The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, 1905-09-09
Continued from page one.

has had no say as to what should
DO done, so he i out oft. Repre-
sentative Perkins Of New York, and
Representative Tate of Georgit,
composed the house COMMITTEES Or
printing in the last congress, un.
der Charles Landis as chairman.
They of course, are not consulted
as to when the investigation shall
begin.
1t is absolutely ludicrous to think
of Tom Plat, Steve Elkins, and A.
P. German making an investigation
into the printing Office. And for
this reason. The state com mit'ee
on printing has no important duties
to perform; no du les that could
not bs done by one ordinary cle,k
at small salary. Yet it carries
more patronage than any other com
mittee in congress. 1t enables is
chairman and the other two mem
bers to get their henchmen, friends
and relatives on the payroll of the
printing Office with or without civil
service rules. And when it comes
to taking care of friends and po)t-
ical supporters no three men in tie
senate have been more eucce S full
than Platt, Elkins and German.
1t is an open secret that Tom
Platt can get man in the print
ing office by merely requesting 1t.
If no vacancy exists one can be
readily created And in this res
pect Platt has been little more
influential than the other mem bers
of his committee, even one be a dem
ocrat.
The government printing off e
is topheavy with New York, Mary
land and West Virginia employees,
men and women. And all because
of the influence of these three sena-
tore. A New Yorker or a friend
goes to Platt for job. Platt noti-
fies Public Printer Palmer, that so
andso must have a place. No mat.
ter whether so.and-so has passed
the civil service examination or not
a place is found for him. If no va.
cancy exists, some poor man or
woman who did not pass the civil
service and whose work has been
up to the Standard, is lacked up,
accused of ineficiency, and notified
that his or her services will 70
longer be required. Then In steps
Mr.. Platt's friend. And so it is
with the other Two senators. As a
result of this practice which has
become notorious, honest, bard
working employees who secu.e1
their appointments in strict accord
ance with the civil service law, live
in constant fear that they may in
time be sacrificed to some man or
woman with a pull.
Nowherein the entire government
service has the civil service law
been SC flagrantly violated as in the
printing Office; nowhere in the serv-
ice has political pull loaded down
a government Office with political
favorite, friends AID relatives as in
the printing Office.
How much fraud will Platt, El-
kins and German discover in the
Office of their dear, obedient friend,
Public Printer Palmer. 1t would
be traitorous for them to turn upon
him, after be has served them 50
well these many years, they would
hate to do it; they probably would
hot do it. Then, how ridiculous
to expect this mighty triumvirate
to 90 to the bottom of things in the
printing Office where they them
selves have been a party to the
worst abuses that have grown up
in that Office.
Albany, Ore. Sept Abandon
ed by fire fighters two days ago IN
der the belief that all danger hac
passed, the forest fire up the NORTH
Santiam river, broke out afresh to-
day and bids fair to become one
of the greatest fires experienced il
Linn county. The fires which were
burning in the North Santiam val
ley last week were not destroying
great amount of valuable timbe:
but were cleaning out farm homes
! and railroad property, Because
, the flames were not in the VALUABLE
.. timber, the only effort was to pro
: tect farm homes and villages whil'
permitting slashings to burn.
Unknown to the fire. fighters, tht
:. fire jumped the river at Gates
: burned through the second.growtl
timber along the river, and today
burst out with intense fury in tn
great belt of timber on which th
Curtis Lumber Company is nov
working, and to which their log
ging road has recently been con
structed. This road which is spu
= of the Corvallis & Eastern, is pa1