Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-04-26
MUNICIPAL CIVIL SERVICE.
The Application Of the Law to the Distri
Government-The ApportIonment Rule.

The Application Of the Law to the District
Government-The ApportIonment Rule.
The last annual report Of the civil service
commission contains Recommendation
which reads:
The classified service should be extended
as rapidly As practicable to cover every
position in the public service to
which 1t can appropriately be applied,
as, for instance. to clerks and writers in navy
yards. to almost the entire body Of officials in
the District Of Columbia, &c"
Just what the civil service commissioners
meant by the above recommendation has ex-
creased good many minds in this city.
The recommendation is only q recommends
ton, but if the President should see fit to act
on it what would be the result?
Among what classes Of the District employees
would it apply and would the rule for appoint
ment among the different states come into play?
A STAR reporter had few minutes talk with
Commissioner Roosevelt on the subject. II
am in favor" he said, ''of applying the civil
service law to about all the employees in the
District government and would use the regis
tering system for laborers, SO successfully
tried in Boston. The District Offices would
not come under the appointment clause but
would be local Offices, and if they were placed
under the classified service would be practi-
eally separated from politics."
Secretary John 7. Doyle of the commission
10 vic Vi VIC ptst posSu men IN the country on
civil service affairs. ''If there is any city in
the country" said Mr.. Doyle. where the
employees should come under the classified
service it is Washington, and in Boston. Brook
Ign. New York and many other large cities a
modified system of civil service has proved
successful in the highest degree. but the
tremendous preponderance of politics in
these cities has caused notifications and
changes in the system. In this city
it would seem that municipal civil
service could be applied with the certainty that
every element Of success was present.
Placing the employees OF the District under
the classified service would go long way to-
ward establishing home rule in District
offices. The apportionment law would
not apply in any way to these places. The law
says: Appointments to the public service
shall be apportioned among the several states,
&C.
AS the District government is not one Of
the departments at Washington the offices
would be treated as merely local Offices or post
Office in any city.
The question Of how far among the District
officers the classified service could be applied
with benefit Is one which would have
to be determined by consultation and close
be put under the regular service.
in others modified forms could be
applied and some off: GERS would natural
ly come under the non-competitive
class. where an appointment is made
and the appointee simply examined
to determine his fitness. I believe that the
system could be almost universally applied in
this city and that it would add greatly to
the efficiency of the forces. Removing
many branches of the District employees from
political influence would prove OF the highest
possible benefit