The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1908-07-24
Echoes Of Woman's Clubs
"Eendraeht ma.k, m.oh,"--A United Pull Give. Power.

SeTVduLS. Iucy COulu HoL KNOW Sdcu
one OF them personally, and they
became more and more Influenced
by political motives. When Presi-
dent Jackson was elected he said
very plainly that he thought it right
to turn out of their places people
who had voted against the president
and his party to make room for
those who had voted in favor of
them. This idea soon became firm
ly fixed in the minds of politicians.
They found it convenient to be able
to promise good positions to men
who would themselves vote and get
their friends to vote for the party
they wished to have in power. 1t
was cheaper for them to buy votes
in this way than with actual money.
And also, they could threaten men
already occupying civil service po-
sitions with the loss of their places
if they refused to try and get votes
for the party or to give money for
political purposes.
Thus it came about that when a
Republican president was elected all
the Republicans who wanted these
places thought they had right to
them. And if a Democrat president
was elected the Democrats thought
it their turn to get just what they
wanted. If any man had succeed
ed in persuading or threatening or
bribing many others to vote for the
successful party he was fairly certain
of getting a good place himself and
sometimes he was able to get places
for his friends and members of his
family. It frequently happened that
none of these people did their work
very well or very honestly but that
was not considered so important as
the fact that they had voted for the
successful party.
All of this, of course, was most
unfair, and the persons who got po-
sitions in the civil service were often
tempted to feel that it was hardly
worth while to do their duty when
the excellence of their work had
nothing to do with keeping them in
their places. Instead of thinking
about their work they thought about
getting what they called a pull
with the important people belonging
! to their party, and whenever the
time came for a new election they
were frightened and anxious lest
they should be turned out.
Soon after the end of the civil
war few men who were called
"Civil Service Reformers' realized
how foolish and wrong this whole
arrangement was. They saw that on
account of political influence two or
three people were employed to do
the work that one man could easily
do alone and that unnecessary places
were cerated in the service so that a
salary could be paid to someone who
had done political work, and that in
many other ways the money paid
by the people was wasted and put
| to wrong uses; also that the work
was not nearly as we'll done as it
ought to be, and that besides the
honest men who held public places
there were a great many rogues and
,idlers who did not begin to earn
their salaries.
There was not much attention
paid to the civil service reformers,
however until 1881, when President
Garfield was murdered by man
who wanted a political appointment
and was disappointed in getting it.
This tragedy made the whole public
think about the system that had
grown out of office-getting and office
giving, and it was soon decided that
some fairer and more sensible way
of choosing public servants must be
found
A law was passed January, 1888,
that made a great change in the civil
service According to this law any
one who wanted a government posi-
ton must prove that he sud do the
work of that position. and was likely
to do it better than anyone else who
wanted it. If he could not prove
this the position could not be given
to him, ard it did not in the least
matter whether he was a Republic
can or a Democrat. Under this law,
also. no one could be turned out of
civil service position because he
had refused to give money to a po-
litical party, or to do political work
Ieof any kind This was the national
civil service law and was applied to
positions in the national civil SER
vice in which public work is done in
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