1888] Civil Service Reform 577 1888-96. Stanwood's end. On silver legislation, see John ston's Orations, IV, 296–366. Benjamin Harrison of Ohio, the Republican candidate. Politics, The Republicans also secured control of Congress, and “reformed the tariff," as the phrase was, by largely increasing Elections, the duties. They also passed a law obliging the government ch. xxviii to to buy a large amount of silver each month, and coin it into dollars, whose intrinsic value was about fifty-three cents in gold. Senator Sherman and Representative McKinley of Ohio were the leaders in this policy. Industrial and business interests became alarmed, the government's revenues declined, and Grover Cleveland was again elected President in 1892. Harrison had also extended the scope of the merit system, and Cleveland, in his second term, again extended it. Cleveland also secured the repeal of the Sherman silver law, and the McKinley Tariff was modified toward lower rates. Cleveland, however, was not at all in harmony with the great mass of the Democratic voters. In 1896 the Democratic convention met at Chicago and nominated William J. Bryan of Nebraska for the presidency, on a platform advocating the free coinage of silver and the institution of many changes in the direction of socialism. The Republicans, on the other hand, advocated the retention of the gold standard, and they also demanded the restoration of the protective system in its entirety. On this platform they nominated William McKinley of Ohio, who was elected. It will be well now to consider in a more connected way some of the leading topics in the political history of this period, and then to examine with care the condition of the country in the census year, 1890. reform, 1868-96. Johnston's Orations, IV, 367-420. 392. Civil Service Reform, 1868-96.—The system of politi- Civil service cal proscription which had begun under the Federalists was accepted by the early Republicans, and carried to its logical conclusion by Jackson and his successors. The people had paid slight attention to the subject, however, until the scandals that came to light in Grant's second term compelled their observation. Any reform of the civil service is very difficult to accomplish, because no limitation can be placed upon the President's constitutional power of Fiske's Civil Government, 261. Civil Service Commission, 1868. The Pendleton Bill. nomination. A reform of this nature also necessitates the appropriation of money for the payment of expenses incurred in its prosecution, and this appropriation can only be made with the consent of both houses of Congress. The active co-operation of the executive and legislative branches of the government is therefore necessary to the initiation and prosecution of a reform of this description. pure General Grant was most anxious to give the country a and efficient civil service. He willingly consented to have his power of nomination limited for the public good. Congress passed an act (1868) authorizing the President to establish and administer, through a Civil Service Commission, such rules for appointment and promotion of civilian governmental employees as he might think desirable. Grant at once acted on the authority conferred by this act; but Congress was not so mindful of its obligations. After three years of fairly successful trial, it refused to make the appropriations necessary to carry on the work of the Civil Service Commission, and this attempt to improve political life came to an end (1874). Garfield's administration began with a fierce contest between the President and the senators from New York. In the course of time, a custom had grown up of practically leaving to the senators from each state the final decision as to all appointments made in the states they represented. Garfield refused to accede to the wishes of the senators 579 from New York as to the appointment to the most important federal office in that state, — the collectorship of customs in New York City. The two senators resigned and Garfield was murdered. The people awoke to the necessity of a reform in the mode of appointment to the civil service. Senator Pendleton of Ohio, a Democrat, introduced a bill authorizing the President again to establish the merit system of appointment. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives were controlled by the Republicans; but they accepted this law, and Garfield's successor, President Arthur, assented to it. The Civil Service Commission was again instituted and the reform was begun as to a few specified classes of officials. Gradually, successive presidents have enlarged the number of classes affected by the reform, until now (1896) by far the greater part of the civil service is organized on the merit system. internal 393. Taxation. The war left the country staggering under a heavy load of taxation: the internal revenue duties reached nearly every avenue of expenditure, and the high Reduction of protective duties greatly increased the cost of all manu- revenue factured articles. The internal revenue duties were reduced duties. in number and in amount until, in 1872, they were substantially abandoned, save as to beer, spirits, and tobacco. Tariff policy. It will be remembered that the tariff rates had been increased to counteract the effect of the internal revenue duties on manufactured commodities (p. 518). It would appear 238-269. reasonable, therefore, that, as the latter were reduced or abandoned, the former should be reduced at the same time. It is one of the peculiarities of the protective system, however, that a protective duty once imposed is very difficult to get rid of. Important interests become alarmed, and are able to advance an argument which undeniably has a good deal of force, the threatened industry has been established or expanded, and capital has been invested in a plant which would become useless were the industry to be destroyed. Working men and women are also keenly interested in the matter; hundreds and thousands of workers have acquired Tariff of 1872. McKinley Tariff, 1890. skill of the kind demanded by the industry which is threatened. If the law is repealed, these skilled work-people will be turned adrift, and they and those dependent upon them left to starve. These and similar arguments have practically operated to retain the war tariff to the present time, notwithstanding the repeal of the internal revenue laws. In 1872, when the internal revenue duties came to an end, Congress passed an act making a general ten per cent reduction on import duties; on several commodities, the duties were greatly lowered; for instance, that on salt was reduced one half, and the duty on coal was lowered from one hundred and twentyfive per cent to seventyfive per cent; other commodities, as hides, paper stock, and a few other raw materials for manufacturers' use, were placed on the free list, as were also tea and coffee. Two years later came the financial panic; the revenue fell off, and Congress restored the ten per cent reduction, leaving the other reductions as they were. Nothing more was done until 1882, when a tariff commission was appointed to gather evidence, and, on its report, a slight modification of the protective duties was made. In 1887 President Cleveland brought the matter prominently forward, and for a time i seemed as if something might be done; but nothing substantial was accomplished. During Harrison's administration, the Republicans gained control of both branches of Congress and proceeded to "reform" the tariff so as to make it more protective. Will 1890] Population 581 Tariff. iam McKinley was the chairman of the committee of the 394. Population, 1890. Since 1860 the population has Numbers, almost doubled, and is given in the census of 1890 as sixty- 1890. two millions; in 1880 it was fifty millions. During the Civil War, immigration fell off, but as soon as peaceful conditions again prevailed the stream of immigration increased in vol ume. Nearly five million immigrants entered the United Immigration. States in the decade ending in 1890, and the census of that year gives the foreign-born population as over nine millions. These formed about fourteen per cent of the population. The Germans were the most numerous of any single nation, with nearly three million, the English and the Scandinavians numbered each over nine hundred thousand, or a total Germanic foreign-born population of over four and one half millions. The Keltic foreign-born population was nearly two and one quarter millions, of whom the Irish formed |