The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1897-01-28

ness, and it will be found that all such
petty schemes will fall harmless to the.
ground.
I. i. !.
Nearly every paper in the State, at,
one time or another, has taken a shot
at the old barnacles who infest the
State government. Every administra-
ton suffers criticism because Of the
fact that one governor reappoints some
OF the members Of the former admins
tration, and the man who serves
through more than two administra-
tions becomes ssbarnacle' = in the pub
lie estimation. And yet these same.
papers are clamoring for a civil service.
law that not only fixes the status of
the barnacle, but fixes him SO that
nothing short Of Gabriel's trumpet will
jar him loose from his moorings. It
may be that there are some depart
ments of government where civil SER
vice vic: rules are a blessing. I have never
seen such a department.. I know that
where an official is under the protec-
ton of civil service rules he becomes
lazy, impertinent and careless of the
public. You go to one Of the depart
ments at Washing ton and undertake to
wake up q clerk from the revery into
which he fell during the first admins
ira ton of Grover Cleveland, and you
will see what civil service does. Civil
service means that the civil servant is
not required to be civil to any one and
that the only work he really does is to
carefully and laboriously avoid doing
anything. Gov. Clough had the man
hood and independence to veto civil
service bill two years ago. The civil
service theory is beautiful. but its
practice is damnable. Its only charac-
teristic is to bring home to the servant
affected by it the conviction that the
minute the law goes into effect his
work on earth is ended. All he has to
do from that time on is to light his
pipe and wait for somebody to bring his
pay to him. He would be too lazy to
go after Il. Z believe that if this legis-
1ature passed q civil service law: and
that if all the members were returned
two. years hence the law would be re-
pealed by a nine tenths vote, provided
the members could see its full effect.
A man who is fit for good position
can hold that position without the ben
eft of law which prohibits his dis
charge, and such a law is simply legis-
lation in favor OF the embryo barnacles
who are in and want to stay in. A
metropolitan paper says the current
OF public opinion runs in favor of civil
service rules. Well, dam the current.
I. !. I.
The usual number of grotesque and
spectacular measures have failed to
show up SO far in this session of the
Legislature. Since Senator McHale
introduced his famous anti-tights bill
in the session of 1891 it has been the
rule for somebody to distinguish him
self in doubtful way by some bizarre
piece OF legislation which gives him a
temporary claim to public notice.
Two years ago Minneapolis man car
ried off the pennant with bill to
abolish the sale Of patent medicines,
and it rained on him the next election
day. Representative Foss has intro
duced a bill to suppress the male and
female idiots who send flowers and con-
fectionery to jail birds. Mr.. Foss' in
tentions are good, but he will find that
he cannot suppress the evil. There is
bound to be some kind of outlet for the
exuberance of certain grades of fools,
and this is a comparatively harmless
one. Representative Reeves, of the
judiciary committee has introduced a
very complicated and complex measure
for the taxation of mines and mining
property, but it has not
been sufficiently analyzed to admit Of
an intelli gent discussion Of its merits
The senate has, as predicted, held up
the reapp ortionment proposition, maxi
ing as a pretext for this course, the un-
usual demand for an equal numerical
strength with the house on the joint
committee. his probably is the end
OF the eapportionment bill.
VULTURE.
THE FIRST STEP.
An Organization of Encampment Forces