Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 July 1877 — THE CIVIL SERVICE. [ARTICLE]

THE CIVIL SERVICE.

Letter from Hon. Joseph Pulitzer, of St Louis-The A, It, C of Civil-Service Reiorm —New Light on Mr. Hayes’ Policy. What means the word reform? Improvement. What means civil-service reform ? Clearly the improvement of tho civil service. The question, therefore, is simply, Has Mr. Hayes improved our civil service ? Not whether he may, or shall, or wifi ; not whether he means to; not whether he is right or wrong, sincere or insincere, patriotic or hypocritical in his professed desire, but simply, Has Mr. Hayes improved onr civil service ? A Republican of considerable intelligence, as well as influence, told me within the last hour that Mr. Hayes was determined to and w ould ruin the Republican party by bis “policy” of reforming the civil service. Tnis question, therefore, is plainly, Will Mr. Hayes rain the Republican party? Of course, as Republican leaders assert that this ruin will result from the “reform,” we can assume tho assertion to he false if it is shown that there is not only no real reform, but, practically, scarcely a change in our civil service, so far as principles or measures are concerned, from the former regime. And this I mean to show. And thus I mean to defend Mr. Hayes from the charges of violent Republicans.' Surely he cannot seek the rain of his party, if, in the main, the civil service is exactly as it was under Grant. Now for facts. Where has Mr. Hayes improved the civil service ? Let me first speak of my own city and Slide, and of my own actual knowledge. / Mr. Hayes has hot removed a single official in St. Louis, or in Missouri, who was appointed by Grant. He has not made the slightest change. Everything is exactly as it was during the days of Grant. The Postmaster of St. Louis owns the whole organization or machine of the party as in fee simple. This Postmaster’s name is Fiiley. Filley is a member of tho Republican National Executive Committee ; has enough village postmasters iu tho State committee to be its absolute “ boss has enough employes of the postoftice in the local committee to have absolute control of the city organization of St. Louis, where scarcely any nomination can be made without his assent. Now, do you think this is magnified? I assure yon it is rather short of tho truth. Nor have I the least feeling against Mr. Filley. Ou the contrary, I believe him to make an efficient Postmaster. But to illustrate Mr. Hayes’ idea of reforming the civil service it is perfectly proper to state facts and truths, and it is an undeniable truth that in all the United States there is not a postoilice more thoroughly prostituted for partisan service than the one in St. Louis, not a Postmaster who is a more energetic, skillful and practical engineer of machine politics than Mr. Filley, nor a person who wields a more compact control of the whole party machine of his own State than this same Postmaster.

