Evening star., 1898-12-16
Her Colonial Government Turned
Over to Political Harpies,
NEED OF CIVIL SERVICE METHODS
Subject of Paper Prepared by
Henry H. Classic.
R E AD AT BALTIMO ORE

MI 1enrS haywood Classic OF this city
j read an interesting paper at the meeting
of the National Civil Service Reform
| League in Baltimore today. His subject
| was Colonial Administration-A Warning
! From Spain"
Mr. Classic said his object was to simply
| present, from sources either official or al
| least, not unfriendly to Spain, some aspects
| of her rule in Cuba, which, it seemed to
him. disclosed the indispensable basis for
| a sound and vigorous colonial administra-
| tion.
! Taking Cuba an example of Spanish
| rule Mr. Classic rapidly sketched the
| vices of its administration and the spas
modic efforts made from time to time TO
, correct the abuses which We're conclusively
shown to be at the bottom of the revolu-
| tionary movements which by this country's s
! aid have been brought to a successful issue
| Due credit was given to the earnest at
| tempts at reform made by those conspicu-
Gus exceptions to the average Spaniard sent
| to govern or to investigate the government
| of the island, Governor General Concha and
Senor Mariana Concia Villa-Amil. Quoting
from a report made by the former to the
spanish government as early 1850 the
paper states: The judicial officers, taking
| advantage of a vicious fee system were
making the very name of justice odious by
| their Unsuitable rapacity."
AS a single example, the advocates and
assessors of the revenue had managed.
| within a few months after taking office. to
secure as private perQuisites 10000 or 10000
| pesos from trial fees alone digging out of
| the files and reviving for that purpose suits
| long since abandoned and forgotten. To
| make things worse, the officials were being
| replaced at shorter and shorter intervals.
| Not content with the old profits the new
| men were bent on making as much in two
years as their predecessors had in twelve.
| The civil government presented the same
distressing and disheartening spectacle. The
| deputy governors were men appointed
, through influence and favor ra her than for
| any merit or fitness for the task. They
! brought to their posts In general strong
| desire to get rich This was indeed the sole
| purpose for which most of them had come
| to the island. With superiors like these. it
| was needless to comment on the subordi-
mates.
Merely Personal Advancement
| Things were drifting speedily toward a
| violent and ruinous catastrophe. when a
| people said the general ''see in their
rulers nothing but an everlasting purpose
to advance their private fortunes in com
| plete disregard of their duties they will
seize the first means which misery offers
| TO free themselves from the society which
orpresses them. What must be done, then,
| TO restore the ancient prestige of Spain and
regain the loyalty of this people, bound to
her even yet by ties of kindred, faith,
speech and the tradition of a common
glory?
Now is not the time. in my opinion"
concluded General Concha, ''to start any
political question. The urgent thing
is to enter heart and soul into administra-
tive reform and the right choice of en-
ployes for every branch
Again, Senor Nilla-Amil writing to his
government twenty years after Conchas s
time, tells the same story and from him
or his subordinates we learn that there
/ ar ntf in 10 t&nn nj flrraiT1
tration having a clerk who knew enough
double entry to keep the books in the man.
ner required by law. The chief administra-
tor Of taxation and statistics wrote: 1T
was well known what was the state of this
office when l took charge of it. The force
was then altogether new. Within two
months that force was succeeded by an
other While the office as a whole has sui
| fered two complete changes of personnel
within six months, the position of head of
the customs division has IN that time been
filed by four different Persons: not one of
them remained in office two months to-
gether or had any opportunity to show
either his industry or his fitness. e
Even radical changes in administrative
methods. such the institution of fixed
salaries for judicial fees. or the payment
of salaries to the previously unpaid capi-
tanOs de partido, We're stripped of their
natural and expected effect. Because these
latter places, for example-as We learn
twenty odd years afterward from Brigadier
y
for reasons of favor and patronage. to men
without capacity or experience, who sought
in the office not only a temporary liveli-
hood. but an opportunity Ia accumulate.
by fair means or foul money enough to
maintain them for the rest of their lives.
Amy conscientious bureau chief who set
about putting his own house in order
would find, too that before he could make
any headway the employees who were if
only for the time being, giving better re-
suits, would be swept away by a new flood
of office-holders from Spain. for whom the
necessities Of politics had dema nded posts
of honor or profit.
Offices Mere Political Perquisities.
when we consider" wrote Senor Villa
Anil to the minister of the colonies. on
May %, 1873, how political parties have
been compelled. especially since 1870 To
distribute political posts to their hench
men. regardless of character or intelligence
it will be easily understood how are form
ed these battalions of employees without
training. without capacity or morals who
paralyze instead of aiding the transaction
of public business.
I'VE discern a familiar political phenome-
non, that revival of office tenure by per-
sonal service, which may be termed not in
apty, the recrudesceEce of feudaliSm-po-
litical feudalism. 1t is the ruthless and ir-
responsible power exercised by the infiu-
entail multitude of the dominant party
who surround every politician, carry him
into office and tear him down when he is
no longer able to glut their Unsuitable ap-
petite for Spoils.
This is the farce which every year makes
the national budget the objective OF ardent
aspfrants, organized like army corps
who, when victory has made II theirs. will
divide il round the spoil of war-or ra-
ther, looking on ii the legitimate profit
of an enterprise more commercial than po-
litical will issue it in shares like dividends
of joint stock company
'fo nothing else is due the eager haste
with which, at each change of government.
the public Offices are given over to pillage.
that each applicant speaks of his right 10
such or such an office-a right founded on
the friendship of the persons in power; and
that every aspirant bitterly denies that any
body else deserves the office he gets-In
which point ii is quite possible that most of
them are right.
As the supply of higher offices is not
equal to the yoracity of the persons of In
fuence, whose demands grow just as fast
as the decentralization becomes evident
there arises the necessity of making a
monopoly of the electoral districts. To ac-
complish this all offices have to be con-
ferred upon the persons designated by the
representatives. AS the ministers of the
daxr limos alx -ia