Omaha daily bee., 1883-04-26
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM IN
NEBRASKA. .

most all me local appointments W
federal Offices In Nebraska are made
solely stlthe instance Of our senator's
and congressman. They, and they
alone are consulted by the president
and the heads Of departments, and
they, and they alone, must be held
responsible for the character and con-.
duct Of tbs men arp inted.
No matter what the service rules OF
Washington may bs and no matter
what pretense Is used to the contrary,
the fact Is %undisputed that no one car
get an appointment from Uncle Sam
st the present time unless he comes
endorsed by some OF all of the mem.
bers of the state delegation. What.
ever abuses exist by reason of incom-
petent or dIsreputable federal Office.
holders mu.t be charged directly
to the congressional delegation, and
no member thereof can Justly
plead civil service reform rules as an
excuse for shieking his responsible.
ty. Moreover, each Of our senator's
Is personally responsible for every
bad presidential appointment In Ne
brasks, because the senators from
each state are usually consulted
about all such appointments, and If
they are not they are able to block In
executive session any appointment
that ls unfit to be made. Of late
a new departure has been
taken by u delegation In the
matter of federal appointments. The
offices have been parceled out as II
they were the personal property Of
each congressman or senator and the
whole delega' IN has obligated Itself
to sustain the choice Of each indi.
viduL member. For instance, Mr.
Valentine is conceded q land ofioe In
his distiict, and no matter whom
he may name the senators
are bound to confirm his man
The senators fondly imagine
that this convenient arrangement
relieves them of all responsibility and
puts 1t on Valentine. As o matter OF
fact, the people pat the blame where
1t justly belongs, upon the Senators
themselves, because they alone have
the power to confirm, and 1t Is their
duty to exercise their prerogative in
the interest of the people whom they
represent, and not as mere partners in
q bargain. If Mr.. Jan Wyck, for
instance, votes for u bad man just In
order to get the delegation to support
one of his own friends, he Is
censurable just as much as II he made
the appointment himself. And If
General Henderson votes for an In.
competent or unfit ofice seeker be-
cause Judge Weaver demands it, he
can't shirk the responsibility and
charge ii up to Weaver.
Another and moro h,grant abuse In
the civil service systeu recently
adopted By our delegation Is the
attempt to delegate their own
privileges to members of the
legislature that elected General
Henderson. Under thiS programme
nobody Is to have as federal appoint
ment unless he can got the endorse
ment Of the republican members of
his district. This Is to cay that the
republican members of the late legis-
lature have been constituted office
brokers in general and Office holders
In particular, who, 80 to speak, dis.
pense postofices and land Offices as II
they were GRO ps raised on their own
farms. The members Of the late
Legislature are notoriously In bad
odor and II to-day they were
to ask for an endorsement
from the people not ono out Of ten
could be elected constable o. pound.
master. Upon this oonolAvs of oil
the political virtues has been BON.
fsrred the power which presidents
and senators alone r supposed to
exercise. What may We expect a.
the RESULT More corruption, more
bargaining and more trading than
ever before. Not only this, but the
humiliAting spectacle Of compelling
men who have held the highest posi-.
lions In the land to demesn them.
selves by begging an endorsement of
men who are In every way beneath
their mental and moral call bre.
Our delegation may n we'll know
first as last that this new system Of
dispensing patronage will not be ap.
proved by the people. The presi.
dent very properly delegates his
power Of appointment to senators and
congressman because he cannot be
expected to acquAint himself per-
sonally with the fitness or unftness Of
candidates for ofi,e who reside thou.
sands Of miles from Washington. But
senators have no right to delegate
that delegated power to any other per-
son or persons. They cannot and will
not be allowed to shirk the reHponsi-
bility for unit appointments, and all