Where has he improved the civil service ? Certainly not iu New Orleans where Madison Wells, indicted for forgery, fraud, and crime, is Uiiited States Surveyor of the Port; where Anderson, the other infamous-Returning Board rascal who stole the Presidency for Haves, is a silent partner in spoils of the Collector of the Port, Mr. King, appointed by Mr. Hayes at Anderson’s request; where “Jack” Wharton, a notorious blackleg and chief accomplice in stealing the electoral vote of Louisiana lor Mr. Hayes, was appointed by the latter United States Marshal. Surely Mr. Hayes must bo acquitted of the oharge of reforming the party there. Perhaps it is in Florida that he has improved the civil service. Certainly he has not proved himself ungrateful to the scoundrels who stole the electoral vote of this State. Every one of them was appointed to some Federal office. Stearns, the last carpet-hag Governor, and a most notorious villain, received a very fat berth ou the commission to examine the land claims Hot Spr iugs, Arkansas. It was one of the very first appointments of Mr. Hayes. MeLin, the negro member of the Florida Returning Board, was made a Judge of the Supreme Court of New Mexico. The other man who acted on the Returning Board, as well as the penitentiary convict who acted as a fraudulent elector and cast the 185tli vote, also hold positions in the service of the United States. So Mr. Hayes must be acquitted of the charge of reforming the civil service there. Has he improved it ! in South Carolina ? Scarcely. He appointed to the most important position in the State, that of United States District Attorney, one of the most infamous car-pet-baggers, and the one who did more to accomplish the theft of the electoral vote of this State than anybody else except Chamberlain. In Baltimore ? He removed a Collector for whose character Mr. Hayes, to use his own written language, entertained the “highest regard,” simply to gratify the most corrupt newspaper and ring in the State. In Toledo? He removed Postmaster Dowling against the most emphatic protest of the population and of nearly every merchant of Toledo, against tho protest of tho Postmaster General himself—to appoint, well, whom ? A Mr.. Reed. And what were Mr. Reed’s claims? They were twofold. He has a paper in Toledo, and his brother has one in Cincinnati. Surely 110 one will hesitate to acquit Mr. Hayes of the charge of reforming the civil service there. Where has he improved it. Not in Cincinnati ; not in Chicago ; not in Milwaukee : not in Detroit; for there has been scarcely any change in these -places. And as there can be no reform or improvement without change Mr. Hayes must here, too, be acquitted of the ehirge brought against him. lam not aware that a single Federal official has been changed in the great city of New York. And, in Philadelphia, Mr. Tutton, who was originally appointed by Grant for questionable services at the Babcock trial, is still Collector, and iu Boston the head of the Custom House is still Collector Simmons, against whoso appointment by Grant tho whole press and the entire Congressional delegation of Massachusetts, except Ben Butler, protested. Is the reform in our administration abroad ? Wasliburne is the best of the lot. lie has been removed to give way to Noyes, who is of Mr. Hayes’ State, and is said to be, by those who know him best, a man utterly unlit for the position—a political blatherskite of low tastes, vulgar instincts, little ability, and still less character. There is 110 improvement here. Piorrepont, however, whose flank eyism makes his further stay in London a disgrace to the republic which he so ridicule usly misrepresents, is retained iu the faee*of the scandalous fact, conceded by friends of Mr. Hayes, that Piorrepont, during the last campaign, sent a draft of $10,00l) lor election purposes to Mr. Hayes directly. So there is 110 improvement here. Kasson, whose reputation for private as well as political character is very had in his own State, and who could not be reelected in his own distric’, is sent as Minister to Vicuna. Certainly no improvement there. Osborne, of Kansas, of whose gross corruption as United States Marshal —Delahey, the United States Judge, and Osborne’s father-in-law, was forced to resign to escape conviction —there is overwhelming proof, is sent as Minister to Chili. Certainly not much of a reform there. And unless the improvement of our civil service abroad is found in the appointment of Mr. Hayes’ private secretary as Consul at Frankfort, or Hayes’ friend Coiuly—the editor of the paper in Columbus most fulsome in its puffery of the acting President—who draws the large salary as special Ambassador of the United States to the Sandwich islands, though he stays in Washington, Mr. Hayes must be acquitted on this head, too. Where, then, has he improved it ? The echo is—where? In Washington? In his Cabinet? Conceding all they claim for the two rhetorical and ornamental 'members of the Cabinet, is there much of an improvement in the Cabinet as a whole ? Where, again I repeat, has Mr. Haves im proved the civil service ? If not abroad nor at home, if neither in principles nor measures, if neither in the Cabinet nor in the Custom Houses—where ? The answer is clear in my mind. Mr. Hayes has refci mod the civil service —on papier. On papier, by circulars, orders, interviews, the telegraph, and the amiable Associated Press agents at Washington—whose daily reformatory and puffatory effusions suggest the question whether they arc paid out of the United States treasury, by the pircscnt administration, instead of the press association—the Government is gloriously and daily reformed. But I tear only on paper. 111 piractico there is certainly no change pierceptible. And it is no new but a very old practice in rulers, rhetoricians aud demagogues to profess and promise one thing and practice another. But, measured by practice and not promise, deeds and not words, Mr. Hayes cannot bo rightly accused of “civil service reform.” To vindicate him from this charge of Republican malcontents was the generous object of this letter. Cape May, N. J. Joseph Putjtzeu.