New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-08-08
d. REFORM THAT HAS COME TO STAY

4 VI
1.-THE Washington POST has unintentionaly
rendered service to the cause OF CiVil ser
vice Reform by elicitng the views oil Caoihe'
officers upon that subject. II set out to get I'M
favorable opinions, but came back dlsappOihl
ed The responses of Secretaries WINDOW anu
Proctor. in particular, were useful IN oenoh-
stlating that the competitive system OF appoint
ments is not visionary scheme, nor the s"ee'
aspilation of the "uncO guild" but has become
practical necessity. The spells system, as APP
Ulied 10 the clerical service at least. must be
discarded because the time has arrived when
the Government cannot be administered in that
way without encouraging such looSeness and
responsibility in the conduct of public busl-
ness that the people would not tolerate 1t.
The Civil Service has grown to such an enor-
nous size that it is no longer practicable Tor
the heads of departments TO select all theif
suboldnates The pressure for Office Is we'll
nigh intolerabe. even with the protection at
present afforded by the law, and the only way
ont Of the difficulty is to enlarge the scope Of
the competitive system TO keep pace with the
growth Of the Civil Service, or better still, TO
gain upon it, The Imagination falters at the
thought Of a Civil Service Of 100000 employees
ii figure which will be reached within few
vears--or of 100000. 1t has been estimated
that the Civil Service will attain this size within
twenty wears Unless the distribution OF 10y
far the greater number Of these appointments
should be svstematized as under the Civil Ser
vice law. and the burden of selection lifted
from the shoulders of superior officers, the
Transaction of public business would come TO
,tandStilI or in order to gain any time for the
diSchalg e Of legitimate duties, it would be
necessary for each chief Of department or bu-
reau to delegate this task 10 the chiefs under
him. giving them something like absolute
bower. The result could not fail TO he in the
highest degree demoralizing and disastrous.
Even those who care nothing about methods
If appointment 50 long as that part OF the 6ov-
eminent business which touches their daily
life is properly carried ON. would cry ont for
change And no matter how freely superior
officers might shift the duty Of selection upon
their >uboidinates the labor would still be
heavy enough for all TO make nightmare of
existence No life insurance company would
give policy upon the life of President who
was the chief Of a system of 100000 Office
holders conducted in accordance with the spOilS
.linciple and if men were found willing to ac-
cept the place it would be only another Illus
tiation Of the familiar truth that the possession
Of power and the prospect Of fame are more
precious to many than life itself
The TRIBUNE has said before now that the
change Of Administration in 1885 was a hard
blow 10 Civil Service Reform. If the Repub
lican party had renamed in power there would
have been no wholesale removals As under the
Cleveland Administration, in order to make
room for political workers Of a different faith.
The competitive system would have grown
slowly and surely into lis place until there
would have been no thought anywhere of ques-
tioning its utility. But the abuses committed
under the Cleveland Administration created
widespread disgust and a desire for lepriSals
Here and there hotheaded Republican Con-
gresham is threatening to repeal the law, and
a few minor Republican papers, yielding, no
doubt, to the pressure of local bosses, are at
lacking it more or less openly. This talk is
mere fooliShness and froth. and the sooner it
subsidies the better. The Republican party
inaugurated Civil Service Reform, and is
pledged TO its extension. il is as reasonable to
expect that the Mississippi River could be made
to run uphill as TO imagine that the intelligent
voters of the country would countenance re-
turn to the loose, demofalizing and unScientfc
methods of the spOils system.