The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-30
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
George William Curtis Reviews the
Work of the National League.

7
William Curtis before the National Civil
Service Reform Lea ne at its annual meet
! ing tonight. After a few preliminary re-
marks, Mr.. Curtis said:
think that nobody is more interested than
/ we are TO know the exact situation of the re-
| form movement or to state it more accurately
| Last year we told what we believed to be the
| truth of the present administration in regard to
reform, as we have always sought To tell the
| truth of every administration, and we were
| assured that our meeting was like a funeral
| feast. But we could safely reply thet if the re-
| marx were true, then, in tqe familiar phrase II
! was certainly not our funeral Undoubtedly
| more had been expected of this administration
| than of any Of its predecessors, because OF the
frequent and friendly declarations of the Fresi-
! dent, and because his election by the votes Of
those who were not of his party authorized
an Independence OF action which President
| elected solely by the vote of his party might
feel to be denied to him. TSs anticipation has
! been largely disappointed, but the disappolnt-
| ment must not make us unjust nor unmiadful
of the fact that although the President has done
| much and has permitted much that every friend
| of reform must deplore, yet be has maintained
| all that had been gained in the eXamlua-
| tons he has extended the range OF the classi,
fled service, and he has revised and strengthened
the rules. Certainly this is not all that had
been expected, but the general and intelligent
public regret that he has done no more shows
how strong is the desire of reform in the public
mind.
There are two important measures yet to be
adopted; first the repeal Of the four years law,
a law which enables complete partisan change
of the service to be made in way which per
mits the executive to escape, as in such case
he ought not TO escape, the odium of ARBITRARY
removals. This repeal we have constantly and
warmly urged. The other practical measure
which seems to me OF even greater
importance, but which the league has not
yet advocated is an amendment to the consti-
tuition extending somewhat the term of the
Presidency and making the President ineligible
for a second term. The wsest of our foreign
political critics, De Tocqueville, who was here
| iifty.six years ago when the great partisan
abuse of patronage in the national government
was but beginning, said with characteristic
acuteness, that candidate who is not the
| President seeking the Presidency, Is but an
| individual, while the President seeking re-
election is the State itself intriguing and cor
rupting with its immense resources. My &C
| complished colleague upon the first Civil Ser
| vice Commission, Mr. Joseph Medill, of Chicago,
| signed the report of the commission to PreSl-
| dent Grant, but he also submitted a supplement
| tary report in which ne urged with great force
| that constitutional amendment prohibiting
| second term is a preliminary measure without
| which an effective reform in the service is
| wholly impracticable.
The unwritten law which forbds third term
| to any President Is founded in the reason which
| would prohibit a second term, and. which great
| American statesmen have strongly stated Jack.
| son, who advised Monroe to be the President OF
| the whole people and not of party. but who,
| when he reached the White House, was the
most absolute of party Presidents twice urged
upon Congress the passage Of an amend
ment limiting the Presidency to one
| term. Harrison pledged himself as l
have said, to single term, but
persisted in a month under the fierce pressure
for place Henry Clay, In 1872 declared such
an amendment to be the principal object of the
Wing party, and in 1874 the Wing convention
which nominated him, resolved that it was in
separable from the public honor and prosperity.
aud Webster gave it his approval and support.
Charles Sumner introduced in the Senate an
amendment providing for the ineligibility of
the PRESIDENT, and President Cleveland, in ac-
cepting the nomination four years ago, added his
voice to the earlier warnings. He said. when
We consider the patronage Of this great Office the
aIurements of power, the temptation to retain
public places once gained, and more than all,
the availability party finds in an incumbent
whom horde of office holders with a zeal born
| of benefits received and fostered by the hope of
| favors yet to come. stand ready to aid with
money and political service. recognize in
the eligibility of the President for reelection a
most serious danger TO that calm, deliberate
| and intelligent action which must characterize
a government of the people"
For the overwhelming partisan prostitution
Of the civil service with which are familiar
the only defense attempted is very simple. 1t
is the assertion that the officers of the govern
nent ought to be in harmony with the admins
traton. This is true, but it is true only of such
officers as are essential to carrying out its
policy. The man would be laughed out of
the country who should say seriously that
sary TO the proper operation Of the government
| that lighthouse keepers and Indian agents
| should be free traders and that under protec-
| ton administration bOokkeepers and messtsn-
| gers should favor a high tariff The post office
| is the chief patronage department of the gov
eminent, but there is no party method of sort
ing letters and the only politics, of the railway
| mail service are honesty, quickness, accuracy
and self possession. Politics have no more 70
| do with the business of the postof1ice than with
| the teaching of Greek in Columbia College.
hauR hoo In poI -
| public politics because they have been treated
| as party prizes and not as public trusts; be-
cause postmasters have been taught that they
| are the agents OF party. not the servants of
| the people, and because political officers have
| been permitted unrebuked to suborn them as
spies upon their neighbors.
| Driven from the utterly unteuable position
that the great body of the service is essentially
| political and therefore that after every cleo
| ton there should be a partisan clean sweep to
harmonic with the administration, the advo-
Gates of the evil system are forced into the last
ditch, the assertion that parties are indispensa
| bic in a republic and that the spos system is
| essential To efficient party organization. This
| is merely an attemptto support absurdity
| upon a falsehood. The falsehood is established
| by the experience of England. Nowhere is
party feeling stronger, party purpose more def
| mite, party organization more absolute and
| complete, and nowhere are party contests more
| strenuous and unCompromiSing, than in Eng
| land. Yet Mr.. Gladstone, the greatest Of living
| that it is impossible TO understand why in
| America we permit the whole civil service tn be
| disturbed by Presidential election, and adds
| that in England change of administration in
| wolves but tho removal and appointment of
| few scores of persons. He is n sorry American
| who insists that young America is incapable of
| of a practical national wisdom which old Eng
| land displays,
| Rut the assertion is false again because of the
notorious fact that the apprehension of the dis
| astrous consequences of the universal disturb
ance of the whole civil service every four years
necessarily perplexes the election. If II be
known for instance, that the consequences of a
| successful vote for protection or tariff reform
| will be general dismissal of all experienced
and capable officers in the public service that
| fact itself alarming the public mind will deter
mine thousands of conservative votes, and last in
| that degree it prevents n vote upon the simple
| party issue SO long as the vast system of the
| public service with its enormous emouments is
! treated as spoils, no great public question will
| be decided upon its merits Again, party action
| in its true sense is impossible until the spoils
| system is abolished, for when party becomes
conspiracy for spoil our politics, Instead of true
! party politics., become necessarily per
| sonal politics. In that condition il
| il useless TO insist that we must
vote for principles and not for men, because
| then what are called principles are merely pre-
| texts for turning out 100000 men and turning in
as many more. II party managers wish to in
| duce the people TO support principles and not
| men there are two ways Of doing il; one is TO
| nominate candidates who are personally and
| officially beyond just reproach and the other is
| to convince us that IL Is the policy of the gov