The Timaru Herald. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1884.

Timaru Herald, Volume XL, Issue 3197, 24 December 1884, Page 2

The Timaru Herald. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1884.

Another attempt to commit an outrage with dynamite, and — of course — another failure. Thiß time the dynamiters have gone to Windsor, no doubt with some idea of terrifying the Queen or the Royal family, or the loyal British public on their account. But the sole effect of their exploit has been to burn some parcels at the railway station, and put the railway officials to the trouble of putting the fire out. . The Great "Western Railway Company, we suppose, are the only losers worth speaking of; and a little thing like that m neither here nor there to them m the profit and loss account of the year. There is one thing to be said about this attempt, however, which is more than can be said about moat of them. It shows that there ia some potentiality of mischief m these dynamite scoundrels. They may, it seems, if they make a greater I muddle of their arrangements than | usual, — they may burn down a building which they intended to blow up. But is it not wonderful that the police do not discover them when there must almost of necessity be a good many of them at work, and when they are such a set of clumsy, timid rascals that all their plans fail either from stupidity or from want of deliberation ? Mr Howard Vincent is enjoying his tour m the colonies, and he is welcome m the colonies wherever he goes. But we cannot help thinking he is sadly wanted m his old position of Director of Criminal Investigations, the roundabout English name for Chief of the Detective Police. » We expressed our views pretty freely yesterday on the mistaken policy of the Government m subjecting the public officials to all sorts of vexations and humiliating restrictions, under the guise of " Civil Service reform." We now lenrn from Wellington that the new Regulations have been communicated confidentially to the heads of departments, — an altogether unheard of proceeding — and that the result is something not very far removed from a mutiny among the officials. The difference is that whereas a mutiny consists of resistance to lawful authority, this consists of a protest against unlawful instructions. Some of the heads of departments, we are told, promptly returned the Regulations to the Ministers, whilst others destroyed them without communicating them to their subordinates. Technically, wo believe, the officials are fully justified m declining to obey these Regulations or to take any notice of them, because they have not been made by the Governor or published m the Gazette, as they are required by law to be. But whether it is safe for them to stand upon their legal rights or not, is another question. Ministers who are capable of issuing Regulations so absurd that they will not bear the light of day or tho test of public opinion, would probably not stick at a trifle m order to.dsstroy an official who should hare sufficient courage to withstand such oppression. The tnoßt anomalous part of the business is that while the Government are thus unnecessarily harassing tho civil servants, they are going out of their way to make all sorts of gratifying concessions to other classes of persons m the public employment, who are not ono bit more deserving. Tho police officers who were reduced m runk and pay during the days of retrenchment, are to be fully restored to both. Tho railway hands, again, are practically to be removed from the authority of their superior officers and aro to havo a separate Court for the special inveatigation of their grievances and settlement of their disputes. Even tho unemployed are to be relieved from tbe vigilant and thoroughly practical

inpervision of Mr March, — one of the nost conscientious public servants — md are to be coddled by a " Royal Dommission," besides veceiving increased pay and other advantages. md all thid is to be done especially to 3pare the feelings of those concerned. But the civil servants, who we suppose, bave feelings like other men, are to be bullied and Bnubbed to any extent. Why is this difference made ? For this reason. There is a certain amount of popularity to be gained by advocating the cause of the police, the railway hands and the unemployed; and therefore political pressure is brought to bear on the Government m their behalf ; and the Ministry, who will do anything for popularity just now, yield to that pressure. But there is no popularity to be gained by advocating the cauße of the civil servants. On the contrary, the politicians whom it suits the Government to flatter and to make use of at present, find it equally profitable and congenial to abuse and depreciate every man who has gained a responsible position m the public employ by hard work, and long and faithful service. Therefore, these unfortunate gentlemen are not only to be the butt of demagogues, but also the object of petty tyranny on the part of Ministers. We cannot think what Sir Julius Yogel is about, he who used to be the warmest friend of the Civil Service, and who knows better than anyone how much more is to be got out of an official staff by handsome treatment and honorable confidence, than by petty interference, unworthy espionage, and mean restrictions. We never knew any good come yet of these twopennyhalfpenny attempts at Civil Service reform, and we should strongly recommend Sir Julius Yogel to give the matter a little attention himself, before his colleagues get him into a mess with their inexperience and their injudicious zeal.