Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-03-10
CIVIL-SERVICE LAW.
REPORT or SENATE COMMITTEE
OF INVESTIGATION.
EXECUTIVE HAS POWER TO MODIFY.
The Classification Has Been Too Ex-
tensiye-List OF the Places Whfch
the Committee Recommends for
Exemption.

WASHINGTON, March o. Senator
prltcnard chairman OF the Committee on
civil Service, to-day presented the report
of that committee on the recent investi-
CATION of the classified service, embodying
the conclusions OF the committee. These
conclusions are divided under two heads,
as follows:
FIRST. that the Executive has the
power to make such notifications as may
be- found advisable. and, therefore, no
legislation Is needed.
Secondly, the committee is agreed that
the classification has been too extensive
and that certain places that have been
classified should be excluded from classi-
ncation, so that appointments may be
made 10 them, not through legislation,
but at the pleasure of the head Of the
department or bureau"
Among the officers which the commit
tee recommend should be excluded from
the classified service are the follOwng
Deputy commissioner and deputy collec-
tors OF internal revenue, agents who are
employed for the Commissioner of Inter-
nal Revenue, temporary store-keepers
and gaugers, certain lighthouse en-
ployees, paymasters in the New York
custom-house, shipping commissioners at
the various ports, inspectors OF hulls and
boilers. all persons I'm the custodian SER
wee, assistant attorneys, and special
agents in the Department of Justice, and
deputy United States marshals.
1t is recommended that a number OF
employees in the Interior Department, in
Guiding the chief clerk of the depart
ment and the chief clerks Of the various
bureaus, special agents, and law exam
iners, be exempted. The exemption
recommended in this department is quite
extended, and includes generally the posi-
tons Of individual responsibility, the
temporary places, and the places of minor
responsibility.
1t is also recommended that private
secretaries be IN all cases exempted. The
same recommendation is made as to con-
hdential clerks in all departments: also.
as to post-office inspectors. and special
agents Of the Agricultural Department
A competitive departmental examina-
ton for technical positions at the navy
yards is recommended.
The committee express the opinion that
the classification of the Government
Prlntlng-Ofitce was not authorized by
law but that even if 1t was, many places
in that office were included which should
not have been.
PRESIDENTS RECENT ORDER.
The recent order Of the Presidents in
regard to removals seems TO have been
interpreted more narrowly than I'm the
mil he,
fes. They say that while the power OF
appointment to the civil-service may well
be regulated, so as 10 open the service
lmpartially to all the people of the United
states, under suitable restrictions, the
power OF removal should be very broad
Where clerk is deemed by his imme-
date superior TO be inefficient, IL is
clearly in the line of public policy that
that clerk should be discharged. and
there should be no impediment placed i'm
the way Of such a discharge except such
as may be necessary TO secure justice to
the person removed
Senator Lodge presented his views in a
separate report, which. while it agrees i'm
the main with the report submitted By
Senator Prltchard, does not present so
long a list Of persons whom he would
have exempted from the operations OF
the civil-service law. His list includes
deputy collectors OF internal revenue,
deputy collectors Of customs, private
secretaries to executive officials, assist
ant district attorneys, and assistant
United States marshals. He thinks a COM
plete revision of the system of local eX-
aiming boards Of the Pension Office is
necessary, and that the system should be
so changed as to secure uniformity of
rating. He thinks the service ought 10 be
extended to the Congre ssional Library
and the clerical force in the District OF
Columbia.
Senator Kinney also presented a brief
report. saying that while a change was
desirable. he did not consider ii advisable
TO make any suggestions to the President