St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-01-12
He Only Shows Up the Former
Workings of His Own
Party.
Republicans and Democrats
Alike Say Carlisle Contest
Charges Are False.
The "0ld Guard" of New
York, Wait Upon the
President.

WASHINGTON, Jan. n.-ln the SEN
ate to-day the resolution of Mr.. Hale for
a select committee to examine fully into
the present condition of the civil Serv-
ice was taken up. and Mr.. Hale adj
dressed the senate i'll explanation and
advocacy of ii. He declared that his
object in Offering it was To secure an in
VeStigatiOn. with sincere purpose of
bringing before congress the present ac-
tual condition of the civil service of the
country. and also the performances of
certain high and low officials of the gov
ernment. AT the commencement of Mr..
LincOln'S administration the public
offices were filled with the adherents of
that party which was the exponent of
the doctrine that to the VictOrS belong
the SpOilS. Under that administration
the chief test of fitness was loyalty.
Not few of those then appointed had
within the last thee years been turned
on the cold charities of the world to
make place for men who never had any
sympathy with the principles of which
Mr.. Lincoln had stood as the great rep
reSentative. Gen. Grant and President
Hayes had during their administrations
recognized the growing sentiment of
the country in favor of civil service re-
form. and had endeavOred to conform
appointments to the reasonable demand
of that agitation. The Forty-Seventh
congress (Republican) had enacted the
civil service statute, and President Ar
thur had with sincere good faith ap-
pointed the civil service commissions
and gave support and encouragement to
them. But he was content to do it in a
quiet way. If he (lIale) were to make
any contrast between President Az
thurs course on that subject and the
course which mad since been pursued it
would be simply to call attention to the
fact that President Arthur made no
pr0clamatiOnS. no promises, no pledges,
but cOntented himself with carrying out
the law according to its purpose and
spirit.
BOTH THE GREAT PARTIES
in 1884 declared themselves III their
platforms in favor of civil service re-
form, but as the campaign progressed
it was seen that considerable body of
men who had before that affiliated with
the Republican party, had determined
To oppose its candidates, and it soon be-
came clear that not only was that body
of men bent on opposing the Repubii-
can candidate. but was looking about
for reasons to support his opponent,
Gov. Cleveland. The candidate of the
Democratic party had not failed to OBJ
serve this, and he accordingly prOfeSSed
his letter of acceptance. Mr.. Cleve-
lands declarations in that respect had
their effect. In the close states they had
influence enough on the voters to be de-
ciSive of the result, and Mr.. Cleveland
was elected president. Mr.. Hale quoted
from all interview with Mr.. Cleveland,
published in Boston in 1885, in which
Mr.. Cleveland is represented as saying:
IL have tried to be true to my pledges
and the pledges of my party. We both
promised to divorce the offices of the
country from being used for party
services" These they had as clearly
as words could give them. the pledges
of the civil tservice reform. That ad-
miniStratiOn had been elected, as
George w. Curtis and others had fire.
quently asserted, on the strength of
such pledges. He (IIale) had never be-
lieved in the
SINCERITY OF THESE PLEDGES,
because, if the Democratic party be-
lieved in any one thing more than in
another, it was in the doctrine that ito
the victOrS belong the spOilS." He had
before him table showing the sweep
ing changes in all the departments of
the government up to the 11th of June,
1887. Mr.. Hale hoped TO have in a few
days table showing how this conquer
ing march of the Democratic party in
pursuit of Office had continued down to
the beginning of this year. This show
ing was amazing. He had not realized
it himself until he had looked into the
figures. The country did not appreciate
that under the banner of reform, with
its watchwOrd written on every fold of
the administration banner, this ruthless
prescription and these removals and
changes in Office had been going on at a
rate uneXampled in any administration
in American history. 1t could not be
said that most of these changes took
place because of the expiration of the
terms of the incumbents, because
scrutiny disclosed the fact that nineteen
twentiethS of all the cases where
changes had occurred were places
where there was no fixed tenure of
Office, but where the incumbents were
removable at the pleasure of the presi-
dent. Secretary Lamar had recently
taken occasion to
COMMEND JOHN c. CALHOUN
for his position against the spoils Sys-
TEN, and had felicitated himself on the
fact that he belonged to an administra-
tion which was carrying out in that re-
spect the principles of Calhoun. And
yet the stern facts, which confronted
the senate in the department presided
over by Mr.. Lamar. were that every ter
out of 1S pension agents: every surveyor
general; f0ur-fifthS of the local land
officers; nine-tenths of the Indian in
SpectOrS and agents; 20 out of So special
agents of the general land office; and
twO-thirdS of the special examiners in
the pension office. And yet Mr.. Lamar
stood to-day on record. by his uttered
words, as against the spOilS system, and
posed as refOrmer.
In fact, so gross had been the viola
tiOn of every principle of reform, and
of the direct pledges of the president,
that even the Evening Post of New
York had said of these things that they
would be used in the campaign there
with terrible effect. The president had
not hesitated himself TO deal deadly
blows at the cause of reform. In this
connection Mr.. Hale referred to the re-
cent municipal election in New York.
when Mr.. Fellows and Mr.. Nicoll were
candidates for the office of district at
torney, and i'm which campaign all the
papers, the Civil Service Reform associa-
tion and the merchants and business
men had eSpOused the candidacy of Mr..
Nicoll. He spoke of Mr.. Fellows as an
old broken down New York politician,
whose character was not too high. and
who had been the crony and the bene-
ficiary of Tweed i'm the days of the
worst corruption that ever disgraced
New York city. Here was an oppor-
tunity for the president to have done
something in the cause of reform.
MI. Vest defended the reputation of