The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1889-07-04
COMMENCEMENT ESSAYS.

THURSDAY JUNE n, l6o0
COMMENCEMENT ESSAYS.
Delivered at the cresco High School Commence.
mcnt, June ~, 1850.
THE SPOILS SYSTEM.
ny WILLARD L. CONVERSE
The phrase "Spoils Syst EN-" denotes .
Theory in politics, and use, or rather
an abuse, Of political authority, in which
the merits OF Official candidates and the
general welfare of the country are subor-
dinated to the selfish interests Of parties
and party leaders; it is theory in which
honor. integrity and experience are con-
sidered second to political hes and aids;
it is theory in which the salaries OF
government officials are appropriated not
only to hire public speakers and engage
newspapers, but to bride electors and buy
votes.
1t includes among it's defenders various
classes Of men; from the partisan lead
ers, who, when they come into power,
''kick the rascals out" and appoint men
from their own party, party fealty being
considered prima fdcie evidence that
they are capable OF holding any office;
down to the unprincipled politician
who offers at auction the civil Offices to
be paid for by financial and political aid.
The phrase itself originated in 1882 in
speech made in the Senate by MI. VIM.
Marcy, the. Democratic United States
Senator from New York. He said, in
speaking OF the politicians Of the day,
and especially of New York politicians:
"When they are contending for victory,
they avow the intention OF enjoying the
fruits OF it. II they are defeated, they
expect to retire from Office; il they arc
successful, they claim, as a matter Of
right, the advantages Of success. They
see nothing wrong in the rule that
to the victor belong the spoils Of the en-
emy.' Although this was the first open
avowal Of the Spells System, it was in
practice some time before.
Aaron Burr was our first political des-
pot. He yet stands as the original arch
intriguer Of our politics. Under his ad-
vice, and in the State Of New York, the
first steps were taken for the degrade
ton of federal patronage and authority
Tor personal, partisan and local purposes.
He devised and made the machine, and
laid deep the foundation Of the Spells
System. Among the maxims Of Colonel
Burr for the guidance OF politicians, one
of the most prominent was, that the peo-
pie ut elections were to DO managed by
the same rules of discipline as the sol
diers OF an army; that few leaders were
to think for the masses, and that the lat
ter were to obey implicitly their leaders
and to move only at the word OF COM
mand. In Parton's Life OF Jackson, the
Burrian Code, as Parton calls it, 10 de-
clared by him to contain, among others,
the following maxims:
!. Politics is game, the prizes Of
which are offices and contracts.
2. Fidelity to party is the sole virtue
Of the politician. He only is true poll
tician who would unhesitatingly vote for
the Devil, if the Devil were regularly
nominated by his party.
B. No man mus. be allowed to suffer
on account Of fidelity to his party, no
matter how odious to the people he may
make himself.
4. Editors were to be unscrupulously
used, but never implicitly trusted
You can easily Zee what the effect on
the political world would be to have one
of its leading men following principles
like these, aud Colonel Burr was at that
time one Of the leading politicians
That part of the Spells System called
rotation in Office" is said by his politi-
cal enemies to have been started by
Thomas jefferson. but this is false. Al
though he did consider Adams mid
night appointments as null, and appoint
ed men from his own party until they
had an equal share OF the Offices, he made
no removals for political reasons. The
same, think, may be said Of his success
ors until we get down to the time Of
Andrew jackson, who had been schoOled
in Burr's maxims through the influence
Of his friend Martin VanBuren. Under
him we have the Spells System complete,
for every Office holder in the land was
made to feel the weight Of the President's
iron hand. Ever since the time Of Jack
son the politics Of our country havo been
becoming more and more degraded, un-
til men Of honor ard integrity shrink
from taking the part Of an active polite
ian. The civil service of the United
States is pointed at with sneering fingers
from all over Europe. The enemies Of
popular government claim that it is the
inevitable condition of things under Re-
publican institutions, but this is shown
to be false from the fact that for the first
forty years Of our government there was
no such thing known as the Spells
System.
A few years back in history the con-
lition of Enslands civil service was
much worse than Americas ever thought
OF being. In the 10th and 18th centuries |
public offices in England were sold out |
right IL the highest bidder. The first
act passed prohibiting the sale OF Offices
in England was in 1852, during the reign |
Of Edward VI. AS late as 1926, during the
reign Of George ~, an act was passed |
by the British government for the pur-
chase by the government from the hered. |
itary owners, Of two Offices, one in the
Court Of the Kings Bench and the 9TH
er in the Common Pleas; and under the
law an appraisement Of the money value
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