The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-27
BAILEY MAKES CHARGES
CHIEF CLERK ARRAIGNs THE CIVIL
SERVICE COMMISSION.
Letter Which He Read Before the SEN
ate Investigation Committee
Mr.. PrOctOr's Reply.

WASHINGTON, Jan. &c. - E. D. Bailey,
chief clerk of the examiners office, Civil
service Commission, submitted some sensa-
tional testimony at to-day's session of the
Senate civil service investigating commit
tee. 1t wa sequel to the charges he made
Monday of intimidation and interference by
the commission with his testimony. He
called attention to the bitter attack made
on him then by President Proctor, of the
commission. He read a letter he had adj
dressed to Theodore Roosevelt then New
York police commissioner, severely CRITICS.
ing the commission. This letter said in
part:
THE business of the commission is in the
greatest confusion, and Is becoming more
and more demoraliZed for want of inteli-
gent management. acquisitions remained
Enacted upon for months, and many COM
plants are made by the departments of de-
lays and annoyanceS detrimental to the
service. In such cases temporary appoint
mentS were authorized, and after ninety
days made permanent, although no rule ex-
lists permitting such actions. These requi-
siIions probably cover several hundred
places"
The letter gave a number of instances in
substantiation of the general statement.
Continuing the letter said:
Questionable appointments have been so
numerous that the rules have almost lost
their force and the alleged law of necessity
is rcgnant and a want of uniformity exists
in all the business of the commission, and
the greatest uncertainty prevails. The
subordinateS cannot do their work with
confidence, because all presidents, practices
and principles are abandoned and new ones
substituted No reliable policy or line of
action exists which can be relied on, ana
contradictory action is frequent. The force
of the commission has lost confidence IN the
ability of the management and can do no
more than to maintain existing conditions
and await inevitable changes. Inc action
taken by the commission lacks continuity,
and the minutes OF the day contradict those
of another day. Action is taken then
amended, then revoked. Under the recent
administration, four of the i've offlcers or
the commission were changed, bringing In
new men, who lacked even the advantage
of experience in the departmental service,
some. whose views were unfavOrable TO the
civil service laws and rules, with theories
little less than hostile, and their inexperi-
ence and unfamiliartty proved disastrous.
80 900 new offices, and utterly failed TO pro-
vide to meet these needs. The present con-
dition is thoroughly alarming. Disaster
can be averted only by immediate remedial
action, and at least three changes i'll the
office should be made at once, not for po-
ntical reasons, but in the interest of the
service"
Mr. Proctor asked If Mr.. Bailey had not
sent copies of this communication to GER
tain senators. The witness replied that his
wife was, SO far as he knew, the only otner
person who knew of its existence.
About that time your friends asked to
have the President appoint you civil service
commissioner he was asked.
'All / know is that the papers said Rep
resentative Walker, of Worcester, Mass,
where / came from, had presented my name
to the President"
President Proctor, OF the commission,
made statement to the committee regard
ing the charges that he and the commission
had sought to intimidate witness Bailey.
He said that when he had spoken to Mar.
Bailey and told him that hitherto no one
had been subpoenaed by the chairman OF
the committee except those who were an
tagoniStic to the commission, he had then
in his possession a duplicate copy of the
&C mmunication to Mr.. Roosevelt, submit
ted to-day. 1t was furnished him by a
United States senator, and he did not know
its authors until the first testimony of Mr..
Bailey, when he suspected him. He had
known for some time that the paper had
been passed among senators and made the
basis of an attack on the civil service. He
told MIR. Bailey that he supposed the latter
had been subpoenaed at the instance of
some senator who had seen the paper, and
that after the complaints were all in he
would ask the committee to summon people
who had long experience in important po-
sitions in relation to the operation of the
civil service. He had stated that he wished
any one having a knowledge of wrongdoing
in the commission would state all the facts,
but there was a line to be drawn between
that and q subordinate criticiSing the adj
ministration of the commission the depart
ments and the President making sugges-
tionS.