The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1900-07-01
BY THEODORE ROOSEVELT.


New York. June 3o-I know that no Re-
public can permanently endure when its
politics are corrupt and base. and the spoils
system. the application In political lie of
the degrading doctrine that to the victors
belong the spofi5- produces corruption and
degradation The man who IS In politics
for the offices might Just as well be IN poll
tics for the money he can get for his vote,
so far as the general good Is concerned.
When the then Vice President of the
United States MIR. Hendricks, said that he
'wished TO take the boys In out Of the cod
TO warm their toes" thereby meaning that
he wished to distribute Offices among the
more active heelers. to the rapturous en-
thusiasm of the latter. he uttered q senti-
ment which was morally on the same plane
with a wish to give "the boys S apiece
all around for their votes. and so apiece
when they showed themselves sufficiently
active In bullying brIbing and cajoling
other voters.
from public life. and Will bar him whenever
the people grow to realize that the worst
enemies of the Republic are the demagogue
and the corruptionist.
The spells monger and the spoilsseeker
bribegiver. the embezzler Of public funds
and the corrupter Of voters
How Presidents Viewed II.
From the beginning of the present sys-
tenn each President Of the United States
has been its friend. but no President has
been a radical civil service reforrier.
Presidents Arthur. Harrison and C'eve-
land have all desired to see the service ex-
tended and to see the law well admins
tered. No one of them has felt willing or
able to do all that the reformers asked o.
to pay much heed to their wishes save as
regards that portion of the service to
which the law actually applied
Each has been a sincere party man. who
has felt strongly on such questions as those
of the tariff. Of finance and OF our foreign
policy. and each has been obliged to con-
form more or less closely to the wish OF
his party associates. and fellow party lead
ers. and. Of course. these party leaders and
the party politicians generally wished the
offices to be distributed as they had been
ever since Andrew jackson became Presi-
dent.
Thus the fourth-c!ass postmastershtps
were looted more rapidly under the adj
ministration of President Harrison than
under that Of President Cleveland and tho
consular service more rapidly under Presi-
dent Cleveland than under President Har-
rison, but the final result was the same
in both cases.
Indeed. think that the brutality which
accompanied the greater speed was in
some ways OF service to the country. for II
directed attention to the intquity and folly
of the system and emphasized In the minds
Of decent citizens the fact that appoint
ments and removals for political reasons
In places where the duties are wholly nom
political cannot be defended by any man
who looks at public affairs from the prop
er standpoint
Effect of . Hostile Congress.
The FIRST Civil Service Commission, es-
tablisted in the days Of President Grant,
was starved out by Congress refusing to
appropriate for It, A hostile Congress
could repeat the same course now; and, as
q matter Of fact. In every Congress resolute
efforts are made by the champions OF foul
government and dishonest politics to cut OF
the commissions supplies.
The holder men who como from districts
where little Is known, and where there is
no adequate expression of intelligent and
honest opinion on the subject, attack 1t
openly.
They are always Joined by q number who
make tho attack covertly under some point
of order, or because Of a nominal desire
for economy. These are quite as dangerous
as the others and deserve exposure.
Among tho chief opponents Of civil serv.
New York Enloe Of Tennessee. Stockdale of
Mississippi. Grosvenor of Ohio and Bowers
of California
The task OF the defenders of the law was,
In one way. easy. for they had no argu-
ments to meet, the speeches Of their adver-
saries being invariably dtvasahla Into mere