blaine, 81 do not believe |
any executive officer ia the United States |
ever welded the appointing power in so re-
markable manner rs Mr.. Schurz. think
he is the only Secretary OF The Interior that
would have removed John @. Smith ss In
dian Commissioner and appointed Mr..
Haight That case was SO odious and 20
odorous in its inception and in its conclusion
that further refereHce to it may be dropped.
/ think Mr.. Schurz was the only Secretary
who in consolidating seven pension agencies
into one and finding six of the agents soldiers
with good records, some of them severely
wounded and only one agent a civilian clerk,
discharged the six soldiers and
retained the civilian at the head of the con-
solidated agency, and this without particle
Of examination into the respective quaiifca-
tions of the men. This he did in the case Of
Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. 1 do
not say that the agent retained by Mr.. Schurz
was not a competent man, but he was no
more so than the wounded soldiers whom he
;ast aside without even hearing. He lis
ened TO me with the scantest OF courtesy
when l called at the department to converse
IN the subject"
THE CIVIL SERVICE IN MAINE. !
The reporter Gale 4 Mr.. BIaine's attention
o Mr.. SchuTz's assertion that she had prac- 5
iced civil-service abuses all his life and {
isen by means of them in his management
# State politics in Maine through period '
# over twenty years" {
"That only shows" said Mr.. Blaine, show
ntirely ignorant Mr.. Schufz is in regard to e
fairs in Maine. There is no form of mis-
tstement more reprehensible than mere as I
ertion about facts where the writer is en- 8
rely ignorant. As q matter of fact, the q
hreei large customhouses in Maine-Port- 2
and, Bangor and Eastport-are outside of l
~ old district, and never had the slightest C
hing 10 do with the appointment of their
ollectors or of any ENTHUSIASTICALLY a
ever"
"But had you no customhouses in your u
En district" 81
"Yes, one small one. Mr.. Lincoln APP 81
ointed the collector whom recommended n
nd man whom the people wanted. An >
rev johnson removed him and appointed II
q equally good man in his place. That b
an remained in Office until last year, when '
. resigned to engage in active business. u
ever meddled with or suggested subordi- '
ate appointment in the Office in my life" fo
"Well, what about your internal revenue
hcials?" said the reporter.
"The men originally appointed in the in ia
rnal revenue service by Mr.. Lincoln" said m
r. Blaine, remained in Office until they OF
ed or were dropped by consolidation under tie
e law" CO