The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-12-28
Facts About the Civil Service.

Facts About the IiNn SeTNlCe'
An interesting review Of the opera
tions of the present civil service law
is contributed by Colonel Henry Han
in letter in the Pittsburg Times.
Passed and approved i'm January. 1888,
that law provided originally for the
employment of six persons (noW grown
To 62) and covered 5,5l7 places in the
departmental service at Washington
the salary limit ranging from 5000 to
81 500 per year; 2,573 persons in the Gus
tom house service and 5.699 in the %
postofIices then employing more than
30 persons a grand total of 1894. TO
these there were added during Presi-
dent Arthurs term, by the growth of
the service. 1,649. This made the grand
total of offices in the classified service
on March 4. 1855. when President CleVe-
land entered office, 15,j73.
President Cleveland added to the list
during his first four years 1853 places
of which 1881 We're in the depart
mental and $500 in the railway mail
service. The growth of the service
added 449S more, a total of ll,151. or
nearly as many more as the law orig
inally covered, and ran the grand total
Up to 81, $50 President Ha'risOn added
only / ,OSO to the departmental service,
and those were in the Indian service,
the weather bureau and the fish COM
mission. but the law was extended to
the 7.Gl0 employees Of the 5lS free de-
livery postofiiCes. This made the total
by executive action $500, and to these
We're added 6,9OS by the growth Of the
service. or l5.59S in all. This made the
aggregate list on March 4, 1893 when
Cleveland became president again, A.,
92S
Mr.. Cleveland, as Colonel Hall points
out. signalized his second term by what
he called in his last message to con-
gress most radical and sweeping eX-
tensions" The classified service was
extended in all the departments, in
cluding messengers, Watchmen and
even firemen. In the custom house SER
vice l,527 employees went under the
rules. in the government printing office
2,70" on Dec II. 1898. he extended the
! ployes of the internal revenue service.
! Complications arising from this order
| are now before the United States courts
| from the revenue districts Of both Viz
! gnia and West Virginia. 1t is mat
| ter of current report that President
! Mckinley is considering the propriety
! of revoking or modifying this extern
! eli ,,t ha oil
| enumerated did not satisfy the civil
service yearnings of Mr.. Cleveland and
/ on May 6, 1896, the classification was
! extended to practically every position
! To which the act of 1888 is applicable,
! with the exception of fourth class post
! masters and minor positions specific
! ally excluded. This order also placed
| in the competitive class all chiefs of
divisions, chief clerks and disbursine
| officers. change which is open to we'll
! grounded criticism. 1t embraced in all
3l,372 persons. These several eXten-
sions included 41,76S places, almost
doubling the classified list. 1T should
be added" says Colonel Hall, that
none of these officeholders had passed
any examinations, and yet they were
put on the same footing with those
who had met every requirement of the
civil service law" In addition to these
there We're added by the growth of the
service 2,4l2 places, making Mr., Cleve,
lands grand total during his last tern
ALSO. and running the total list up tC
S7.l0S.
Since President Mckinley went into
office he has, by executive order. eX,
empted few places, mostly offices ol
a confidential character from the OPP
efations Of these extensions. OF thcs,
S7,10S there are 75.Oj7 classified b,
compensation, APO pension examining
surgeons and 26 presidential positions
not confirmed by the senate, 7Sl pri
vate secretaries, cashiers. deputy col
leCtOrs of customs, assistant postmas
ters, attorneys and assistant attor
neys, 2,06l i'm the Indian service, AN,
j,0G} employed i'm labor in the navy
yards. The uuclassined service. .whicl
the civil service law docs not cover
includes 9l,G09 places. OF these $50
are persons employed partly i'm private
business and receiving salaries iron
the government not exceeding $500 pc
year, persons in the n ilitary or nava
service, detailed for civil duties, per
sons employed in foreign countries un
der the state department, and person
whose duties are of quasi military o
naval character, and who are enIiste,
for a term of wears, There are 5,57
presidential officers confirmed by tn
Senatn, $3.50 laborers below classified
ton, about 5000 clerks in pcstofIice
which are not free delivery offices, am
, GG,725 fourth-class pOstmasters. tn
total number of places i'm the executiv
service is thus liS,7l7, whose annua
! compensation amounts To $99 5sa, S27. g
, Colonel Hall asserts that the mex
, move of the radical civil service ne
p formers will be To extend the law [
! the $4,000 fOurth-class postmasters
, | President Cleveland suggested in hi
, last message that the matter deserve
! consideration. 1T is the opinion @
| the commission" says its annual re
port, that the fourth class pDstoftice
, may be included in the Classifcatio
/ by executive order, When these eXten