The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1885-08-05
Washington Letter .


Editor Herald.
The reports that President Cleveland
il broken down physically are without
foundation in fact. He needs the rest
which he will soon take, though he
needs it less As a hygenic want, than
from the necessity that every one en-
gagged in great enterprise has to step
back from the momentous task, a. an
artist would from his canvass, and see
what has been done, as well as what
remains to be done. But few are
aware of how much has been accom-
plished in the less than five months of
the new administration. The magni.
tude of the work can be appreciate
only by those who were acquainted
with the condition that mad prevailed
since the war. II the President il not a
wise aud experienced stateman, it must
least be conceded that he has been
miraculously happy in the selection Of
a Cabinet. There is not a Department
of the public service Military. Naval,
Judiciary, Post Official, Diplomatic,
Financial or that which relates to the
Interior, that has not been marked by
conspicuous reforms. Many of those
reforms are patent to every one who
keeps the run of public events, but
there are'others which are less palpa BILE
more subtitle and Indicative in their
character these can be discerned only
by those WHO are intimately acquaint-
ell with the intricate machinery of gov.
eminent, the motors and motives, in
short the life and the esprit die corpse
of our vast civil service. That sub.
lime fanatic, Ex-senator Morton, de-
ceased, once said, with the conviction
| of an FL Mahdi: "we have the best
civil service In the world" There are
some mistatements that are too SOL
EMMY absurd for refutation and this
one of MortOn's stands pre-eminent
in that class. The civil service to
which Ex-senator Morton referred
consisting to sad extent, both in
system and personel of mere political
workers, and personal favorites, has
been greatly improved during the last
four months. 1t is very natural to talk
about radical changes. The word "rad-
icaP' arises in the heart and gathers on
the lips of every one justly indignant
at the rooted abuses of the past twenty
years. But little reflection will con-
vince the rash extirpatOr of abuses
that, in an administration under law or
in reformation not preceded by revolu-
ton and anarchy, the change must be
gin at the cdpm and not at the rddix.
The reform has begun at the head and
the vital elixir, worse needed than the
water Moses struck from the rock, is
infiltrating the morbid system of one
of the worst civil services of the world.
The much that has been done in four
months is big with promise of the forty
and four to follow. The first step i'm
Capital reform Was TO appoint reform
cabinet. The next step was to appoint
heads of the various bureus. &c is re-
freshing to go into the different high
offices of the Departments like those of
the Commissioners of Pensions, Pat :
ents, Indian Affairs. The Assistant
Post Master Generals Office and the
Auditors offices and find real men
there. The the heads off these and
other important offices have evidently
been selected to perform. The con-
trast with their Republican predeces-
sOrs is striking, even to super fetal
observer, and it must be revelation
to the average benighted Washington
Republican, to whom the first article
of his political faith has been, that his
party contained all the gentlemen, and
that all Democrats were low fellows.
Republicans are the real Bourbons IN
American politics to-day, they have
much to learn and much to forget be-
fore they can align themselves with the
practical honesty and business like ex-
petition that has been established at
the National Capital and that is felt
alike in the Navy Yards and Custom
Houses of the East and the Indian
Agencies of the West.