St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-02-25
CIVIL SERVICE UNDER CLEVELAND.
When the history of the reform of the

When the history of the reform of the
civil service of this country comes to
be impartially written, it is to the two
administrations of Mr.. Cleveland that
there will be accorded the most
sincere and effective support of the
movement and it's extension on solid
foundations. 1t was Mr.. Cleveland's
conceptions Of Office, shown both in
his speech and his practice as gov
ernor of New York, that made him
president in 1885; and, while there was
much just criticism of the administra-
ton Of the law during that term, there
were many unconsidered causes for
whatever shortcomings there may
have been. There had never been by
his predecessors anything but per-
functory compliance with the letter of
the law; and Hayes efforts to inject
into his party a regard for and OBJ
servance of it's spirit was contempt
uously ignored. Back of Mr. Cleveland
was triumphant party, barred for
twenty-five years from all federal Of
fees and educated in the Jacksonian
idea. No man can conceive the pres
sure on Mr.. Cleveland or the sturdiness
needed to resist it.
Elected a second time, with the ex-
perience of one term and a larger con-
ception Of the abundant evils and
party inutility of patronage, he has
signalized his term with extensions of
the rules Of the service to an extent
that surprises when the facts are
grouped. He not only adhered to his
former policy of permitting officers to
hold for the four years for which they
were commissioned, but he applied it
to that much the lag class, the
fourth-class postmasters, hitherto the
victims of every change of administra-
ton. This was done without legal
authorization or requirement and by
merely the exercise of executive will.
But in the domain wherein congress
had authorized action, he has made
sweeping enlargement OF the service
rules until there is hardly a place left
Tor the spokesman to practice his art.
Now that we are entering on another
presidential campaign it is well to
note what a representative of that
party which George William Curtis,
from memory, described as "an organ
lied Appetite has done in the adj
vancement Of this reform. In the in.
oil o
placed under the commission, leaving
but few, and those confidential clerk.
ships, unsheltered. The government
printing Office, that snug harbor of the
needy when the other ports were quar-
antlned against them, has 2,709 of it's
5000 places subject to the rules The
messengers and watchmen and the
foremen in all the departments. num-
boring 1852 places. are in the classified
lists. At ports of entry having fifty
and more employees, eleven in all. $50
employees are classified, and at other
ports employing between twenty and
fifty persons, 667 have been added.
With some others this makes 1883
transferred from the political to the
service lists. The natural growth of
the service has added $3.50 places to
the civil lists, and the increase from
March 4, 1898, to Jan. 1, 1896, has been
from 42,92S to 55,736.
To these must be added the trans
fers from those heretofore excepted
from the rules because Of the per-
sonal, or confidential nature of their
relations to the heads of departments
or bureaus, of whom there were 1855.
The larger part of these, 1851 are
among postoffice employees In the de-.
partment of agriculture the chiefs OF
divisions and the experts have been
transferred, and also the experts in
the geological bureau 1t will be seen
that there has been in less than three
years a remarkable expansion of the
places under the rules regulating ap-
pointmert and promotion, and the bait
Of an Office is removed almost entirely
as factor in national and congress