The San Francisco call., 1899-11-26
CHARTER POINTS DISCUSSED.


To the Editor OF The Call: In attempt
ing 10 construe the civil service provi-
sions OF the new charter in my letter TO
you the ether day 1 had no idea that 1
was making a personal attack on Mr.. III.
y. Clement, member Of the Civil Service
Committee OF tho Board OF FreehOlders
and candidate for Civil Service Commits
sioner at the hands of Mayor Phelan. II
appears. however. from the tone or his
communication published yesterday that
he considers this civil service business his
affair entirely. The promptitude with
which he has sprung the Nevada style
OF controversy upon me leaves no other
conclusion than that he does not intend
TO brook interference with IL Oy anybody.
Ny purpose in addressing you, however.
was not as Mr.. Clement thinks, 10 con-
sole the "push'-thOugh, being the bot
tom dogs in this affair. l do not grudge
them all the consolation they can get out
of my view of the law-but 10 uncover
the person or persons responsible Tor the
civil service faux pas OF the new charter.
This purpose has been accomplished. Mr..
Clement has promptly avowed himself
the author OF the bCtch by attempting 10
defend IL. such being the case, IL Is TO
be hoped that he Will drop the Nevada
style Of argument and proceed to elabo-
rate theory OF construction by which
tie civil service provisions of the new
charter can be made TO apply to appoint
ments conferred by the heads Of the city
government on January 5. 1t is no
answer 10 my argument 10 suspect my
devotion TO civil service reform or i'm
punge my motives.
The clause OF section 10, article XIII,
quoted by Mr.. Clement does not prove his
case. Ii has no application whatever TO
II. Either he has not read article NH
lately or he is unable to give legal effect
TO the language used in IL. Like all the
other sections of article XIII, sectica 10
applies to the CLASSIFIED service pro-
vided by the charter. defy Mr.. Clement TO
ing that any OF the civil service provisions
OF the new charter apply to any service
except the classified" service. The Com
missioners are given authority over no
other service and they can grant permis-
sion TO appoint without examination only
to that service.
What, then, is the true construction OF
article XIII? Manifestly II sets up
a system of rules whereby applicants
shall be examined and appointed after
classification. No intelligent person, let
alone n lawyer, will. after subjecting ar
ticle XIlI TO the test OF reason, contend
that any other construction can be placed
If Mr.. Clement will read the article he
will discover that the very first duty inn
posed upon the Civil Service Commits
sloners after appointement is TO ''classi-
~ all the places of employment in or un-
der the offices ard departments of the
city and county mentioned in section II
OF this article, with reference to the ex-
aminations hereinafter provided for
7
constitute the civil service of the city
and county, and no appointment TO any
such places shall be made except ac-
cording 70 the rules OF the commission
How can the commission grant permis-
sion in case Of emergency to make tenn
porary appointments TO any other than
the classified service? IL the charter had
said in terms that for the purpose of
putting !nto effect the provisions with
respect 10 a classified civil service the
commission might on the first Monday
after the first day of January. 19pJ.
grant permission to make temporary an
pointments the case would have been diff
ferent. But IL does not say So In fact.
It says the very opposite. as / have IL
lustrated
The difficulty with Mr.. Clement is tnat
he is unfamiliar with the rules of statu-
tory construction. He thinks he has
made system which covers the
point / have raised. but he has not
done SO, and l will venture TO say that
when his work comes to be reviewed by
the courts. as IL certainly will be- they
will point out TO him that he has neg
lected to n axe provision for giving retro
active effect 10 his civil service rules
1t Is plain that article XIII is prospect
i've in its operation. First. the Civil Ser
vice Commission is appointed; then IL
classifies the service; then IL makes rules;
then II publishes notice for two weeks
that II is about to hold examinations:
then, having accumulated stock of civil
service material, II honors requisitions
from public officials. The government
however, cannot await the perfecting OF
this nrncess 1t must 20 on The Civil