The National tribune., 1904-09-08

violating the law. The penalty is fine
of not more than $1,000 or Imprisonment
for not more than three years. or both
in the discretion of the court. The let
ter to the members of the Cabinet reads
as follows:
in view of the violations of the Civil
Service law which have occurred i'll con
nection with political campaigns in the
past. and for the information and prOtec
ton of the Federal office holders under
your Department. the Commission has the
honor to request that. in accordance with
the practice i'm previous campaigns. you
will have printed and forwarded to al
nominating or appointing officers in your
Department the circular. copy of which
is herewith inclOsed. entitled Warning
Against Political Assessments and Parti
san Activity of Office Holders directing
such officers to sign and date the said cir
culars and post them in conspicuous places
in their own Offices
The circular of warning" contains
various extracts from the Civil Service
laws on the question of soliciting con,
tributions. and indulging i'll undue pOllt
ical activity. 1t says also:
1T is the duty of the Commission to
see that the provisions OF this law are
strictly enforced. and it will employ every
| legitimate and available means to secure
L
ever may violate them
THE Commission requests any person
having knowledge of any violation of this
law to lay the facts before it. that 1t
may at once take action thereupon.'
Inst the same. assessments will be
made and they will be paid. 1t is not at
all probable that anybody will walk up
to clerk and say Il want you to give
me so for campaign purposes. On, no;
that isn't the way to do things at all.
| The State organizations Will look a1ter
the assessments. Last Winter all the
States which figure largely on the Gov
ernment rolls perfected organizations as
social clubs. Pennsylvania has one OF
the biggest in Washington. The Key
stone State people have been having q
dreadful time getting clubhouse
where liquid refreshments OF strenuous
character could be sold, for instance III
nois maintains a State organization w
Washington, which is one of the yer!
strongest political institutions imaginable.
| And so on through all the large States.
II is expected that all the Government
emnloyes from those States will belong
| to this '.Club." and each one of those
members will pay a big "representatiye
fee. There isn't any law on earth thal
can reach an institution of this KIND, OF o.
which can take hold of an assessment ;,
of this character. The membership
fee is at once turned over to the State
Central Committee as a"campaign 1und'
| OF course, the question is at once asked
"How are the funds so raised DIVIDED DE.
tween the political parties" They are NOT
divided, and it is not expected tnaa .nes
ton these State Clubs" are Democratic
and all the money raised goes to the Demo
cratic Central Committee of the State
which the Club represents. During Ike
publican administration the funds go to the
| Republican Central Committee. This year
the Clubs here are all Republican In tenn,
encies. and all the Club fees VIII 90 ~
the Republicans. After the battle IS over,
| tbe lists of those who contributed to the
Climb expenses are scanned very carefully,
and it goes hard with those who are III
Government employ if it is found that they
'funked."
It goes hard in this way. OF course, il
| is supposed that Civil Service protects
clerk. and to a certain extent it does. Blu,
there is nothing on earth that will protect
.'incompetency" il the powers that put IN
competency" in set to work to eliminate
one who is 50 incompetent as not to rec
ognize the Necessity of keeping the political
machine oiled. After all, why not!
Those who are getting their bread and but
T..
| occasion. because of the triumph OF Ger
tain political party, should, in common de
cancy be willing to help retain that party
in power. Mighty few things in this worlC
are given for nothing-that is, those things
worth having And if the office is worth
having it is worth a little effort to keep 1t
The day of political blackmail is over, ant
nobody wants it back. At the same time
those clerks who want to retain their pc
sitions know that a little old $40 note, il
it is not larger, will go long way toward
helping them to keep their places in Gov
eminent employ, when those places come Il
them through the influence of politicians
and because of the triumph OF certain party
principles. The letter and warning of thu
j Civil Service Commission is all right. Il
serves notice that no more political black
mail will be tolerated and that cOntribu
lions to the campaign funds should be giver
willingly and without further suggestion.
Gen. Grosvenor, Lightning Calculator o.
Congress. stopped in Chicago the other day
long enough to do some calculating -ant
prophesying. He said that Roosevelt would
have "solid West" excepting six electora
votes. He forgot to say, however, which
six those votes would be, or for whom they
would be cast.
1t is surely an i'll wind that blows no
valuable lessons from the war in the East
and that these lessons are to be worked ou
in our new navy, in the rehtting of the
old The Government is very carefully
looking after all these things, particularly
the improvements in ordnance. The Unitet
States means to be the most up-to-dat t.
country in the world in this respect. 1t il
said that there are to be marked changes
and improvements in our ordnance as a re
suit of the japanese Russian scrap.
At the present time there are about 4 ,OO(
machinists and others employed at thu
Washington Navy Yard. where big guns arr
being turned out for the new warships. Thu
gun shops are taxed beyond their capacit!
just now, and it is becoming apparent ever,
! day that larger equipment is needed.
One of the large shops at the Nav,
Yard is engaged in rush work on the lates
improved sights for Uncle Sans big guns
This is known as the combination pivo
sight, and Is intended to replace all thu
gun sights now in use in the navy. 1t il
a combination day and night sight, and i
described as something entirely new" il
naval gunnery. During night firing the tel
escope is replaced by a graduated sigh
with electric lights attached. This sigh
and the oscillation of the guns will over
come. in measure at least, it is said, TIL