Omaha daily bee., 1897-12-14
ATTACK ON CIVIL SERVICE SYSTEM.

ATTACK ON CIVIL SERVICE SYSTEM.
An attack on the civil service law,
which IL was announced before the meet
ing of congress would be made, has been
formally started. A conference of re-
publican representatives, at which sixty,
or n few more than fourth the re-
publican members of the house, were
present, appointed a committee to devise
plan of action for securing change in
the civil service law. How the law is
regarded by these republican assailants
was shown in the remarks of some of
them In the house of representatives
last week. Mr.. Grosvenor of Ohio, who
is the leader of the movement, made one
of his characteristic attacks on the law
and Mr. Brown, another Ohio represent
ative denounced the law as an abomina-
ton. These gentlemen and their asso-
cates in the war on the civil service
system pretend that they do not desire
the repeal of the law, but simply It's
modification. 1t is difficult to have any
faith in this profession. The tenor of
their talk warrants the belief that their
aim is to ultimately accomplish the aboli-
ton Of the system. AS Mr.. johnson of
Indiana, who ably replied to the assail-
ants Of the law, said, they do not dare
to attempt the open repeal of the act
but seek to attack 1t covertly and insidi-
ously. "They pose" said Mr.. johnson,
"as real civil service reformers' who
want to prune the eXcrescences, but l
submit that the real aim and purpose,
when we get to the bottom facts, Is to
destroy the law by piecemeal, If it be
not possible to overthrow it at one fell
stroke" Were these enemies of the
civil service system to secure the changes
or notifications in the law they now
ask there can be no doubt but they
would follow up their success with de-
mandl for further changes and thus step
by step destroy the merit system and
restore the spoils system.
There is very little danger, however, OF
this opposition to civil service reform ac
complishing anything if the friends OF
that policy do their duty. Among the
sixty republicans who attended the con
ference few exert much influence and II
is noteworthy that this meeting did not
have the countenance of the republican
leaders in the house. Mr.. Reed ant
Mr.. Dingley We're not in attendance ant
while the chairmen of n number of com
mittees were in the meeting the Who'll,
number present constituted only a smal
minority of the republicans in the house
1t is possible that some of those wh'
stayed away are in sympathy with tn,
movement, but the probability is tina
the conference fully represented thu
strength on the republican side of tn
house of the opposition to the civi
service system and in that case MI
Grosvenor and his followers have en-
tered upon a hopeless crusade. No
only is there a large majority of thei
party representatives against them, in
cluding the leaders, but President Nc
IIinley has distinctly declared that h
will uphold and extend the civil servic
, system. What hope, therefore, can, tn
enemies of the system have of ac
complishing their purpose? They a:
sert that public sentiment is with then
On the contrary intelligent and unprejr
diced public sentiment is Oyerwheln
T., ingly against them. This is abundant
, evidenced in the position of the press O
9 the country. There is no policy NOR
firmly grounded in the approval Of tn
people than that of civil service reform