Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-05-01
POLITICS IN A BANKS

IF there is one government ap'
l pointive office where it NIGH
be expected that partisan polite:
would be ignored it is the farmers
land banks. The following letter
is of interest to farmers in this sec.
ton because it comes from a resi-.
dent in a neighboring state. North
Dakota. 1t is addressed to the
editor of the Springfield Repub.
lican and signed by a Grand Forks
citizen, Samuel T%orgerson, unde,
date Of April Fl. 1t says:
II read your editorial in last
weeks issue of your paper on the
summary removal of employees in
the bureau of engraving and print.
ing. AS a consistent advocate OF
civil service reform for many
years. I had expected a nor severe
criticism of this action than you
gave. The ~so-called independent
papers seem to handle this case
very carefully, with gloves.
ITO me, it seems that this admin
istration is violating both the letter
and the spirit of our civil service
laws more flagrantly than any other
recent administration. The repub-
lican party has proclaimed itself
the special champion of civil serv-
ice reform. 1t was easy to make
a showing Of adherence to these
principles while the party was in
power for several successive ad-
ministrations, but when j succeeds
a party of the opposing faith and
finds many of the offices filled by
that party, then ONE the test as
to whether or not it is sincere in its
profession. Applying this test, it
seems to me the present admins
tration falls far short of its pro-
LESSONS. 1t has practically remov-
ed all postmasters of the first. sec
ond and third class from the CLASH
fled civil service, where they were
placed by President Wilson. I have
been a consistent advocate Of civil
service reform for years and ap.
plauded the extension Of the serv-
ice under the Wilson administra-
ton. When the new rulings result
ed in the appointment of a repub-
lican as postmaster in this city, as
we'll as in Fargo, the two largest
offices in the state, my democratic
colleagues were angry, but I still
remained firm as a believer in civil
service reform.
ION of the first steps taken by
this administration in getting back
to the spoils system, was in the
modifying of this rule so that now
we are back again to the spoils
system as far as postmasters are
concerned. Have there been any
democratic postmasters appointed
since the new ruling took effect?
As soon as the present administra-
tion came into power, the chief
custom house officer, the collector
of internal revenues, the United
States marshal and the district at
torney of this state were requested
to resign. The two first named
complied with the request, but the
two others refused. Some time ago
the marshal was summarily remov-
ed, but the attorney is still holding
the fort
Being cecretary-treasurtr of a
local farm loan association, 1 am
in close contact with the federal
land bank of St. Paul. This bank
was organized under 4 democratic
administration, but a majority of
the directors were republicans and
the president, vice president, secre-
tary and the treasurer we're repub-
l~icans; the only democratic official
was the registrar. When the pres
ent administration came into power,
the registrar was promoted to
chief counsel and a republican poll
tician was put into his place, and
then after a while. the former reg
istrar vas dropped from his posi-
tion as chief counsel, SO that now
there remains no democrats in any
prominent position of this bank.
"As the system is now working
out, 1 feel like dropping all interest
in civil service reform. When the
democrats get back into power, I
shall be inclined to favor the adop-
ton of the same policy the repab-
licans are now practicing as a mat
ter of reprisal. Hurrah for To the
victors belong the spoils.'"
A republican senator boosted re-
Gently on the floor of the senate