The Indianapolis journal., 1893-11-01
BOSTON CIVIL SERVICE.
Few Points Which the Local Ad-
ministration Is Seeking.


ministratiOn Is Seeking.
At the cabinet meeting Monday night
Mayor Denny announced that he had writ
ten to Boston for information about the
application of the civil-service regulations
in the employment of men in the city gov
ernment- He also announced that it would
probably be several days before he would
receive a reply to his inquiry. There are
several persons in this city who are con-
verSant with the application Of the civil
service policy in Boston, having previously
investigated it for their own information
They have secured statistics showing the
effect of civil service in that city during
the past eight years. There is a civil-sarvice
board composed of three members, with a
clerk, who have charge Of registrations. Ap-
plicants apply at designated periods and
they register their applications with the
clerk of the cfvil-service board When
enough have applied to meet all proper de-
maHds registration ceases. That is when
double the number required for positions to
be filled have filed their applications regis
tration ceases and application
are received. The applicant must furnish
a certificate signed by citizen to his
capacity for labor, industry and sobriety,
and he must state under oath his name
age residence, citizenship, number depend
ent upon him for support, military service,
if any, past and present occupation. When
men are needed the heads of department
make q requisition on the commissioners
or civil-service board, giving the number
OF laborers wanted and kind of service,
and the clerk reports double the number
called for, giving particulars in each case.
In Boston preference is given to old sol
dlers and men of families. If an employe
Is discharged for cause he is ineligible to
registration for six months, and if dis
charged for drunkenness for one year; the
special vote of the board
If it is desired to adopt civil-seryice rules
in the appointment of employees in Indian
apolis the Mayor could appoint three men
from his heads of departments to act as
could act as clerk of the board If it was
desired to have the commissioners be in
no wise connected with the city govern
ment in any other capacity there is little
doubt the Mayor could find three citizens,
whose names would be a guarantee of in
capacity of civil-service commissioners
gratis. BY this means the civil-service
ideas could be carried out at once without
waiting for amendments and reconStruc-
ton of the charter. The regulations would
apply to employees of the city government
here as follows: Clerks in the civil en-
gineer's office, /; street commissioner, 1;
Board of Public Works, L; controller, 2;
Board of HEALTH /; Board of Public Safe
v, h, Il,
police 8. In the engineers office: Assist
ant engineers 2; transitman, l.; draughts-
men, 2; rodmen. 2; linemen. 4. and inspec-
tors, 10, making a total of forty-three en-
pioyes affected by the adoption of civil
service rules. The provision of the Boston
charter providing for the civil-service reg
ITO call together the heads of depart
ments, except of assessment and collec-
| ton, for consultation and advice upon the
affairs of the city at least once a month.
| and to call on the heads of all departments
| for reports from the same, which it shall
| be their duty to prepare and submit in
meetings above provided for and rules and
| regulations shall be adopted thereat for
the administration of the affairs of the
city departments, not inconsistent with any
| law or ordinance, which regulations shall
prescribe a common and systematic meth
cd of aScertaining the comparative fitness
of applicants for office, position and pro-
| motion, and of selecting, appointing and
promoting those found to be best htted,
| without regard to political opinion or serv-
| ice.
| der different provisions. AS to these de-
partments the charter provides:
| 1.-The Commissioners of Public Safety may
| fix the number Of members of said fire and
| police departments, and the number Of ap-
| pointeeS fer other purposes. They shall
| also havs power to promulgate rules and
| regulations for the appointment of members
| of such forces, and for their government,
| provided that said members shall be as
| nearly as possible equally divided politi-
| cally and no member thereof shall be dis
| missed except for cause as hereinbefore
| provided. They may be removed for any
cause other than politics, and the written
| reason for such removal shall be entered
| upon the records of such board.
! '''It shall be unlawful for a commissioner
| of public safety: or any person appoln1ted
| by them. or their predecessors, or holding
| any position in said fire or police depart
| ments to solicit any person to vote at any
| election for any candidate, or to challenge
|
| influence any electOr at such election. or TO
| be a delegate TO any polltlcal convention,
| or to solicit for any candidate or delegate
TO such convention: or to be member or
| any political committee.
| The statistics gathered from the applica-
| ton of the regulations in Boston show a
| much higher degree of efficiency in the en-
| ployes A member of the Board of Public
| Works of this city said that the city dld
| not get more than one-fOurth the amount
| of work from their employees that the con-
| tractors obtained from the men employed
by them. This was caused by the fact
| that the city employees were almost alto
| eether men advanced in years who were
employed. not because of their ability to
| perform the work required or them, but
because their friends had a pull
The statistics from Boston show the
| average age in all departments in that city
to be thirty-six years, thus securing TO the
city men in the prime of life and demon
| stTating that such men were available,
this being due to the permanence or the
| employment. OF over nine hundred persons
apDointed but twenty-nine had attended
college. showing that the examination was
not on a lofty plane and of visionary
character Two-thirds of the officers in
Massachusetts and cities within that State
are thus chosen. After eight years under
those civil-seryice regulations there were
| less discharges in 1893 than in any prece-i-
ing wear and of the total number of dis
charges but two-thirds of per cent were
| for had habits The records of discharges
| show that OF a total of 55S employed there
were 25s discharged. They were for the
foiior,jn-, causes: Lack of work, III: resig-
nation, 60: bad habits, II; incompetency, 81