The state journal., 1884-08-30
CARL SCHUI&Z ON A CHANGE OF
PARTIES.
The Horrors of a Change -Four Years z


The Horrors of Change Four Years Ago.
From Mr. Schurz's Speech at indianapolis,
July 20, 1880.
1t is an almost universally acknowl-
edged fact that at present the public busi-
ness is. on the whole, well and honestly
conducted in the Government offices,
Now substitute for this the Democratic
reform, making clean sweep according
to the old spoils system, and what will
YOU have? Hundreds of thousands OF
politicians, great and small, but all hun
cry, rushing for seventy or eighty thou
sand places, backed and pressed by every
Democratic Congressman and every
Democratic committee in the land. This
impetuous rush must be satisfied as
rapidly as possible, for they want to make
the best of their time, and in this case as
well as other, time is money. 1t is use
less to disguise it; the masses Of office
seekers, starved for twenty years, will
not be turned back as long as there is a
mouthful on the table. Seventy or
eighty thousand officers selected at ran
dom from that multitude Of raVenous APP
plicants will be put into places held now
mostly by men of tried capacity and eX-
perenCe. They must be taken at random,
for it is impossible to ill so large a mum.
Der of places in so short time as the fu-
riOUs demand will permit, in any other
way. Need tell any sensible man what
the effect upon the conduct of the public
business will be? II aciIL be the diSOrganG-
zdeS0U Of the aohOle administrative ma
ctiae1y Of tie G0ger1sment al one fell bIOa0 ;
it will be a Sudden substitution of raw
hands for skilled and tried public SER
wants; the substitution of the eager de.
sire to make out Of public affairs as much
as can be made in the shortest possible
time, for official training, experience and
sense of responsibility. 1t will be re-
mOval for some time at least ofthose care
fully devised guards which are now
placed over the public money and its use;
it will in one word be the sudden distri-
button of so many thousand places of
trust, responsibility and power, now we'll
filled, in the true sense Of the word, as
spoils among the hosts of the victorious
party.
1t is useless to say that the Democratic
party contains sufficient number of men
of ability and integrity to fill all those
places. No doubt it does. But it is
absolutely impossible for those who have
the appointing power, even if they were
ever SO well disposed, to make careful
selections for so many thousand places in
a short timc especially considering the
fact that usually the least worthy as
pirants are among the most clamOrOus
and the most skilful in securing the
strongest political Endorsements. Need
tell the taxpayers what such an exper-
mcnt will cost? Suppose after success OF
the Democratic party in the Presidential
election all the offices high and
low, in all the banks and savings institu-
tiOns Of the country, were to be filled
suddenly with Democratic politicians upon
the recommendation of Democratic Con
gressmen and campaign committees, what
would the stockholders and the depositors
think Of the safety of their money? And
yet the interests involved in the banks
are certainly by no means greater than
the interests involved in the conduct OF
the great government of the United States.
| do not think this is putting the case too
strongly, and invite the business men
of the country and the taxpayers gener-
ally to consider it well before they cast
their votes.