The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-11-21

When they act as if they loved one | another men will vote for the public
 welfare as they see it. And when they
 continue acting as if they loved one
 another they will presently come to do
 that which they have been compelled to simulate.
 President Luther spoke strongly
 against allowing public position and
 service to interfere with mans freely
 expressing his ideas on politics and government. De defined the real es-
 sence of civil service reform in the
 statement that public service is a pro- feasion.
 Prof. Edward B. Reed of Yale was
 the next speaker. Introduced as the newest member of the New Haven civil
 service board he said in substance:
 Tt is a pleasure for a college profess sor to address such body as this be- cause you are among the first persons to recognize college professors as essen tially reasoning beings.
 We speak of the good old times. hpt they were the good old times of graft
 those days before the advent of civil service. When Sir Walter Raleigh spread his cloak in the mud for Queen Elizabeth to walk upon and gained po- sltion after position thereby it was said that he owed his position to a civil service. (Laughter).
 Shakespeare was the first man to grasp our principles fully. Othello has been called tragedy of jealousy, but It is in reality a tragedy of violated civil service reform. Iago, I hasten to explain, is far from being our ideal civil service reformer, however.
 Speaking of the methods of the New Haven civil service board, Professor Reed said that they never gave an ex- animation paper that has had oues- ton which at least one member of the board could not answer. They attempt ed he said, to have questions that the members could explain to the candi- dates when the papers were given out. Moreover, they bore in mind the fact that the people that took these exam nations were not accustomed to such things and were easily rattled.
 He urged that the association should forcibly and clearly present it's princi- ples to the students at the colleges. This he considered an easy thing to &C., complish. The students, he said, were, as a rule, ignorant of the aims of the association upon their graduation, and there Is great field for good work among them.
 He urged the presentation of these ideas among them by men prominent in public life, as other methods were like ly to be disregarded.
 Secretary of the Navy Charles J. Be- naparte, the last speaker of the even ing, stated that President Luther had furnished him with subject for his re- marks, and spoke mainly upon the theme of the duty and rights of sery- ants of the government in connection with politics. President Luther had in- sisted that public servants should be free to vote, and that 1t would be de- priving them of their rights not to al- low them to freely discuss their own political ideas
 Secretary Bonaparte said in resume: I am the unworthy head of depart ment of the government having in its employ oyer40000 citizens who are com peled to be patriotic by strict rules of discipline, and who are ready to render their country the highest duty in their power. Yet they cannot be permitted to exercise that full measure of pollti- cal discussion which it has been stated, would be hardship to others to be de- prived of.
 No one asks a man in the navy whether he is a republican or a demo- crat. He exercises with entire freedom that measure of political right which is the duty of every citizen, But if we should allow those whose salaries are paid by all the taxpayers of the coun- try to spend a large part of their time and effort to work which is distasteful to about half of the nation, we are un- dermining one of the first principles of a good public service.
 If man who is in the service of his country is allowed to give part of his time to the service of party, experience shows that party will reward him for that service at the expense of the state and that soon he will have the desire for public employment as the reward for performance of his public duty,
 l remember in the elections of 1896, when the republican party unexpectedly returned to power many who had work ed apparently without thought of re- ward during the partys period out of office, suddenly found that they requir- ed petty offices to sustain their enthu- siasm. When you hold out to man such reward for the performance of his public duty you are drugging his conscience as to what are his duties and the motives, the only motives for dlscharging them.
 It is one of the principles of civil ser vice reform that we should labor with sole regard to the interest and sole ad- vantage of the country, and not for the reputation and advancement of our own wishes.
 The executive board of the National Civil Service Reform association will meet this morning at o'clock at the New Haven Colony Historical society building, Grove street,
 The third session of the National Civil Service Reform league convened at the New Haven Colony Historical society rooms yesterday morning at g o'clock with a meeting of the council. At the regular session, which followed at 10 o'clock, officers were elected for AL.