Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-11-15
REL lATlVES IN OFFICE.
RumOrs That Action Will Follow the
Commissions Report.
Old Age Not a Draw awback-Statistfcs of
the Departments-Ages of Clerks
Length of Service.

1t Is said that one feature of the work of
the departmental joint commission is likely
to result in action, either by the heads of
departments themselves or by Congress,
and that is the development of the fact
that there are $40 persons holding office
in the departments at Washington who
have relatives in the departments. OF this
number 4.151 persons have one relative each,
1,037 have two relatives each 279 have three
relatives, 50 have four relatives, 26 have
five. 10 have six. have seven. have eight
and two persons have each nine relatives
in office. 1t is understood that this disclos-
ure was very surprising to the commission
and that its members think that the situa-
ton thus revealed needs changing.
Elderly Clerks.
Considerable uneasiness has been caused
by the circulation of rumors that an on
slausht upon elderly clerks is to be made
The Star reporter was informed today that
there is no ground for general apprehen-
sion upon this score. 1t may be stated
positively that the commission has not vet
taken up this feature of the departmental
service for consideration as to action, al
though report has been made upon it.
. Ihere are many elderly people in office,
IL Is true" said a member of the commits
sion, but what of it? Age, in the depart
mental service does not signify incapacity
Dy any manner of means There are lots
of clerks in the departments sixty wears
OF age who do better work for the govern
menH than men of twenty-five. 1t would
not make any difference TO me If a man
We're one hundred and thirty years old If
he came to his desk every day and did
ms work capably and with the added quail
ity OF long experience. Why. you can
stand on the corner here any morning
and the gray boards on the way to office
Will pass you in such numbers that you
Keen HON Nnt, mill
100. that they move along at a lively gait
and when they get to their desks they are
a deal more likely to buckle down to work
before your callow youth gets through
smoking his cigarette and rubbing his
sleepy eyes open.''
Interesting Figures.
There are some interesting features in
the rel ort to the commission on ages of
clerks. 1t appears that there are 1,4l6 clerks
who are sixty years cid and over There
are 742 between sixty and sixty-fve years
of age, $50 between sixty-fve and seventy,
ls2 have passed the age of three-score years
and ten and are still at work. 66 are verging
on TO eighty years of age, 80 are between
eighty and eighty-five six are creeping
close on to ninety, and one has passed the
ninety mile stone.
The highest number of clerks of any one
age class are those between twenty-five
and thirty years of age, numbering 257S
Between thirty and thirty-five years old
there are 2,3iS. and between thirty-five and
forty there are 2,033. so that out of II 7O76
clerks in the departmental service there
are s,761 who are under forty years of age
Many of the elderly people have been
many years in the government service
Over 1850 people have served a quarter
of century and above. thirty people have
served forty years and over while one per-
son has stuck to the desk sixty years. Ten
clerks have served Uncle Sam for that pc
riod.