National Republican., 1886-08-17
AMENDING RULE NINE.
Appointing ofioers Not to Know tn
Politics of Successful Candidates.

Appointing Omoers Not TO Know tbs
Politics Of Successful Candidates.
Upon the advice of the civil service COM
mission, President Cleveland has amended
rule of the amended civil service rules to
read as follows;
All applications for regular, competitive OK.
animation for admission to the classified civil
service must he made on blank forms to be
prescribed by the commission.
Requests for blank forms of application for
competitive examination for admission to the
classified civil service, and all regular appli-
cations for such examination, shall be made
1. II for the classified departmental service,
TO the United States civil service commissioned
p flor the classified customs service, TO the
civil service board of examiners for the customs
district in which the person desiring TO be ex-
amlned wishes to enter the customs service
q If for the classified postal service, to the
civil service board OF examiners for the post.
Office at which the person to be examined
wishes to enter the postal service.
Requests for blank forms of application to
customs and postal boards of examiners must
be made in writing by the persons desiring ex-
animation, and such blank forms shall not be
furnished to any other person.
The commission, in submitting the rule as
amended, gave to the President the follow
ing statement Of reasons for advising the
amendment:
Under the rule rs Il is now written, applica-
sion to the classified customs service and TO the
classified postal service must be made to tn
appointing or nominating officer. The evil of
this way of making applications has become
apparent to the commission. The applicant
who is a member of the party to which the ap-
pointing or nominating officer belongs exposes
to that officer his political opinions and afiliu-
tions by statements Of them aud the applicant
who is member of the opposing party exposes
his political opinions and affiliations by his
silence concerning them, After examination
n standing have bnpn
each of the applicants who have been passed
makes haste to Inform the appointing or nomi.
oiiicef % becomes informed not only of the poiiti.
cal opinions and affiliations of all tho applt-
cants but also of their relative standing on the
eligible registers In this way ho obtains all
the Information he should not haye-all ho
could acquire If he were the custodian OF the
registers
oommissen has lately instructed its customs
and postal boards of examiners not to permit
the appointing or nominating o1icer or any
other person to have possession of or have a
copy Of, any eligible register, nor to permit the
appointing or nominating officer to inspect or
see any eligible register or copy thereof For
reasons already herein, stated, this order VIII
be almost nugatory If rule remains un-
changed.
Under rule o as It Is now written, the ap-
pointing or @ n9minStg o,1g 9ineeT % can 06tan IN
| tious and of the grading OF the applicants, and
he Is the person on whom the friends Of the
| applicants exert partisan ana personal lnnu-
| ence to induce the selection by him OF the
| applicants In whom they are Interested. In
| this way the appointing or nominating onicer
| may be led without intention on his part of
| wrnngdoing, into violations OF rule S-lnto dis
| ordinations in favor of or against applicants
an account OF their political opinions or atiilia-
| tions Under rule Q, amended as herein above
| set forth, an appointing or nominating officer
would not be furnished, as he now is lin an
| apparently legal manner, with information
| concerning applicants which he should not
| possess. Under this rule, II amended as sng-
| gestCd, all applications would be made to the
| board Of examiners, and applicants would
have no good reason for calling on either the
| board or tine appointing or nominating officer
| after their standing had been ascertained and
notice thereof had been given to them.
| The commission has observed that members
| OF boards OF examiners, as well as appointing
and nominating officers, furnish blank forms
| Of application to personal and political
| friends, not for their use, but for distribution
| among persons these friends desire to please
Thus many persons, who have no desire to
enter the civil service, are induced to become
applicants for admissions and in this way, to
the great inconvenience of the commission
and the disappointment of many hundreds of
| persons who do desire admission, the number
| of applicants is increased much In excess of
the needs Of the service. For the purpose OF
preventing interested parties from thus using
manner, the commission proposes to have
| rule 0 80 amended that requests for blank
| forms of application to customs and postal
| board Of examiners must be made In writing
| by the persons desiring examination, and 80
| that no blank forms shall be furnished TO any
| use.
| In view ofthese facts and considerations, tae
| commission respectfully advise that rule be
amended as above herein set forth.