Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-07-28
THE CIVIL SERVICE As TT LOOKS
TO A EARMER.
Competitive Examinations, Past and
Present.

Application Paper, and have examined them
| with curiosity and care. They evince much
shrewdness in their preparation, and. if faith
fully executed, will tend to exclude Ignorance
and incompetence from the classified public
| service, If they effect nothing more The en-
trance door to that service seems narrow enough
to satisfy the most exacting; but, as to the
door OF exit, If every hall of public resort had
| an exit as broad the list of casualties would be
less. So far this Act Is concerned every office
In every department could by proscriptive ad.
miniStratiOn be vacated in twelve hours, or in
one. The bridge into Office is like that from the
Mahometan hell to heaven-narrow, very mar.
row-whilst the exit gates, like those OF Mil
tons hell. 'stand open night and day." The
first bar to entrance Is
THE QUOTA;
and If a comparative tabular statement OF the
number ofOflicial incumbents and the popula.
ton Of the states and territories, &C., which has
appeared Is at all correct, q decade or two will
elapse before single appointment from the Dis.
trict Of Columbia or some of the states can be
made. The next bar Is
No person over forty-fve "need apply" unless
! he was "a soldier or sailorin the last war" How
the fact Of having been soldier or o sailor can
obviate objections, If valid, to theexceeding hon.
gevity Of fOrty-ive years, is not perfectly
patent. Efficient civil service, not reward foz
service In arms, whether voluntary or enforced
has been supposed to be the claim Of this reform
May not the departmental service suffer. posi-
bly,, from this discrimination, even as the police
service the District is said to have suffered from
the same however laudable the motive? The
next bar is
But is 1t true that the robust and hearty beef
eater is always most emnently fitted for intel
lectual or even physical service whilst the deli
cate student is thereby necessarily disqualified
for it? Then comes the
BAR OF FAMILY,
and If more than one Of the aspirant's "family''
(whatever that word may mean already has his
feet in 1.-THE whey Tough his own aspirations
are at once, and i1'so facto, squelched, and very
properly so, some might think, despite the wall
ings in many household of the District. And
then the
BAR OF TEMPERANCE
or rather Of intemperance, and If the applicant is
not ready to swear that he is not "a person
habtually using intoxicating beverages to ex-
cess, he can stand aside. But where is the
'persOn" to be found who can not, or will not.
swear to that? There are four words. at least.
In that brief interdict which present open doors
for the escape of the applicants conscience,
every man being supposed to be his own judge.
The last bar is
EXAMINATION,
and the least, if it is conducted as seems pro-
posed. Almost anybody, it would appear,
might attain an average of Is out of possible
100 to entitle him to recognition But. when
registered-what then? How long an interval
may elapse before his name is called from the
hundreds. perhaps thousands on the register to
fill vacancy, when ''tew die and none resign
albeit, the average Of vacancies is estimated at
about dozen weekly among the thousands in
the classified departmental service? True, a
change OF administration might vastly increase
the vacancies, but might it not also vastly swell
the registration list; and then might not Senators
or Representatives. who were in entire accord
with heads of departments, recommend las to
character" according to the 10th section of the
act, such applicants as were in entire accord
with them? But, at least when called. the an
plicant may be designated to fulfill his six
months probation in a service for which from
habits, tastes, or even capacity, he has not the
slightest adaptation or inclination, however
Wel-ftted for other service. STILL if after all
sure to retain his place indefinitely. or for q
liked term. or during good behavior" there
would seem some recOmpense for becoming as
somebody has slanderOusly said, "a fossil-a
government pauper." But
THE SANE UNCERTAINTY
In this respect, as already intimated. exists now
as ever, and he may be dropped at any time,
for any cause, or for no cause at all. But, de-
spite all this, there bids fair to be great i'm
prOYement of the new system over the old, so
far, at least al character and qualifications are
concerned, and especially the mode of testing
them. Some fifteen or sixteen years ago the
writer OF these lines participated in q COMPETE
ton for f1rst-class departmental vacancy The
questions were read by the chief examiner and
hv md ofn
In writing, as now. The subjects were arith-
metic, grammar, geography, geometry, chem
lstry, astronomy, history electricity, political
economy, the steam engine. optics, acoustics.
hydraulics indeed, almost the entire range of
human knowledge seemed involved in the
questions propounded from those thick manu-
script fOliOs during the four or five hours in
QUESTION OF that December day. A few of these
questions from scores of like character emi-
nently adapted to test the ability of clerk to
write or copy an ordinary routine official letter,
are now recalled, and as bricks or rather brick
bats, from this
COMPETITIVE Babel.
are submitted to the consideration OF the disci-
pies OF the new dispensation as follows: What
Is parallax!' ''What was the Amphyctionic
council:" ''Where is the Magnetic Pole?"
'HOw old was Oliver Cromwell when Charles
the First was beheaded - The questions were
all neted in short hand and a copy preserved.
anu at aHotnef Time may appear IN erteflSO.
Strange enough, the writer was so lucky as to
give tolerably correct answers to all the cues
tiOns, and his examination was pronounced per-
feet. ''Well-did he get the placer No: but
the youthful protege OF a Senator, who had at
tempted no reply whatever to one question in a
Dozen did get it! The writer has no right.
however. to complain of 1.-The good old system. -
He was appointed to place of twice the sal
airy and ten times the responsibility through DO
litical influence, with no examination at all |!
Familiarity with ''parallax' and the like were
not just then deemed essential it seemsl
On the whole, as resume Of the views of an
ex-department clerk under the old regime re-
specting the new departure, the good features
| OF the new system seem to be the quota accord
Ing to state population. the family restriction.
the practical examination the requisites as to
habits and character, and recommendations and
| assessments; whilst the stipulatiOns as to age.
health. and military service demand modiica.
ton. The uncertain tenure of office NAV be
deemed Objectionable; but. under our constitu-
ton and form Of government, how is it to be
remedied! True, we have now a privileged
class-the army and navy-but is that q plea for
another? Besides, in some form or other.
party vctOrs will always claim the "speils. {"
and very few Presidents will care to undertake
the responsibilities of an administration with
lukewarm friends, or secret or ayowed foes To
him and his party policy to carry it out.