Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-07-12
The Civil Service Law.

The Civil Service Law.
THE FIRST EXAMINATIONS IN THIS cTTY-NrNErY
APPLICANTS ON THE MENTAL RACK To-DAY-THE
SCENES IN THB ROOM OF THE COMMISSION.
The schoolmaster was abroad this morning in
the Agricultural grounds The first examination
held here under the civil service law was begun in
the rooms occupied by the commi sson at ten
O'Clock. The members OF the civil service COM
mission having returned to the city were present
and manifested deep interest in the progress of
the examination.
BOARD OF LOCAL EXAMINERS,
to consist Of two persons each from the Treasury,
Interior and Post Ofllce departments and one each
from the State, War and Navy departments and
Department of Justice, Will soon be constituted.
Five OF these gentlemen have already been ap-
pointed. They are Messrs. F. L. Campbell, Inte-
r!or department; O. W Longan. War department; !;
Clarke and A. NJ. Judson, Treasury department
The remaining members of the board will be de-
signated to-day or tomorrow. The gentlemen
named met at the rooms or the civil service COM
mission this morning, but decided not to complete
the organization of the board until all the MEM
are TO be present each day to supervise the exam-
nations, and MessrS. Campbell. Longan and Jud-
son were detailed for that duty to-day. Mr..
Eaton, Thoman and Gregory also took part in the
examination.
THE EXAMINATIONS TO-DAY.
The examinations conducted TO- day, and which
Will be continued tomorrow, are for class A. or
the $500 class Of clerkships and flrst-cass clerk
ships The civil service law goes into effect on the
18th inst, and these examinations are intended to
anticipate that so that soon as the law is efec
tive the commission may have on hand supply Of
names OF eligible persons. Itwas arranged to-day
modated IN the rooms of the commission There
have been about geo applications fled, and OF this
number ITO were notified to appear for eXamina-
n ffl6 tn pNvn nnf
themselves Tomorrow.
THE SCENES IN THE ROOMS.
About ninety candidates for Offce consequently
applied at tho rooms to-day. The long hallway,
Or corridor, running through the second story of
the building In which the commission is located
was fitted up temporarily an examining
room rows OF desks and chairs being placed along
the walls The large room OF the commission
portion OF the room where the examiners kept
their papers and conferred with one another.
About half or the applicants were ladies. Gene
rally the appearance OF the candidates commended
them. The examination begun at ten O'Clock, and
was arranged so as to occupy about I'VE hours.
THE SUBJECTS
embraced in the examination were orthogra-
ply, penmanship and copying, arithmetic, funda-
mental rules, fractions and per centage. interest,
discount elements OF bookkeeping and OF accounts,
elements OF the English language, letter writing
and the proper construction OF sentences, and ele
f6s q history an1
subject was taken up, distributed among the can
dldates papers having the questions to be an
swered written at the head. Upon this paper the
applicant, after answering the questions pro.
pounded, wrote his number.
A PEEP INTO THE ROOMS
during the day would have brought to the minds
OF the visitor many visions or memories OF old
school days. There Is the same industrious scratch
OF eager pens; the same bobbing about on tiptoe
OF the examiners; the same breezeS, playing
through the windows and bringing OdOrS OF sum-
mer. and suggesting the pleasures OF truancy. 1t
take; but little fancy to picture Chief Exam
stern and dreadful pedagogue whose very rrown
would make one quake. and whose ferrule could
elicit shrleks OF agony from the most hardened
thng wrong about the boys and girls in the school
They have grown bald and gray, wrinkled and
bearded. There are one or two that one wou0
swear had false teeth and false hair. Then there
are several Old boys with grandfathery Spectacles
Some, too, look little equity; and altogether it
would De hard to stir tho school up to the point OF
bombarding the schoolmaster with spit-balls, or
joining in a good Old-fashioned game or handy
through the Agricultural grounds. But age does
not alter human nature
THE ELDERLY MAIDEN,
perplexed over sum in percentage, plants her
sharp elbows on her desk and chews the end of
her penholder,j just as she did when she was young
maiden in school. many summers ago. The stout
lady uncOnsciously follows the movement OF her
pen with her tongue, just as a fat girl in school
used to do; and the bald-headed man who has
1Oun1 a 'Sticker" rubS the spot which the curly.
headed boy used to scratch when he got q "poser."
There were the same expressions OF doubt ana
misery, the same silent signs OF despair, the same
1-wish-1-could-l -look-in-the. book a-minute look
which used to be seen at the school examination.
In addition to all this, however, there was some
thing OF manly and womanly earnestness about
the ne faces and there was touch Of the pathetic In
tions and Viewed the difficulties that lay between
them and the much-needed 81 200 year.