The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1890-08-15

shall not be used a. a reward for party
service-that is relatively minor point
but that the act shall not be admins
tered by party politicians, by men who
are active in politics and public affairs.
The Commissioners should be men not
in the public service, men who are out
Of politics altogether, and the American
law so provides, as every bona fide law
OF this kind must. The proposed bill
not merely makes it possible to appoint
FIVE National Reform legislators to con-
stitute the commission, but it goes out
Of its way to make that possible and in
PRODUCES a special clause to effectuate it.
II the political wheel should turn again
the commission might be made up OF
the five Reform Party politicians. Is
this the proper machinery to secure
pure administration 1t seems very clear
that the public generally would repose
far more confidence in the Cabinet, than
in any commission so constituted.
3. The whole object Of a Civil Service
Act is TO substitute the merit system for
the spolls system. Only one way OF
doing this has as yet been discovered.
1t is TO require every candidate for Office
to be examined and TO make appointment
depend solely on the standing in this
| examination. Now, incredible as it may
seem, the bill before US does not require
| anything OF the sort. Let any skeptio
read and be convinced. We cite the
only section bearing on the question:
SEC. ID. All candidates proposed by
| heads of the departments must appear
| before the Civil Service Commission fol
| examination. The examination shall bt
| practical in its character, and relate
| principally to those matters which viii
| fairly test the relative capacity and fit
| ness OF the person or persons examined
to discharge the duties of the service u
which the appointment is to be made
| Certificates, testimonials or worthy re
concentrations will also be required
| from any new candidate for Office
| Worthy candidates for new appoint
ments or promotion, who may not b,
proposed by heads OF departments, ma,
also present their application and claim
to the Civil Service Commissioners, t,
be duly considered by them. No new
appointments of any kind shall be fina
until alter six months service, unde
probation, with hall pay.
This section, it will be seen, does no
say-does not even hint-that the per
son having the highest marks shall re
ceive the appointment. 1t does not evel
hint anything of the sort Moreover,
does not require the examination of a.
candidates, but only of those proposes
by heads of departments. There is nc
thing in the proposed law to prevent tn
Commissioners picking up any part
adheraet, any drunken ruffian, for tina
matter, and making him clerk in tn
Interior Department.
Neither is this glaring absurdity of tn
bill due to the loose, careless and uncel
tain manner in which it is drawn. Thi
charitable construction-gladly as W
would entertain it's excluded by tn
last sentence of the preceding sectio
lSec. 13), which expressly provide
that in case of new appointment,
preference will be first given to til
Hawaiian born. and, secondly, to tn
naturalized foreigners and denizens i
proportion to the length of their res
dence in the country" This is prime
pie of selection which has nothing
common with examination, and, indeed
is as far as possible from the merit sy.
tenn. Apart from this solitary Limitation
everything in the matter of appointment,
is left to the arbitrary will of the Com
missioners.
1t is unnecessary to pursue the matte
further into detail. The bill contains
number OF other features, good as we'll 8
bad, which it would be superfluous I
comment on ut present. Enough ha
been said to justify our sweeping col
demnation of the measure. Our criticism
it should be observed, is not aimed .
matters OF detail, but gees to its vel
essence
Our statute books contain man
strange things, but nothing, it is safe
say, so absurd, go bizarre" as this.