The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-03-13
THE G.. O. OF X.
A Calm and DispassiOnate Address to Thos
Who Are Most Interested.

VINO Are Most Interested.
Washington Post.
To that numerous band-the Grand Or
der of Ex's-greeting. The Ex's of the
Democratic party need not consider them
selves included in the greeting; they are
few, at the present writing, and far be-
tween, though their number will undOubt-
ly receive numerous and speedy accessiOns
where the civil-service law does not too
strongly intervene. Their faces are direct
ed outward. Washington is no longer
either their Mecca or their retreat.
But to the army OF good, honest Republic
ans, who, having once fed at the public
crib, feel that the four years of Egyptian
darkness and famine have merely whetted
their appetltes: we say, greeting. Greeting
Is word which we use as more dignIhed
than Hello" or "StOp," or Hi, there" or
any of the other hngual means of arresting
attention. We want to have a word with
you. Don't think that what we are about
to say is directed at you because you are as
one while the other Office-SeekerS are as ten.
We are not attempting to say this because
you are minority. There are enough of
even you, you alone, to make four army
corps.
We want to ask you in perfectly calm
and dispassiOnate manner if you don't
really think you have had your share7
Now 60 off somewhere in the quiet, sit
down and think of yourself in the third
person. You had a pretty straight stretch
of office holding from the 4th of March,
1861, to March 4, 1885, twenty-four years,
more or less at one swing. You can't use
the argument that starvation stares you in
| the face. You have lived four years out
side and away from the CRIB, and are look
ing right toierabie, thank you. Now don't
you think you have had your turn! True,
one good turn deserves another, we hear
you say. But
During the last four years you have been
| doing considerable growing at the Demo-
| Gratis for kicking you out, while the young
| sters have been doing the political hustling,
| the first fruit whereof was made visible on
| last Monday. These same hustlers had also
conventions, and booming the campaigns,
while you took 1T easy years before. Then,
| when the last test came, the silent, gentle,
| nOiseleSs PUNK of the ballot in the box,
they were there ahead of you. and there
| were more than forty of them to every one
| of you, and that meant forty times as much
| work. sacrifice, time, interest, principal and
all the other things which won the victory,
which they put in to what you did.
| No, the widows mite doesn't go in poll
tics. Besides, that is a mighty poor line of
argument for you to spring You are argued
| to standstill. They, the boys, who have
been doing the work while you rested have
| collectively forty times as good claim as
| you, even allowing that you have any claim
| at all.
You claim to know more about running
the offices than they do. They know as
much about it as you did at first, and you
did it,. Then, some Of your ''know-how'' is
/ like the know how" of an old river en-
! gineer-goOd enough for the old machine,
| but not up to the times. What the service
needs is an influx of young blood, which, if
| it can't run the old machine, will put in
some new improved machinery which it
| can run.
Don't you think you had better stand
| right straight back out of the scrimmage,
| where you won't get hurt or shook up-yOu
aren't as young as you used to be-and give
| the others a chance2 We think you had