Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-11-14

II consider civil service reform the
colossal political humbug of the nineteenth
century,
So spoke DIR. A p. Pardon at the meet
ing of the Board of Trade Monday night
much to the surprise of many who UP to
that time imagined, and who even now be-
leve, that the prosperity and growth of
the District of Columbia depend to a con-
siderable extent upon the fixity of tenure
Of department employees on duty at the
National Capital. DR.. Fardons utterance
was brought forth by a resolution which
announced approval by the board of di-
rectcrs af the generally popular plan to
extend civilservice rules to persons the
District pay-rolfs. a resolution which in
stead of being unanimously adopted was
laid the table because of the feeble
voiced opposition that developed. Such
weakness of action by a body of men
whose interests are ene with those of the
CRY Is extraordinary and cannot easily. Il
at all. i've explained away. Why was IT
that the boa rd of directors-the authors of
the resolution-sat unmoved in their places
and permitted their work to be assailed
without saying one protesting word?
Dbl II not occur to the silent ones that
this city-to improve which they have or
gsnized the Board OF Trade-has suffered
almost beyond computation and still suf-
fers from the evil wrought by the prac-
teal politician? Was there no merchant
present who had, lost. through bad debts,
large sums Of money at every change of
administration suffered discouraging
drminution of business when q radio al
change was impending? When the spells
system was steadily Ia operation a heavy
percentage of the cfty's population was of
the kind which Is broadly characterized as
floating" people whose only local tie was
of the financial sort; men and women who
were entirely without care as to the mate
rial surroundings which were beyond the
circumference of their own narrow circle:
department employees who drew their sal
aries regularly and spent in the main, as
little as possible because they were with
out hope of permanent employment and
desired to take away with them as much
as they could when the time came to va
cafe in favor of other and temporarily
successful partisans.
There cannot be too much of civil service
reform for Washington. viewing the matter
from a purely selfish and yet natural and
even commendable standpoint. What this
city needs is a population Independent of
such distressing revolutions as hare OBJ
structed its expansion and general improve
ment; IL wants men and women to hold
their pieces through merit alone SO that
homes may be founded without fear of
political earthquakes overturning the struc-
lures. The PROPOSITION submitted to the
Board of Trade aimed to bring about a
better state of affairs, had for it's object
Improvement at once moral and ply steal
and in all senses desirable. Yet DIR. Far
don-a member of the Board of Trade
her Mr r
Wflson-declsred the whole matter to be
political and dangerous, the board of direc-
tors were dumb; and the board itself was
thoughtless enough to follow such iearder-
ship
1t has been urged that under the civil
sitions under the District government Adj
mittins-just for the sake of argument.
that such possibility exists 1t may safely
be asserted that the number of the i'm
ported would probably be less than it Is
under the present system. But the nom
resident contention falls to the ground
when 1t is remembered that the President
cannot extend the rules, without legislative
authority. because District employees
municipal and not federal The required
amendment would naturally provide for
home rule.
1t Is not unreasonable to believe that the
Board of Trade will, at the earliest possible
opportunity. take the resolution from the
table and adopt IL.