Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-12-01

into the individual qualifications of more than
small proportion of those seeking office, and
With tho enlargement of the civil service, that
proportion must continue to become less. In
the earlier years Of the government the subor-
uinate Offices were SO few IN number that it
was quite easy foi those making appointments
and promotions to personally ascertain the
merits OF tho candidates. Party managers of
methods had not then become powerful ayen-
c!es of coercion, hostile to the free aud lust
exercise of the appointing power.
A large and responslo ole part of the duty of
restoring the civil service to the desired>purity
and efficiency rests on the President, and it has
been my purpose to do what ia in my power to
advance such prudent and gradual measures of
reform as will most surely bring about the rad
ical change OF sy stem essential to make our adj
m,nlstratlve methods satisfactory to u free and
intelligent people. By proper exercise of au-
thorlty II Is IL the power of the executive to do
much to promote such reform, and it cannot
be too clearly understood that nothing adequate
can be accomplished without corporation
considerable ard intelligent cup
port among the people. Reforms which
cha lengc the generally accepted theories of
parties, ana demand changes in methods of
departments, are not the work of day. Their
permanent foundations nust be laid in sound
principles and III az experience which demon
strates their wisdom, and exposes the errors of
their adversaries. Every VOL thy officer desires
to make his official action gain aud honor to
hss country, but tho people themselves, far
more than their officers in public station, are
interested IN pure, economical and vigorous
administration.
BY laws enacted in 1853 and 1855. and now
IN substance incorporated in the revised stat
utes, the practice of arbitrary appointments to
" ate ,a u no,,ys
condemned, and examinations as to capacity,
to be conducted by departmental boards Of ex-
anllners, were provided for and made condi-
tons of admission to the public aervice. These
statutes aio d decision by Congress that exam
nations OF some sort as to attainments and
capacity, are essential to the we'll being of the
public service. The i'm portant questions since
the enactment of theee laws have been as to
the character of these examinations, and
whether OFFICIAL favor and partisan influence, Or
common right and merit, were to control ac-
cess to the examinations in practice. These
examinations have not always been open to
worthy persons generally. who might wish to
influence as q rule appear to baye
designated those who alone were
permitted to so before the examining board,
Suhjecting even the examiners to q pressure
from the friends of the candidates very difficult
to resist. AS a consequence the standard of adj
Mission fell below that which the public inter
est demanded. Il was also almost inevitable
that asystem which provides for various boards
of examiners with no common supervision or
uniform measure OF procedure should result in
confusion and iuadt quato tests Of capacity
highly detriine ntal to the public interests. A
further and more RADICAL change was obviously
required.
In the annual message of December, 1870,
my predecessor declared that there is no duty
q sd
OF departments AZ that OF appointments, nor
is there any such arGuOES and thankless lahors
imposed on Senators and Representatives. ss
finding places for constituents. The present
system does no. secure the best men and often
does not tit men for public places. The eleva-
ton and publication of the civil service of the
government will be hailed with approval bv
The whole people OF the United States.''
Congress accordingly passed the act APP
proved March 8, 1871, to regulate the civil SER
vice OF the United States and promote the e 3
hc,ency thereof, giving the necessary authori.
lty to the executive TO inaugurate civil ser
vice reform. Acting under the statute, which
was interpreted as intending to secure system
Of just and effectual examinations under uni
form supervision, number Of eminently COM
petent persona were selected for the pur-
pose, WHO entered with zeal upon
The discharge OF the duties pre-
pared, with an Intelligent appreciation of the
requirements of the service and regulations,
and who, in their capacity as e board. have
been known as the civil ser ice commissioners.
Congress for two years appropriated the money
needed for the compensation and for the
expense of carrying OH the work
of the commission. 1t appears from the re-
port Of the mnlissOn ubnli ted to the Presi-
dent III April, 1874, that organizations had
been held il various sections of the country,
and that an appropr alton of about 5,l5 GOO
would DO required TO meet the annual ex-
penses, Including. the salaries involved. The
report was transmitted to Congress by special
message on April Is, 1874, with the following
favorable comment upon the labOrs of the CON-
'!If sustained by Congress, have
10 doubt the rules can, after the experience
gained, be go improved and enforced as to still
more materially benefit the public service and
relieve the executive, members of Congress and
The heads OF departments from influences pref
judicial to good administration. The rules, as
they have hitherto been enforced, have result
ed benehclGiiy ~ Is shown by the opinions of
the members Of the cabinet aud their subordi
mates in the departments, and in that opinion l
And in the annual message of December of
the year similar views are Expressed
and an appropriation fer continuing the work
of the commission again advised. The appro-
prIation was not made. and as a consequence
TIE active work of the commissioners was sus-
pended leaving the commission itself in ex-
istence without the means therefor of causing
qualifications To be tested in any systematic
or Of securing for the public service
the advantages of competition upon any ex-
tensve plan.
recommended in my annual message of
December, 1877, the making of an appropria-
ton for the resumption of the work
Of the commission. In the meantime,
however. competitive examinations under
,lor-
within limited spheres in the executive de-
partmcnts IN Washington and in a number of
the custom houses and postofiices of the prin-
cipal cities OF the country, with q view to fur
Their test their effects, and in every instance
have been found to be as salutary as they are
stated to be under the administration of my
predecessor. ] think the economy, purity and
OF the public service would be
greatly promoted by their systematic intro
duction, wherever practicable throughout the
entire civil service of tho government, togeth-
er with ample provision for their general
supervision, in order to secure consistency and
uniform Justice.
Reports from the secretary of the interior,
from the postmaster general, from the post
master in the city of New York, where such
have been for some time on trial,
and also from the collector of the port, the "a
val officers aud the surveyor in that city, and
from the postmasters and collectors in several
of the other large cities, sh wv that the COMPETE
tive system, where applied, has in various
ways contributed to improve the public service.
The reports show that the results have been
saiutary in marked degree,
and that general application
of similar rules cannot fail to be q decided
benefit to the service. The reports of the gov
ernmcnt officers in the city OF New York es-
pecialty. bear decided testimony to the utility
of open competitive examination in their re-
spectivc offices, showing that these examina-
tions and the excellent qualifications of those
submitted to the service through them have
had a marked effect upon the persons previ-
oosiy III the service, aud particularly upon
those aspiring to promotion. There has been
on the part of the latter All increased
interest in the work and 4 desire
TO extend acquaintance with it beyond the par
ticular desk occupied, and thus the morale of
the entire force has been raised. The examina-
ton have been attended by many citizens, who
have had an opportunity to thoroughly investi-
gate the scope and character of the tests, and
the method of determining the results, and
those visitors have without exception approved
the methods employed, and several of them
have publicly attested their favorable opinion.
Upon such consideration deem it my duty
to renew the recon, L, endation contained in my
annual message December, 1877, requesting
Congress to make the necessary appropria-
tions for the resumrtion OF the work of the
civil service commission. Economy will be
promoted by authorizing moderate compen-