The Durham daily globe. (Durham, N.C.) 1889-1894, 1893-11-09
NEPOTIsM AT WASHINGTON.

reformed and the capacity OF Its personal
force improved and elevated has dis
closed some interesting facts. Among
them perhaps none is more interesting
than the discovery of the extent to which
nepotism prevails in the public service
1t is known to comparatively few that IL
the departments at Washington the rela-
tives Of senators and other prominent
p~ersOnages constitute a considerable pro
portion of the employees, but even those
who are aware Of this may be surprised
at the large number of such, while to the
great mass {. the people the evidence of
nepotism in the public service will be
astounding.
AS fully as the committee has been able
to ascertain, there are in the several de-
partments at Washington 1910 employees
having relatives who, at the same time,
draw salaries from the government. Ac-
cOriing to a published statement five
officials have each eight relatives who are
sustained with themselves at the public
crib; four have each seven relatives in
government employment; ten have six
each twenty six have five each; ninety
six have four each; 229 have three each ;
,031 have two each, and 453 have each
| one relative who is also in the service of
the United States. The total number of
employees is 1859, and nearly one third
of these have relatives who are able to
boast of drawing salaries from the public
treasury. 1t is stated by the committee
that in thirty-seven cases husband and
| wife draw official salaries. There is one
case in which husband, wife, brother and
son, as well as another relative, are on
the pay rolls, and in still another case
husband, wife, sister and five other rela-
tives in public employment. Not less
than S87 male employees have brothers in
the public service, and 627 women EN-
ployes have also secured good places for
their sisters through the influence they
have with the dispensers of patronage
One woman clerk has a husband. two
brothers and q sister holding less lucra-
tive places in the government. Fifteen
officials have both sons and daughters in
the public service, the united salaries of
the family making a very generous in
come.
TO some extent civil service reform is
responsible for the nepotism that exists
in the departments at Washington, but
only to a very limited degree, the fact
being that the system antedates that re-
form and has been in practice for many
years. Indeed there has never been a
time, at least within the last fifty years,
when there was nOt more or less nepot-
ism in the government service, and not
only in the legislative and executive de-
paTtments, but in the judicial department
also. An investigation of the federal
courts of the country would show that
the prevalence of this practice is wide
spread. Nepotism in public offices can
not be approved under any circumstan-
stances, and such a rank growth of the
system as is shown by the Investigations
of the Joint committee of mgr calls
for vigorous efforts to put an end to the
practice. Referring to this matter, a
contemporary says there is doubtless
much ground for the complaint that un-
der the spoils policy appointments are
made upon no other claim or merit than
party service, but under the syetem of
nepotism revealed in this committees re-
port many official appointments have
been due to claims and merits Of a more
doubtful character han the most un-
srupulous service of party.