Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1893-04-06

The general good results that followed
the practical application Of Civil Service
rules 10 the department employees At
Washington are we'll known, A special
and particular instance is thus related
BY the Baltimore Sun:
It is stated that One-half of the building
lots in one Of the new settlements in Prince
Georges county Just over the District Of
Columbia border, are owned by young
women employed by the government in
the departments IN Washington, aud that
this ownership is one OF the direct results
of the operations of the Civil Service law,
which insurcs permanency in government
employ. The same results. il is also
claimed, may be traced along all the lines
Of railroads leading into Washington for a
distance OF % miles or more from she ma
tonal capital. The whole country is
dotted with picturesque cottages, villages
and towns have grown up, improvements
have been made i'll many directions and
land witch before the passage of the Pen.
dleton law was not worth $50 the acre is
Now sold by the square foot, Next to the
city VI Washington, Maryland, which
bounds the District OF Columbia on three
sides, receives the chief benefit Of this
movement or transition.
| Under the old system Of spoils no gov
! ton of employment beyond the close Of
an administration which conferred the
| office. After each presidential election
| there was something approaching a sweep
no one felt safe in position. Every en-
| pl0ye WAS liable to be turned out neck and
| heels, without moments notice, to make
/ !; place for some one having stronger in
| tueEce or who had rendered fresher party
| service. With such an uncertain tenure
! those who had come to Washington to
| take office did not feel safe III buying ur
! building homes They lived in haphazard
| style, with no special inducenlent for thrift
they spent as they earned, and indeed il
was not an uncommon practice to antici-
pate wages and discount them at ruinous
rates Of usury.
With tile Pendleton Civil Service law a
new era dawned. Suburdinates in the de,
partmcnts felt that a. long as they prop.
crlY performed their duties they were safe
from dismissal and under these conditions
The first impulse Of both men and women
was 70 make homes for themselves. Tie
high price Of desirable property in Wash.
ingtun rendering this difficult for persons
at moderate means, attention was uatur
ally directed to the suburbs and to tht
easy accessible territory beyond the dis
lriGt borders into which steam and electric
railroads bad penetrated. affording rapiE
transit and other necessary facilities
NICER lhlA lHtplllsG great zeal OF assess
able properly is being added to the taN
lists II Prince tiuUrgc's county, whit
Montgomery county IS rapidly becomn.
the most wealthy county IN the state am
bids tilIr, before the lapse of many years
10 tar surpass all the rest except l}altimor
county Maryland, therefore, has no RICH
to complain Of this effect Of the Civil Ser
vice law.
IN whatever way the subject i
viewed the DEMENT'S of practical
! consistent system Of Civil seryic
become more and more apparent
The rush for office under the exist
+ ing conditions is enough to dStrac
! members Of Congress, and occupy ia
: too much Of the valuable time Of til
!. President and the members of his cab
net. If all the department position
were open to the demands of the spoil:
c hunters, the result would be complct
surrender to the demands of those seek
q ing service under tho government an
: the business Of the administrator woul
. be paraly2cd. 1t would be we'll TO e.
Z tend the operations Of the Civil Scrvic
/. system. 10 abandon it, or even curta
sc its jurisdiction would be dangerous.