New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-02-13

| of the old spOs system restoredl WIZ ueeFen
venture to say that the Collector could oihcially
survive three months-or physically live twelve
! mortbs-if he should reject competitive examina-
| tions for filing vacancies, and fall back again upon
the savage old spoi's system contests-contests be-
tween Conklingites and antiConklingites, Platttes
and anti-Plattites, Weedles and anti-Weedtes,
| Garfeldites and anti-Garfeldites, spoilsmen and
independents. in battaliOns squads and companies
! battling and Drawing over every reLloYa ana APP
| pointInent of which dozen every day Tor NOM )
would not scliate the fierce demands 'oT Spolls
| patronage and reycngeY Thou ands womb rush
| grcedily upon the Collector and MI. Need, as
| leader would be among them. lie alone, DelleEe,
would agree to find n man for every place. rather
! than have the country suiieT
| Mr. Weed may be no more able to gee why ms
wisdom would he madness and his remedy dealh 10
| his party majority In New-Iork, Tran ne was aoie
| to see that Mr.. COnkling was leading hlmSeH anu
ex-Presidenl Grant to political death when they
! aband ned the reform TO which TIER party WAS
| pledged to JON hands foI third term; no more
| than he isnOw able, on his theory Oi governing, 10
| give any rational explanation why MI. ConK!lh"
| lies stranded in the quagmlre OF spOlls system
politics, why President Arthur was wise IN slVing
a large space III his message 10 canld ulstuSSlop
! Of the paramount and permanent problem OF ClVli
| Service Reform which Mr.. COpkllng and Mr.. weed
alike believed they had consigned 10 tine limbo ot
departed ghosts; more than he is able to explain
| why he Mr. COnkline, Senator Cameron ana
Sena lor LOGAN had to witness the selection at two
successive Nations Conventions, OF candidates VINO,
of all those available were most pledged to reform,
Notwithstanding those arch-lcadeTs supposed they
| had Manipulated ana rlOculed the reform SSuo
! into eternal disgrace. -,
II is djiicut nj any time to resist the spirit of the
| age and oble defeat is sure when attempt 10
force It's l.. cher convictions to accept DafOaIOus
code of the past Mr.. Weed can no more MAKE pro-
| scrptive removals and the coercion OF elections
resuectabe again than he can the ierocl0us ana
revengelu' spirit in war which slaughtered at NeW-
London and gave the Capitol to the names at wash
ington. Siatesmanshp is now Droadei, H more
civilized more friendly to freedom, jus ice ana true
manhood than at any time between Jackson anr
he fail of slavery, whether Mr. Weed conprehehus
the fact or not.
BETTER PUBLIC SERVICE SECUAED.
Nr. Weed Is not more fortunate in dealing with
little matter, than with large llatters. 1t is not
true as he says it u.s. that battalions of olice-seek-
ers press upon the Postmaster at Now-York. The
faithful enforcement of competitive examinations at
bis oilice-as has for many years been the case IN
all the British civil Offices and IA Is rapidly becon-
ing the fact at the Ncw-YOrk Custom Housc-has
sooner taught the common Oilice-secker than 1t has
Mr. Weed and the other leaders the utter folly boh
of pressure and of clamor for places. Inc sup
preston of the old chances of population and profit
AMI the strict discipline and long hours OF work,
which a 6 the result Of reform methods, have made
service there unat ractive to ldlers and partisan
parasites If Mr.. Weed will look at The TRIBUNE
of the 25th August, 1881, he will sec there Is
even difficulty in finding tie men willing TO work
] not hopc that he VIII ponder such facts-incon-
ceivable nnder the spoils system, put sure to be
universal under the merit systemi
Mr. Weed tells us that a man lost an appointment
as ett, r-carrier because unable to tell the height
of a mountain the day of the capture of Washing
ton He does not of course intend to miSrepresent
but he is altogether too credulous, and Is utterly
mistaken There has been no such rejection. It Is
not true that Mr. Vanderbilt Dean Richmond or
George Law could not have been admitted as letter
carriers, unless Mr. Weed claims that they could
not read writing; and in that event, suppose that
even Mr. Weed would not expect them Il he made
letter-carricrs with attendants to read to super
scr1ptions, however strongly he might have been
willing 20 recommend them. The questions relate
10 useful niorma ION, and not to fhnciiu matters.
Mr.. " ecd having believe. never attended an eX-
animation, naturally enough falls INTO innocent
mistakes. II Mr. Weed would adequately inform
himself for writing about competitive eXanlna-
lions. he wonf ascertain ihat heHneT !lose stare
mcnts nor several Others INTO WInch MS Dlas ana
lack # Information have BETRAYED him could posi-
bly be true. ] have 40 space to waste upon
charges 50 trivial and prepOsfeTouS.
Under the system Dir Weed Is irving to revive,
mere PARTISAN test for postal service would be su-
preno and of those adhcrng 10 the DOMINANT
uartV none but the faction of the postmaster and
The local chieltan, and OF the latter, none put the
most sery'le-Sure to oooy party orders t0ply as
scssircnts, neglect their duty for managing con
ven,ions aud coercing elections Would pe alpWed
10 be a carrie. a clerk, dn0rkeeper, or even pOr-
ter a wa5l rrwOmau or chlmney-Nweep. But argn-
ment is useless, Under the merit system ana by Tue
very methods lac most condemns this Post once
has been made what his own chief authority, Mr.
Dawes has lately called the model post once"
Never before has any large Federal Office been at
once so clean. COnOml al 50 cihClct ana so uni
versally satisfactory. A third more work Is done
with less money, mail COLLECTIONS ana DELIVERIES IRE
much .lore prompt ana frequent th3h uhuer MI
Weeds system. There Is 40 political coercion, no
scandals. no dissatisfaction Mr.. Weed cannot
b~iur a charge against the Office More than ever
I.f 4 I'm q
10 the Republican party, Yet he ignores such mat
tiers rs he does the great Improvements ut the CuS-
tom House. But lac hnds space FOR ara lHing every
shor,comng Of President llayes-an9 such thnk
there wcrc-and OF President Garfield, and for re-
failing every stale and scandalous suggeS-
ton lac lin atoat concerning the Ictecis Of fhe
new method, when Tor the llls time put III pIdctlc'
without and from CONGRESS and aganst the hostility
of local factions and all the old cheitains OF New
York politics.
RrroRMs UNDER PRESIDENT GRANT.
One other st ltement Of MIR. Weed, however de-
serves a word of notice. He says that after the
civil Service idea Inauguraied ,sicl during
General Grants Administration, there was Il good
deal said butnothing done" The audacious assur-
ance OF the lack of information here disclosed is
uniqle j. ne ignorant of the fact that Mr.. Arthur
rs Collector reported that the work of reform had
been Of inestmable yalue at the Newlork Gus
tom House or does be disruSt that Collector much
s the reform itscll Is he ignorant of the fact that
President Grant represented 10 Congress that COM
pettivc examinations had gwen persons OF supe-
ror character and capacity to The service and had
been IN several other ways beneficial; that the re-
form had developed more energy for duty had |
diminished intrigue ana pressure" and had Sc |
cured for heads of departments more time for Off
cial duties -; that he made order for enforcing
the reform in Boston by of the good effects Il
had produced at Washington and New-York or |
that President Grant in two messages III vain asked
appropriations for continuing the work, and IN the
last stating its suspension would he source of |
..mortifcation" 10 him or does Mr. Weed disagree |