The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-05-07
NINETEEN HEADS OFF.
Summary Discharge of Custom.
House Inspectors.
The TT easury Department at Washington
Ordered the slaughter-List Of the For
Inmates and Unfortunates.

BY one stroke of the official ak in the Gus
tom-hOuse yesterday nineteen heads were
dropped into the basket, and the sensation
it caused extended along the front and in
the Custom-house, even being commune
Gated to other services. The cause for the
wholesale slaughter is given by Collector
Phelps as for the betterment of the
service" Collector Phelps says he has
had each case investigated, and that the
changes made were recommended to the
Treasury Department, which finally gave
its permission.
When the present regime assumed man.
agement of Custom-hOuse affairs there We're
naturally and necessarily large number of
INSPECTORS and employees retained in the SER
vice, some for reasons OF supposed ability
and some because they had not been caught
In any fragrant violation of civil service
rules which would permit of their dis
charge, though their incapacity was know
to a moral certainty. This number de-
creased by few designations and dis
charges, but not materially, and the present
administration has felt itself doubly handl-
capped from the first
HANDICAPPED BY RULES.
1t was handicapped in the prevalence Of
civil service rules, which do not permit Of
discharge, except for cause" and this
''cause"has to be so well established thatit can
be stated TO the discharged emplOye or sus-
tanned In the courts. This makes the dis
charge of a civil service employe only pos
slbe under circumstances when the same
employe could be convicted in the courts of
the land, unless the Treasury Departing mt
interfere, as it did this time for the good
of the service" when specific charges do not
need to be and are not often preferred.
This disposition to grumble finally in
UnlUG6 in hn fr1n al
terday to their deeapitation Their grley-
ances, mostly private. were given extensive
circulation in morning paper and the IN
sinuating frauds Swallowed by the articles
put the customs authorities On the defensive
and the whole matter was referred, news
paper clippings, depastions and all, to the
Treasury Department, with letter from the
Collector of the Port, that certain men
(naming them) be dropped from the lists.
This was about one month since.
BETTERMENT OF THE SERVICE.
Yesterday the permission to discharge
for eause-betterment Of the service" ar
rived from the Department of the Treasury.
The list of discharged employees and their
successors was given out to the press yester-
day afternoon by the Collector, and is as
follows:
To be Inspectors of Customs In Glass I'd ].
OLeary, vice W. H. Hughes, removed; John l..
Cailaghan, vice Edward b. AtklnSon. removed;
Lewis Davis vice James II. Biethen Jr, re-
moved; Ernest II. Hills, vice John Kelly, re-
moved; Edward Everett, vice Fred NJ. Pierce,
removed; Henry faiue, vice Edward j. Roberts,
removed; William j. Ahearn, vice Angelo
Bailey.
Appointed to Glass A-Munro Heath vice .. j.
O'LeaIy, promoted; A. 5. Lee, vice John l.. Cal
lagGan, promoted; Edward [. Mclean. vice
Ernest H. Hills, promoted; Louis E. Phillips,
vice Il. NJ. Atwood. resigned; James w. Camp
bell, vice Louis Davis; George w. Mclaughlin.
vice George Warren, appointed foreman OF
laDOrers; Frank A. Clark, vice Herman Nj.
Deaufeld, removed w. e. Latham, vice Freder-
lex l.. Bailey, removed; William j. Hendricks,
vice j. f. Gonzales. removed Henry f. Hub
bard, vice Emile Niemeer, removed; Alexander
Davidson, vice e. j. Raney, removed, aud
Henry Simpson, vice Henry 2. Clapp, removed.
To great extent the ferreting out OF this
supposed quasi-eonspiracy against the Gus
toms Service is due 10 the Special Agency
of the Treasury, which has had one reeog-
niZably expert Inspector and two theirs
working on the front gathering data for the
Government. One of these Inspectors adj
mitted having looked up three or four of
the charges made against the Inspectors
discharged, ard he said the change was
necessary, as some Of them mad become
neglectfnl, imperfling by omission, if II OF by
actual commission, the welfare Of the serV-
Ice along the front.