St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1897-06-11

get it. A law under which such proceed
ines can be successfully carried out is
certainly not good law. That all EN-
ployes of the government should be COM
petent to perform their duties is conceded
by every one.
Section 2 of the law provides that ap-
poiptments at Washington shall be APP
portoned among the states upon the
basis of population.
| find in a pamphlet containing in
structons to applicants for examlna-
ton, issued by the civil service commits
sion on January /, 1897, the following
Legal residents of the District OF Column
bia, Maryland and Virginia will not be
admitted to the clerk, copyist, messenger,
Waterman, stenography or typewriting
examinations, because the district and
states named have already had an
excessive share of appointments"
Ofthese, take the position OF watch
man Tor instance. After large number
have been appointed on the watch force
from those states--and it is safe to say
| they are all democrats-under a strict
enforcement of the law they cannot be
removed until they die or are too old to
perform their duties. They were ap-
pointed without examination, and after
ward placed in the classified service, and
now comes the civil service commission,
and, in large, bold-faced type, announces
to the republicans and all other citizens
of Maryland and Virginia that they
cannot, during the present generation (lf
the law is properly enforced), take the I'M
tial step toward qualifying themselves for
the position watchmeni in agovernment
department in Washington. They are
denied even the privilege of examination.
Is it any wonder the law is declared I'M
American?
Senator Gallinger, on the floor of the
Senate on the Odd Of last month, voiced
the sentiment of every true American
when he said: Every citizen of this
republic has an equal right with every
other citizen OF the republic to seek en-
ployment under the government of the
United States"
But the worst feature of the law is the
fact that it establishes a class of office
holders who get to believe that they are
to remain in office as long as they live.
If they are appointed for stated time,
many of them would take better care of
tEeir money than they do, so that they
could make living in some kind of bust
ness when their time of officeholding
expired, and thus having an object to
work for, they would be fitted for the
future work in life that they had planned
to perform. 1t is common saying in
Washington that after one has been in
government employ few years he is OF
no account for anything else. A large
number have been in the departments
ever since the law was passed, and at
least 80 per cent of these who receive
from 5000 to $4,000 per year could not
get more than halt as much money for
the same work if they were employed by
the business men of the country.
Comfortable offices are provided by the
government, the hours of work are from
9 a. m. to 4 p. M, with a half hour for
lunch, they are paid twice a month, have
six holidays, thirty days annual leave
and thirty days sick leave, with full
pay, each year; and yet with all these
advantages, this class has grown to
believe that after long term OF ser
vice the government should provide q
savings bank or pension Tor them, after
as they claim, "they have given the best
years of their lives to the service of the
government" while every intelligent per
son knows that every day they have
been in government employ there have
been Others just as competent, ready ant
willing to fill such places, and glad tc
perform the same service, even if thei
pay was considerably less.
do not believe any political party cal
remain in power more than four year
with the present civil service law il
force. That it produces a continuou
conflict with any party in power canno
be denied. Placing mechanics under CIV
service causes no end OF trouble to an
political party. Take that of the printer
The government printing officeis unio
Office, while the civil service commissio
does not recognize the union. A nor
union printer may be examined an
appointed, and the union will then eithe
have to "whitewash" him and admit hir
into the union, or permit that lare
establishment to become non-unio
Office, and the political party in powt
will be blamed for the trouble arisin
from the action Of the supposed moi
political civil service commission.
Prior to the passage of the civil servi'
law six presidents were elected Tor tw
successive terms each, and but one, Va
Buren,, was defeated while since Il
passage of the law the only two WI
ran as their own immediate successor