The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1886-04-15
pacity than those propagated by the nat
ural methods.

ural methods.
His Gthe Presidents officers in every De
partmcnt are literally surrounded by Re
publican spies, and he can not make the
slightest move without taking his enemies
/ into his confidence 1t is "a complete case Of
] trying to serve the Lord with the devil rs
+ an active partner.
The humbuggcry Of this whole cxamina-
4 ton business as a test Of fitness for cler-
i cal positions is well illustrated by a ham-
4 ing advertisement which hold i'll my hand,
and which reads as follows
"A collection Of examinations and an
swers, selected by a competent and eXpe-
rienced professor, so as to enable any per
son. after their intelligent review, to
undergo a thoroughly successful civil ser
| vice examination. Every person desiring
/ to be employed by the Government should
have it, Send 10 cents for a copy
The only sensible way to obtain good
! employees anywhere III any business Is TO
select them yourself and Try them. If they
should prove good, keep them; if they
should prove bad, discharge them.
The stencil which for years had assailed
the nostrilS Of the nation had in every in
stance been created by those who had been
IoLullldutd ~ JiltlI OltiCtS i)l llIc ItSINltbi
and appointed BY and with the advice
and consent Of the Senate. The thousand
minnows which swan through the water,
| however they may have dispOrted them
! selves, had never been able to cause a rip
| pie on its surface; it was the whales and
| the sharks which laShtd the waters into
/ fury and tore the nets Of the law into
/ shreds. The operations of the Black Fri
day conspirators, Credit Mobilier thieves,
| whisky rings, freedmen's savings banks
| robbers, SanbOrn contracts star route con
tracts, and such other projects of villainy
were the things that alarmed the honest
! sentiment of the country and called for
/ form.
| To answer this call as Republican Sena-
| tors pretended to do by such a bill as this
was a preposterous and contemplate sub
tcrfuge. 1t was a regular case Of giving
| Smith medicine for Browns ailments. To
punish q corrupt secretary or auditor they
administered discipline to a guiltless clerk.
Even had that been good medical practice,
it was an absurdity to pretend to punish
the clerk by providing that he should hold
office for life, instead of discharging him.
Having held and abused power for
| twenty three years they saw by unerrlDg
instincts that the day of retribution was
at hand; that the people were determined
upon reform; not by such poor devices as
were provided by that act, but by change
| in the entire control and personnel OF the
Government. They, therefore, least an
| anchor to windward, and this law was
the result. And it is falsely entitled Ii
is not an act to improve and regulate the
civil service Of the country, to all lntents
| and purposes it was the last Will and teS
lament of the Republican party; and my
chief regret is that Democratic President
was compelled to become It's executor III
stead of its administrator de bonis non.
The behavior of the Republican adso-
Gates Of this law about the time Of its pass
age was not only remarkable; it was
shameless. In the face OF their allegations
| that the spoils system was corrupt, and
that by it we could not possibly get good
! and competent officials, they not only de
| feated by a solid vote in the Senate the
amendment of Mr.. Pugh, as have stated,
requiring their friends already in TO sub
nit to examination, but they made haste
! to fill every possible vacancy with their
partizans before the law took effect 1t is
an open secret that on Saturday, the 14th
of July, some of the heads of Departments
in this city spent the entire day and night,
far into Sunday morning. in filling every
| vacancy, promoting their friends and kin
and degrading their political enemies The
law was to go into effect on the 10Th Of
July. Quite number of new clerks had
been provided for by the appropriation
bills for the fiscal year beginning July l,
and a full supply OF applicants had already
passed the civil service examination and
stood by waiting for the law to go into
effect But when the offices opened on
Monday, the 10th, not a vacant place was
anywhere to be found; every one was oc-
cupied by Republican or kinsman Of the
appointing officer And the men who per
petrated this fraud on their own law, with
the cheek of a town COW, cry 'spoilsmanr'
at every man who denounces their hypoc-
risy; and Democrats are found who by
| their votes here sustain these men in the
retention of their ill-gotten spoiIs, and
who seem to think that fraud and hypo
crisy constitute the necessary overture to
the grand symphony of reform.
| can we'll see that they (the old Demo-
crats) might be willing to cOncede any fair
and impartial distribution of the places
} under the Government on principle of
merit or anything else that patriotism
might demand of them, but they will not
!, submit to the diSfranchiSemcnt OF them
selves and their children. Mark what |
) say And you will not improve the mat
: ter by impeaching the purity Of their mo-
tives and bestowing epithets upon them.
They will not fight to win great Demo
J cratic victories for Republican benefit.
They will not continue to rally To the
bugles of the party and win hard fought
battles merely that their enemies may re
main in possession of the field They Will
not preserve the discipline and organiza-
; ton Of their splendid line of battle and
charging with their ancient courage if the
epaulets and honors which they win are
to be bestowed upon their adversares, OF
the towards who skulked in the rear, OF
the mercenares who hung upon the fianks
} of the contending parties, alternately fir
,, ing upon each host.
Quaint Petition to a Throne OF Grace.
> From Greensboro Workman.
The Richmond Christian Advocates tells
of good brother whose habit it was tC
4 pray that the Lord would give the people
"a hankering after religion" There is al
I, equally good brother in the western par