Evening star., 1898-10-22
INADEQUATE
General Dumont Criticises the Civil
Service Commission.
DELAY CAUSED IN APPOINTMENTS
The Steamboat Inspection Service
Crippled.
SCARCITY OF CANDIDATES

| 5ShSi al VI tHs steamboat lDSDectlCn S5rE-
| Ice, in his annual report to the Secretary
| OF the Treasury, talks in the planest pos
| sible manner Of what he charges to be
| the i'll success of the civil service COM
mission in connection with the steamboa t
inspection service" The criticisms of the
commission will probably create a mild
sens alton. Mr.. Dumont explains that what
| he says is without prejudice against the
| personality of the civil service commission,
| between whom and this office the most cor
| dlal relations have always existed
| Mr.. Dumont refers to a bill which has
| passed the Senate and is before the House.
| amending section 4415 of the Revised Stat
| utes, and says that 1t will 'be Il great i'm
| provement over the civil service methods. -
| Mr.. Dumont then SAYS:
| The steamboat inspection service hay
| ing been placed in the classified service.
| SUBJECT to the rules and regulations of the
| civil service commission. by the Presi-
dents order, dated March :. 1896, it is
deemed proper to report herein that its
| workings have not been altogether a sue
| cess and to explain the reasons therefor
| from the standpoint of this office, which
| are:
Appointments Delayed
| FIRST The apparently inadequate force
| employed by the civil service commission.
| making it impossible for it to keep up with
| Its current correspondence, owing to re-
| quests for lists of eligibles for this service
| or for notification from the commission
| that they have no eligible list and author
| lzing temporary appointments, being fire.
| quently delayed ficm ten to thirty days
| after such requests have been sent to the
| commission. The serious result of such
ueiays may be better conceived when it is
| explained that the local inspector of hulIs
! and the local inspectors of boilers in the
performance of their official duties, have
| TO act as board and that a vacancy in
| the the office of either the inspector of hulls or
the inspector of boilers practically de-
stroys, While such a condition exists the
| OFFICIAL utility of the inspector remaining in
ONCE, who, under the law, as construed by
| Inc solicitor of the treasury. cannot legally
perform any CT the duties pertaining to his
Office. The only remedy for such conditions
Is the performance of the duties of the de-
hcient board by the supervising inspector
| OF the district himself, or of assign
Ing such duties to an adjoining board
| OF local inspectors, distant in some cases
hundreds of miles, thereby subjectipg,
the government to the payment of a sal
ary in 70 10 an anon, offcer performing no duty pend
ing the delay In obtaining list of eligibIes
besides having to pay the mileage of Off
GERS detailed from the adjoining district
during the continuance of the vacancy
An illustration in point is that of a va
cancy in the position of hull inspector in
the second supervising inspection district
caused by the death of the previous incum-
bent. Application was made to the civil
service commission for list of eligibles on
the 2oth OF the month. On the 3Oth no an
sWer having been received a special re-
quest was made to the commission to take
the matter up, which request resulted in
receiving the informa ton, five days later
that the commission had no eligible list
and authorizing a temporary appointment
to I'LL a vacancy that ought to, and would
have been filled. under former conditions
within a very few days, whereas in the
case referred to, the office was kept vacant
month lacking a few days, such DELAY
occurring during the busiest part of the
year, when the services of an officer to fill
the vacancy were much needed
Aversion to Examinations.
Second. The i'll success of the civil serv-
ice commission in connection with the
steamboat inspection service arises from
cause for which the commission itself is
not in any way to blame, and that is an
apparent aversion entertained by masters
mates, pilots and engineers to taking
competitive examination for positions
IN the service. This general aver
sion to taking the competitive civil service
examination was shown last winter. when
after a thorough advertising of the fact
et enat examinations would be held in the
1orty-two districts of the United StataS
where there are boards of local insnectors
candidates presented themselves in onlv
nIteen or such districts leaving TWENTY
seven districts unrepresented; whereas pre-
VlouS to the inspection service heinz nIacad
under the rules of the civil service u-ban.
the examination, though fully as rigid nc
lnat OF the civil service. but .non-competi-
i've, i've, there was never any trouble in secur-
ing competent person to fill a vacancy
That the selection of officers for tbe in
spectlon service is no better conducted nm
uer tne civil service rules than it was dur
ing several years preceding the placing it
under the civil service is illustrated bv The
fact that in an examination by the civil
service commission, February Il and 16
1873, of sixty-five officers who came into
me service previous to the requirements
or written examinations, forty-six of them
successfully passed above 10 the minimum
required for eligibility under the civil sery-
ice rules. their general average being above
% per cent four others reached with one
ana a traction points of the minimum
mark; one fell 51a and another ~ points
snort, and two failed TO complete the ex-
animation on the date mentioned one on
account OF sickness, the other being obliged
TO attend to official duties; but both have
since passed successful examinations one
getting an average of 9315, the other So 56.
VI the eleven remaining, three resigned.
TWO on account OF illness and one to take
more lucrative position and the other
eight were unable to attend the examina-
ton for reasons satisfactorily explained to
the department. OF these eight, seven have
'ii.SC PdSScu SUCCESSFUL examinations max
ing general average of 81 as.
The remaining one will be examined in
the near future the delay being caused by
the eXigencieS of the service which will
not permit him the time necessary to take
the examination until the business of the
season becomes less eXactirg.
Another evidence of the care exercised
by the nominating officers (supervising in
spectors) of the inspection service in their
election of candidates to fill vacancies in
the service is the fact that while tie civi!
service commission. since this service was
placed under its rule, has been called unou
to supply twenty-five vacancies in the
Office of local and assistant inspectors i
has been able to comply in only five cases
the remaining seventeen having been fued
by temporary appointments selected by the
supervising inspectors in the various Is
tricts where the vacancies occurred all
except one of these passing successfully
the civil service examination afterWarj
I'm tho five cases where eligibles were
furnished by the civil service commission
Il second call had 10 be made in two of
them on account of the fact that one eli
gible was found to have made false repre-
sentation as to his experience as a master
of steam vessels. and the other was con:
victed. by his own admission, of having
tried to bribe the nominating officer tn de-