Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1883-02-10
Judge HOge and Civil Ser
vice Reform.
Eds. Independent +:


LIZ your last iseue vou state TIE
fact, that Hon. j Is. Hoge, our
present Representative in Com
gress, is an applicant 10 President
Arthur, for position on the Civil
Service Commission, and you add
that hit appoint ment would give
satisfaction in this State. I differ
from you in opinion, and as you
publish Tree and independe,t
press shall expect you to give
publicity to some Of my reasons
for this difference of opinion
If President Arthur had Of MS
own motion rendered this ap oint-
ment to Mr.. Hoge, | should per-
haps, have been silent. But, be-
ing Democrat, and having cast
my vote for him as our Dem0-
cratic candidate for Congress, |
can never approve, 30 long as that
trust continues, that he, the Demo-
cratic representative from this Dis
trict, shall be a supplicant TO II Re
publicant President for office. Such
a personal application, besides
through himself or his friends, is
an absolute departure from the
preamble of the Civil Service Re-
form Bili-which is TO discourage
the unmanly pursuit OF office, and
to have appointments made here
after solely upon the basis of
known merit Ii this is not the
preamble of the bill, has it any
preamble ? And here, the attempt
is made to violate it in the persons
Of the very men who are TO cOnsti-
stute the Commission itself If
the fountain is thus corrupted. can
the stream flowing from 1t, be- less
so?
There is another fatal objection
to the appointment OF Mr. Hoge
to that Office. AT this moment Of
time when he is seeking the Office
he stands absolutely disqualified
for the appointment by the Con
stitution of the United States,
which declares, that no member
of Congress, during the time Tor
which he was elected, shall be APP
pointed to any civil office, which
shall have been created during
such time. He.is therefore cOnSti-
tutionaly disqualified for the APP
pointment until after the 4lh o.
March next, and his appointment
subsequent to that day, upon an APP
plicalion prior to that day, would
be a vioMtion OF the spirit and
reason of the disqualification, as
fully as his appointment before
that day, would be IA violation OF
It's letter. This j. proposition,
capable of the cledrest demons,rt
ton by refefen 90 TO the reasons
which prompted cur patriotic an
cestOrS TO insert that provision in
that constitution, which was To
guard and preserve the purity and
indepeuce of the legislative body.
The trainers OF that lHstrumeut
went just so fur as they could go
in the prOhibition-they could not |
extend it for gears into futTHy-
but it is apparent 10 the lowest ca
pacity, that TO appoint "A member
of Congress on the 9Th OF March to !
an office created during his proceed
ing term of service, and to which he
was ineligible up to that day. is
trfling with the preamble emho-
died in our Cons tuition and
palpable evasion Of lis spirit Has |
such an appointment ever before
been made in any pure and en-
lightened administration
/ have other objections-equally
strong and forcible, to this APP
pOintment-both as Democrat |
and citizen of the United States,
bnt | fOrbear to state them now.
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