The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-12-15
THE lNTELLlGENCER.
wHnEMNc, DErEMREn 10, 1907.
The clvll ssrylee and Congrs...

The following from our nelsNDOr, tne
Register Is after the manner in which
1t usually refers to the subject of the at
tltude of certain statesmen toward the
civil service law. but i; is scarcely a
truthful or consistent comment;
The civil service law will be roughly
handled In Congress this week. Despite
the high-soundlng professions and plat
form promises of the party of God and
morality, nine Republicans In Washing
ton out OF every Ten are enemies Of the
law, and everybody, from the President
down, is doing his utmost TO evade Its
provisions, The grand old party OF SUI
perla.tlve hypocrisy Is magnificent in
campaign denunclatlon of the spells sys-
rem. while a party OF more desperate and
constituencies spollsmen never lived
when It gets 10 Washington. We have
no use for the law, but so long as 1t Is on
our statute books Il should be enforced
honestly.
The statement that nine out of ten Re-
publicans In Washington are enemies Of
the law. and that everybody, including
the President, is doing his best TO evade
Il, is not true. The Register knows we'll
that one of tho chief causes of the desire
on the part OF many to modify the law,
and correct some glarIngly unjust feat
ures, as applied by the late Democratic
administration, is the fact that the pres
ent administration u faithfully carrying
out the regulations as they exist.
President McKinley's message and all
executive orders concerning the civil ser
vice, have been on this line. The Presi-
dent. however, lntlmates and doubtless
believes, that there are features of the
Jaw that are not only impractical, but
absurd. and that some OF the rulings Of
the last administration were absolutely
IN violation of the spirit of the law, and
foreign to its intent. Upon this PROPOSE
ton there IS very little, IL any, division OF
opinion. Even some Of our Mugwump
contemporaries agree that there have
been abuses which a revision of the law
would prevent in future, and would make
the regulations governing the civil SER
vice more Just and more In accordance
with common sense.
There are, without doubt, men who de-
sire to see an entire repeal OF the law,
and total doing away of the merit'sys-
tenn. Fortunately for the country, ma
jority of this radical element is found on
the Democratic side OF the house and is a
minority of the whole house. The Regis
ter itself declares it has no use" for the
law, and belongs to the minority.
There is a conservative element how
ever, that desires. not to assault the
merit system, or TO return to the old
spolls system which made the depart
ments at Washington dumping ground
for ward heelers regardless Of theIr COM
potency. but to correct that feature of the
law which made ii possible for Demo-
cratic administration to compel heads OF
departments to keep Office, from an
other administration chiefs and deputies
who are political enemies of the policies
which the new administration has beer
elected by the people ~ carry out. ThesC
men. whom the rulings of Grover Cleve'
land placed in the classified service, fol
the purpose of keeping the executive de-
partments in the hands of the Demo
cratic party as long as possible. are moi
mere clerks and messengers, but admin
istrative officers, men charged with ex
ecutive duties.
Fancy, for instance, the head OF grca
government bureau, being prohibited, b!
this application of the law, from havint
voice In the choice OF his own chile
deputy. VINO must act and decide To-
him in his absence or during sickness
or even his private secresary--men 70
whose conduct he must be responsible
under his bond and to be compelled t.
retain men who originally received thci
appointments as rewards for part!
work and who, rs parlisans would h
Interested In seeing the present adminis
tratIon n failure
II was Senator Faulkner Of this state
We believe. who boosted that recent de
cIslon regarding tho removal Of a ccrtali
ct,ss 81 ofurera VyonId roaiiIl In kapDlnl