The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-12-14
HONEST LAW WANTED
OBJECT OF THE CRUSADE AGAINST
THE CIVIL-sERyICE ACT.
Members Of Congress Favor Reform
fng the Merit System by RObbinE
1t of Its "HypOcrisy."
VIEWS OF STEELE AND LANDS
TWO INDIANIANS WHO DISCLAINT
CHARGES OF RADICALIsM.
Both Are Sincere in Their Desire to
See the Law Cured of It's Pres
ent Alleged Defects.
special to the Indianapolis Journal.

Special to the Indianapolis Journal
WASHINGTON, Dec. 13.-Representative
Steele, who is member of the anti-civil-
service committee appointed to frame a
bill to amend the existing law, has some
very decided views on the subject of the
civil-service system and it's abuses. In con-
versation with your correspondent this aft
ernoon he expressed himself in substance
as follows: Our committee will meet to-
morrow afternoon and go through the fifty
or more bills which have been introduced
in the House relating to civil service, and
If we can find anything in the lot which
represents our ideas we will adopt it, If we
cannot we will frame measure, submit it
to the body that created us and if 1t meets
with the approval of these gentlemen it will
probably be recommended to the House,
either direct or through the agency of the
regularly constituted civil-service commit
tee. There is not d man on committee
who will be in favor of bringing in anything
radical, and l think it will be found when
we are through that the propositions which
will be embodied in our bill will be such as
to command the respect of the country and
the favorable consideration of Congress.
There is no disposition in any influential
quarter, as far as / can learn, to destroy
the system, but we feel strongly that it
has been abused and that the law is badly
in need of friendly pruning and revision.
Il think and l believe that express the
views of majority of those who are
classed as opponents of the civil-service
it now stands, that officials who are ap-
pointed to responsible positions and have to
give large bonds should be allowed to select
their own immediate assistants and the
clerks and other employees on whom they
must directly lean and depend for the con-
duct of their Offices The same is true also
Of the heads of departments and bureaus of
departments i think these officials should
be allowed to have confidential clerks of
their own selection and men whom they
know to be in sympathy with them and
with the administration 1 do not think it
is good policy to make the administration
of the governmental departments entirely
autocratic or to embarrass those who are
responsible for the management of the
great business of the country by compelling
them to rely wholly on peoples@with whom
they have no acquaintance, or concerning
whose qualifications and trustworthiness
they have no personal knowledge.
II think the system of examining appli-
cants for clerkships and other official posi-
tons should be so amended as to have
these examinations apply particularly and
definitely to the special branch of employ
ment in each case. Fer instance, men who
are especially adapted to discharging the
duties of postal clerks would not necessar-'
lily make good clerks in the Patent Office.
L could give dozens of Illustrations on this
point, but that will suffice 1 am in favor
Of tenure of office. and do not believe that
governmental employees should hold their
positions more than eight years at the out
side. / feel they should be obliged to un-
dergO re-eXamination as to their fitness
at the end of the first four years. That is
the only way we can escape civil pension
list. 1 would favor allowing those now in
the public service to remain there four
years after the passage of the law and no
longer. These are some of the points that
suggest themselves to me wherein there is
a need of improving the ciVil-service law.
VIEWS OF MR.. Lands.
Representative Lands wishes to add a
few lines to the interview which was pub
lished in the Journal week ago. He says:
II am not opposed to the principles on
which our civl-service system is based. |
am opposed, however, to the abuses with
which that systetm has been loaded down,
and favor correcting them. The very best
friends of the system should be. the ones
who help us, and not those who antagonize
us in our effort to make the administration
of the law sensible and effective, and along
the lines originally contemplated. We want
to strip the system of its hypocrisy and
make it honest. 1t long since came to such
a pass that any fraud and fake could make
any sort of a proposition affecting civil serv-
ice. label II 'civil-servce REFORM, and at
once enlist the ciVi-SerVice reform clique
all over the country, not only in its behalf
but into an army prepared to resent any
criticism of 1t as malevolent, and to stamp
those who might try to point out its de-
fects spoilsmen and ruffians. 1t is this
sham and false pretense that we want to
tear away from the system, and to give
honestly and for the general good. The sys-
tenn as we now find it fairly reeks with
abuses We do not have to go out of our
way to hunt for them. They confront us
wherever we are. | will mention one little
instance to ILLUS Illustrate | was up in the sixth
desk of that official / applied to see list
which the auditor handed me, and said con-
tanned the names of the clerks in his Of
caught my eye was the name of Miss Hat
tie Craft charged to Delphi, my own town.
Delphi. and / knew there was no person
of that name living there. On inquiry |
learned that sixteen years ago man by the
name of Craft made his home in Delphi
for short time, and that he had young
daughter by the name of Hattie. After an
absence of fourteen years, during which
time the Crafts were never In Delphi, a
Hattie Craft was appointed, in 1895, to a
departmental clerkship in Washington as
being from Delphi. This is Il fraud its
face and rank injustice to bona fide resi-
dents of Delphi who have taken the civil
service examination in good faith and
whose appointment may have been blocked
by the fact that there was somebody on
the rolls purporting to be from that town.
have heard OF a great many other sim
liar cases, but this one | happen to know
about myself. / want to see to what ex-
tent the government pay rolls are falsi-
fed"
DEMOCRATS FAVOR REPEAL
The outlook for changing the civil-service
law is being actively canvassed among Re-
publican members of the House as result
of the conference held Saturday night. The
members of the special committee having
the matter in charge are trying to so shape
"a bill that it will command the support
of a number of divergent elements. One of
these is the Democratic minority, which,
combined with the Republicans opposed to
the present law, would be strong enough to
carry a bill. But in canvassing the situa-
tion it has been found that Democratic
members would favor a complete repeal of
of repeal. AS the Republican movement is
not toward complete repeal. but rather for
modification of the law. there appears to
be basis by which the anti-civil-service
reformers of both parties can unite 1t is
claimed however, that modification bill
will receive the vote of two-thirds Of the