Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1885-03-19
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent

WASHINGTON, ID. c., March 16, 1885.
1t is said that the President has avow-
ed determination to adhere not only
to the letter but to the spirit of the civil
service reform law, and that all appoint
ments to Office hereafter to be made by
this administration shall be i'm accord
ance with civil service requirements.
There is, however, very grave danger
that the thimble-rigging Republican
politicians who have thus far evaded
the enfOcement of the law i'm the reten-
ton of an army of incompetents in
every department of the government,
will find it not at all difficult to produce
reasons enough to prevent any cosidera-
BILE number of changes for the coming
four years of Democratic management.
What | want to see, and what the
country expects to see, Is though
renovation in the governments offices
everywhere, and the administration of
its affairs placed in the hands of those
to whom the people look for the fulfill
ment of our repeated pledges for re-
trenchment and reform.
Among the first things that President
Cleveland should see to is the introduc-
ing of some of the customs and habits
of American civilization in the State
Department, which under the snobbish
Frelinghuysen has become a nest of
foreign lackeys and gilt-edged flum-
merry. The idea that anybody is i'm
portant enough to make it absolutely
essential that he should be retained in
office, should now be effectually explo-
ded. If through the opportune
visitation of a pestilence, the last one
of these State Department clerks should
be called hence, l will wager horse
that somebody or other will be found
to fill their places, and fill them accept
ably too. Old John Davis has survived
and peregrinated through.every admini-
stration for half century as Assistant
Secretary of State. And Hunter
another assistant, has kept grip on
the payroll for almost two generations.
Yet the Republicans declare that the
Department of State will go to pieces
unless these two antiquated specimens
of senility are preserved through yet
another administration.
In the War Department, which for
four years has been ostensibly under
the guiding hand of that mighty man
Bob Lincoln there will be found q lot
of venerable barnacles who have gIided
down to us from a former generation,
and who found their way into position
at time, when competency counted
but little beside the potency Of polit-
ical influence. In this particular de-
partment, my mind reverts to an old
fellow who has tenants something like
q score of officials, one of whom is the
chief of the division in which the old
chap draws his regular rations of 81, 800
per annum. His property at the Capt.
tai is worth hundreds of thousands of
dollars, and many q poor devil is now
waiting in vain to get some recompense
for the sacrifice he has made to secure
? the ousting of just such old cormorants
as this. He is only one of the hun.
dreds of other bloated bendholders anC
: real estate speculators who live ir
Washington and figure upon the gov
ernment payroll year in and year ou1
through all administrations.
John Quincy Adams became mem
Der of the lower House of Congress after
having served a term as President OF
the United States, because, as he declar
ed, the one position was equal in every
way to the other. Now, however, we
have congressman and reverend Sena
tors who are not only willing but anX
ious to serve their country in any pos
sible capacity, so long as they can hav,
their names retained upon the Govern
ment pay roll. To day some of the ex
members of the recently expired Con
gress, just as the eX-members of pre-
vious Congress. have accepted service il
l this. Fifty of these members have go
to be provided for, though why de
feated candidate for reelection SHOULD
a not suffer the consequences of his owr
,. unpopularity is unfathomable.