The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1890-06-08
time n is expected that the cause for re-
mo,aI will be stated.

caual chance at public cmploymeh,' "n"
merit. instead Of the backing OF poiiuci'nS'
is the passport thereto. IL relieves 'nc W
pointing power from pressure ncV'"'' Nv
oue , jll waste his own or others 'lihc "iS
inc .he removal of an incumbent NnvSo
Mace can only bc filed from q tuluIe c'ihr
bic list. the compositions oi Wh'ch ~ - wv, ~,
lures i'm rublic ofiic that permanence which
in All other employment is so indislehsaoie
to nfliciepcv: while the whole tendehc, y
IA mako faithful performance OF the proper
duties of position and not the doins vi
ce,tain amount uf political work the p'lh''
ohiecf of every public servant. III II suicl!
moi honest 10 receive salaT! as q" e.,'l
Move of all the people of the country anu
spcnd, n public functonarlcs nave "'Vsn
done. largepart OF the time in,} pay w ~
working for the advancement OF one poill-
cal party. ,.., ~, ,ho
10 ms look more closely nj some oi ile
v;cos or a system under which we nave all
, crown up. and 10 which we nave peen :"
lono accustomed that its cnormltles are 700
little realized. II they can be SHOWN 10 pc
haIf ~ cross rs the writer believes them 10
he. no good man should hesitate 10 lehd
hand toward destroying the system ,n'l
fosters them. lis not asked, mucn "SS
insisted. that should agree as TO the net",ls
nf y
substantial accord rs 20 the need for IL, ana
sympathy in the general principles that I'M
derIie il. All GOOD men agree as 10 tne
ourse of intempcrance, though there Is Nlhe
difference Of opinion rs 10 the measure anu
mode Of prohibiting the sale oi lh'oNlc"''is'
PATRONAGE SYSTEM.
The first objection TO the spells system Is
that under il the Offices are little betlef
than vast aggregation Of brides Tor part!
workers. and that they thus constitute
huge corruption fund, the dispensing oi
which belongs 20 tlN party for the iihle
be,ng i'm the ascendant "Ihe promise OIL
an office, whether express or implied, as an
inducement to a man to vote o: work III an
election is rs real a bride as so many dol-
lars in hand paid: with this distinction,
however, that II II a lnuch worse FORM oi
bribery. II Is so for two reasons: II Is IA
promise 10 pay what does not belong to him
who promises. and its effect, when ful-
filed is. or may be, to put corrupt
man into the service of his country Inc
Federal civil service costs the country ID
salaries altogether 500, 0O0.WO. or this COM
pensatiOn the recipients of about One-haii
come now happily under the reform law,
but S3O.0nO,OOD remain attached 10 olhces
not so protected. Who can estimate the
evil 10 the bribe-givcr and the bribe-taker
il became recognized that "A congressman
might paw those who worked for his cleo
ton by places under the Government, and
there were not enough such places TO 90
rOund-as there never are-thc next step
was 10 make places. G., put upon the pay
rolls of bureau or department more
names and employ more persons than were
necessary 10 do the work in order to satisfy
increased demands. At one period since
the war there were more than Loo such M
the Treasury Department alone. IW0-thlrds
Of those employed in the bureau of printing
and engraving at this time were found ID! "a
congressional committee of investigation TO
bc superfuOus, and the annual apprOpria-
ton was. i'm consequence, reduced without
interfering with its efficiency, from eight 10
two hundred thousand dollars. This bureau
has now long been under civil service rules.
and j. one oil the purcst and best ordered IN
Washington.
Another objection TO the patronage sys-
TEN is its gTieVOus injustice. Ii Is an IN.
heritancc from the days Of feudallsm ana
an abuse which they set about reforming IN
the mother country about the time il was
first roofing itself here. When the great
reform laws, beginning in 1872, gradually
admitted the mass Of the English people 10
suffrage, they quickly began TO show their
appreciation of exclusive privilege and 10
reOrganiZe their civil service. though radl-
cal change dates only from 1888. Now the
son of the peer and the son Of the peasant,
irrespective Of politics. has an equal chance
to gain admission to the service of his
country. When new ministry comes into
power about seventy changes only occur.
and even so great person as Gladstone,
when last premier, declared upon
the hastings his inability TO ill the hum
blcst cicrkship in a government Office.
Everything there now goes by merit. moth
ing by favor; and it Is the same in France.
How different. except IN the classified ser
vice, is the case with us. We delude our
selves with the idea that here all men al
free aud equal, and that we have eliminated
old abuses. whereas we tolerate some OF the
graVest that ever existed. one Of these i,
the practical exclusion, sometimes for
long term of years. from chance 10 earn
living in public employment OF Onc-half of
our population; that is. all. however worthy.
who do not happen to belong 10 the same
party as the President; and, indeed, all of
that party who cannot command influence
with the appointing power.
PUBLIC WELFARE.
Injury to the public welfare is wrought in
so many ways 10y the principles ANA prdc-
tices of the spokesman that it Is difficult To-
select the best from many Illustrations
which present themselves to the mind of
any one well informed as 10 the recent his
tory of the country. We have seen the hign
office of Judge bestowed. not on account Of
character, capacity and learning. but az a
reward for party service, and that some
times of the basest sort. W. have seen The
able and conscientious stan of a State asy-
lum for the insane. with all the inhumanty
such a change implies, displaced at one fell
sWOOp merely because not of the party in
power, and their places filled by untried, If
not incompetent men. We have seen a
state institution of learning unnamed
and its prOicssorships filled anew.
not because the incumbcnts were pro-
nOunced unworthy but because their chair.
were wanted for the friends of party bench
men, or for the henchmen themselves. We
see now the metropolis Of this great cOuu-
try governed by score or two of bosses,
men of the worst antecedcnts and most
questionable character, who, but for the
spoils of Office, by which they have risen 10
power, would never have been heard Of be-
vOnd their proper element the GROCERY.
the gambling hell or the prize ring. And
even the long suffering Indian points our
moral. In his case, at least, protection
from the spOlsm ln-and the spOiler- might
have been expected, but as yet il has not
come. Indian agents are appointed at the
blnUlnH Oh CbUEItcSnlch WIN niue REGARD
to fitness, and the red man suffers accord
ingly. Every competent and unprejudiccd
witness agrees this Is a cruel evil.
1t is surely, too, a definite loss TO the
public that one-third Of the time of a CON
gresham in political sympathy with the
executive should be taken up in work con-
nected with ollice-seeking constituents,
which is properly none of his business AT
all, and thus part only be left for legislative
duties which deserve it all. 1t is not good
for the congressman, aud il is much worse
for the Office seeker and for the country at
large. And suppose the seeker finds as in
most cases, by the way, he does nOt-what
sort of manhood can he maintain who lives
on princes favor, and whose tenure of Office
depends, not on his faithful discharge Of
duty, but on the result of an election, or.
without this, on whether the political for
tunes of his patron require his place for
some other yassalI
The last evil of the spoils system which
we have room TO particularize is its heart
lessness. Men who would shrink from
taking the bread out of the mouth of widow
and orphan. or Of depriying man with de-
peadent family of his only means of sup
port, i'm any other way. will DO their utmost