Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1868-05-13
4 Civil Service Bureau.

into the House of Representatives nearly two
months since. bill to reform the civil SER
vice of the government. 1t was referred to a
committee, and will shortly come again be-
fore the House The provisions of the bill
are thus stated by an exchange
By this bill, the vice-president or president
Of the Senate Is made the head Of new
. Department Of the Civil Service and
president of the - Civil Service Examination
Beard which i 20 consist of himself and
four commissioners. who are TO prescribe the
qualifications for each branch and grade of
the civil service of the Union, and to hold
examinations of all persons claiming to be
eligible under their regulations. and asking
for appointments The preference in appoint
ment, in each branch and grade, shall beon Q
to the applicants in the order Of merit: but
promotions may he made in the order of sen
ICrity, from among those who have passed an
examination, unless the department choose to
order another Special examinations may be
demanded by any department Of the govern
ment, or ordered by the Board itself, to de-
termine precedence and seniority in any grade.
y small fec may be required Of applicants,
to be paid to the United States. The Board
may prescribe general rules for the suspen-
sion or removal Of civil officers for miscon-
duct or Ineihciency- They may employ = men
of learning and high character" t. assist in
their examinations The head Of any DEPART
ment may send officers before the board for
examination, to be dismissed if found incom-
petent All eitiz"~e of tho T-r,itod s'tatos ore
eligible 70 examination and appointment I'M
der the act the heads OF departments to
designate the branches Of the service which
may be filed with females az well as males
and for these females shall be equally cIigi-
be
All of the above provisions are limited to
officers ~ -bn
law appointed by the President the heads Of
departments and the courts and do not re-
quIre confirmation by the Senate. But see
ton twelve permits the President or Senate
to send before the board any person whose
appointment To an Office requiring coniirma-
ton IS proposed, to be examined as to his
qualifications, either before or after being
commissioned, the result to he reported to
the President and to the Senate
What opposition will be made to this bill
does not yet appear, but it is safe to assume
that those who make a trade of politics and
get their living by holding paying Offices, or
by selling their power to appoint TO paying
offices, will not be particularly friendly to a
scheme which will somewhat damage their
business, If it ever gets into operation. But
1t is manifest that some plan other than the
present wrctched one must be adopted in
selecting for and appointing civil officers, or
the service will grow worse instead of better,
and it is now bad enough. The civil service
ought TO be divorced from politics Now no
class of men take more active interest in
politics, are more sure to attend all the DO
ltical gatherings, are more busy 8. working
the wires, and more anxious for the success
of - their man. than the Office holders.
and If 50 their man y succe eds of course his
success is their success, and the public Offices
are still kept in the proper line of succession.
This practice has pervaded and pretty
much controlled all the machinery of party
management, until now, when there are 10
600 Office holders who get from the public
treasury at least $50 900 900 annually Of
fetal honesty is the exception rather than
the rule, and politics is rapidly degenerating
into a mere scramble for Office and the plum
der that is at the disposal Of the party in
power President johnson escaped impeach-
ment until he attempted TO control the entire
patronage Of the government Independent Of
Congress, and that body then at once i'm
peached him His most fragrant usurpation
IN reconstructing the South without consul
ting Congress, was declared by solemn vote
not an improbable offense, but when he at
tempted to control the patronage of the War
Office, vote to impeach him was passed in
forty-eight hours. This action Of the III ouse
of Representatives shows how much more
sensitive that body was, when the rights Of
40, 900 office holders were invaded. than when
the rights and liberties of five or six millions
of people were assaiied. The intimate con-
nection between Office holders and elections.
was touched in the most sensitive place and
responded at once.
The country will welcome with favor any
change that shall lessen the corruption CON
nected with the now vast patronage of the
government, and that shall put in charge of
the public Offices those who are adiudged fit,
rather than those who have served the party
With this change, if it can be accomplished,
Will come soon another beneficial change in
the separation, in part at least, of Ofiee-hold-
ing from politics and this will also be fruit
ful of another good in destroying the business
of trading, huckstering politicians, who al
ways make the good of the commonwealth
wholly subordinate t. their success in getting
fat positions under the administration in
power The New York Erening Post, in
speaking of this bill, justly says
The question of reforming the system of
appointment TO Office under the United States
is a contest between Il horde of political man
ayers on one side and the nation on the other
All the true interests of the people arc in ia
yor of ending at once and forever the use of
official places and salaries as rewards for par
tisan zeal and efficiency; and of bestowing
work There is no difficulty in the theory of
our institutions to be overcome the only
serious opposition to the reform is from those
who profit by the abuses now practised. The
:. managers " of parties, the . men of Influ-
ence,' whom the appointing power must not
offend, the great powers of the lobby and the
closet, whose Importance depends on the
patronage they are supposed to control
these are the obstacles to this most necessary
reform.
The essential features of the system have
been tried in Great Britain with most bene-
fetal results. Competent men are put In
Office because they competent, and not
because they want the Offices, or somebody
desires they should have them in payment
for some political service The stock in
trade of Presidents, heads of departments,
and Congressman would be somewhat dimln-
ished, to be sure, but perhaps these officials
would then be selected rather for their fitness