The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1891-09-10

No 1876 Charter Oak avenue" The
handwriting is plain enough, the ad.
dress easily read. but where is Charter
Oak avenue? The postmaster sends il
to the dead letter Office, the clerk turns
to the street directory, finds under the
letter &C. that there is only one Charter
Oak avenue in the country, and that 1t
is in Hartford, Conn. The clerk then
adds the name Of the city and state,
sends the letter to the Washington post
Office to be forwarded. and Mr.. Man
chcs err finally receives his letter.
miss Sophie Allen, Broadway, near
Yeatman, care Robert Allen" had a
letter addressed to her, and of course it
went to the dead letter office, although
some masculine hand had written the
superscription with Spencerian neat
ness. Now there are Broadways and
Broadways in this country. Every body
has heard of the famous New York
thoroughfare. but there are seven
Broadways in Ohio; Iowa has two. and
almost every state in the union has at
least one; so. where should Miss Aliens
letter be sent? The clerk finds that
United States. which is in Cincinnati.
where there is also Broadway. The
letter was evidently intended to be sent
there, was forwarded to the postmas-
ter at Cincinnati. who caused it to be
delivered to Miss Sophie at her fathers
residence. These instances are sutfi-
cicnt to demonstrate to the reader
the great value of the Dallas direc-
tory; and the value of that official
work demonstrates the assertion made
at the commencement of this letter
that stable civil service will de-
vclop. in every one of the executive
departments, the fruits of the genius
of the individuals in government en-
ploy if they are retained in their places
and allowed to devote their lives to the
work in hand.
One letter which recently reached the
dead letter Office was addressed to q
gentleman at Common street, between
Basin and franklin" There is only
city in the union which has three streets
so named. and that city is New Or.
leans, where the letter was sent and de-
livered. These are samples OF thou
sands Of similar letters, and we can all
now feel that we are comparatively
safe from the blunders of our friends.
Since his dismissal from the public
service which he SO adorned and bene-
ited, there have been four successors
to Mr.. Dallas. all Of them reputable
gentlemen Of more than ordinary abil-
ity; but they have come and gone,
neither one of them remaining
long enough to become intensely inter-
ested in the work but, like all others,
using the government position as tenn
porary affair, while looking for some
thing better of similar nature. The
services Of Mr.. Dallas could not to-day
be secured for many times the salary.
$1,000, which he then received; and, for
which he was willing to remain. The
government is always the loser in such
cases. When man is educated and ex-
perienced in government Office he
knows but little else. and is always
willing to remain for $500 or $4,000
per annum, when it may be that his
abilities are worth much more to him,
if he could but shake of the shackles
which imperceptibly bind themselves
around the willing worker. His home
is IN the beautiful capital city, his fam
lily is here, his friendships, his church
relations and all the arguments Of do
mesticity blend in one absorbing idea
that to leave his government Office
would be mistake. On the general
principal that lit is well to let well
enough alone" the average government
clerk fears to resign and commence
struggle with the world. Therefore,
the general government secures su-
perior ability for an almost nominal
sum; and it is q mistake and ofttimes
cruelty to dismiss such persons, es-
pecially when they are past middle age.
It ought not to be possible for arbitrary
power to discharge the civil service en-