Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-02-04

for testing fitness Tor the pOSltIOnS Oh pier,
stamper. junior clerk or other place the
duties of which are chiefly: manual. Only
three names may be certified to a postmas-
ter. The following officers may be ap-
pointed without examination: The asslS-
tant postmaster, the private secretary or
confidential clerk of the postmaster, the
cashier and assistant cashier, superlnteud-
ents designated as such by the post
| Office department, custOdlanS OF money,
stamps, stamped envelopes or postal cards,
designated as such by the postoffice de-
partment, for whose fidelity the postmaster
I! is under official bond Promotions may
be made upon any test of fitness. deter
mined by the postmaster, II not dlsap-
proved by the commission. The 45 year
age limitation is abrogated as to the grade
! of the clerk and the minimum for this
! grade is raised from 10 to p years. and the
maximum from 81 to 40 years. Transfers
are authorized as follows: From one
classified postOffice to another, and from
any classified postofiice to the postoffice
department, and vice versa.
! The rules and regulations. in the opinion
! of the commission, Will result in much
good to the service and will make the civil
| service law system more efficient These
/ rules and regulations, which will go
| into effect on March l. 1888, were
prepared by Commissioner Oberly who
submitted them to the full commission for
4
| which they were fully considered, and in
some particulars amended they were final
! ly adopted.
| In commenting upon the revised civil
rules. Commissioner Edgerton called the
attention of an Associated Press reporter
to the absence of the rule, which it was
rumored had been submitted to the presi-
dent tor his approval, requiring appoint
ing officers whenever a dismissal from the
executive civil service is made, to file in
the department or office from which the
! dismissal is made Ito become "A part OF the
records of such department or
office written statement OF the
cause of such dismissal, and
Mr. Edgerton said it was true that such a
rule had been submitted to the president,
but it failed to receive his approval. The
commissioner added. 1.-The first suggestion
that a rule of this character would be a
wise one was made in the report of the
commission in the case of Postmaster
|, Harrity of Philadelphia, submitted June
30, 1887. In that report Commissioner
Lyman underlined the following words
which were agreed to by commissioner
Oberly, "a rule requiring reasons for dis
nlissal. would. in the opinion of the COM
mission, be wise rule "From first to
last" said Mr.. Edgerton, Il have been
steadily and earnestly opposed to any such
rule. In the HarIity report, and later in
/
of Chicago, and again in submitting these
revised rules to the president, / have re-
corded my pen against its adoption and
the president. in the exercise of his SUI
perior authority, has sustained me.
The board of supervising inspectors of
steam vessels closed it's annual session in
, this city today. The following report on
life saving appliances was adopted unani-
mously: That inasmuch as congress IN
Sec. 43S3, X. s, provides the life saving APP
pliances on ocean. lake, bay and sound
steamers to be such number of life boats.
floats, RATS and life preservers rs will
best secure the safety of all persons on
board such vessel in case of disaster. This
board has passed rules requiring on such
steamers life preserver or float for each
and every passenger, and such number of
boats as can be conveniently carried with
out numbering the snip SO much as to OBJ
Struct its safe navigation, and we have
done this TO an extent in advance of that
required by other maratime nations. We
are fully aware that the number of such
boats, independent of the other appliances
provided. is inadequate for saving the
lives of all the passengers on
the present large ocean steamers
irrespective of the safety offered by the
construction of the ship itself, which in
the present advanced stage Of the mod
ern iron and steel steamships, with their
numerous water tight bulkheadS make
them at least so per cent safer than the
ships of twenty years ago. In view. how
ever, of the difficulty of carrying the boats
necessary for all the passengers, the only
practicable plan would be to restrict the
number of passenger TO the capacity of the
boats they can carry without detriment TO
the working of the ship. This, your
committee thinks, would work such a re
strictiOn upon commerce thata rule to that
effect could not be sustained by this board
without the active support of congress,
and would therefore request that the secre-
tary of the treasury will refer this report
to congress, so that if it desire such restric-
ton it viii express the same by an amend
ment to the present laws, making it oblig
atory upon steam vessels to carry no more
passengers than they have life boat capac-
ity for, and also to request other nations to
Join in such restrictions.