Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1899-07-17
SEC. GAGE REPLIES
TO Recent Charges Of Civil
Service Reform League.
Has Always Upheld Law--No Removals
for Political Reasons.
AL Appointments Strictly by Letter Of Law
League Is UniriendIy.

addressed to him by the secretary of
the National civil Service Reform
League.
See. Cages reply, which is addressed
to the league, Will appear in the COM
ing issue Of the Independent.
Mr.. Gage says that he never received
the letter referred to, which fact leads
him to believe that it was intended
rather for the press than for himself.
The secretary Of the treasury says:
Il shall consider only Il few Of the
allegations, ana II these are shown to
be not founded in truth ! shall leave
the public to judge Of the reliability Of
his statements as to the rest. He says:
Following the incoming Of the new adj
ministration. however. there were
sweeping changes in the force Of
agents and clerks known commonly as
deputy collectors. in many districts.
The new appointments were made gen
! orally in open disregard Of the civil
service law, ana in most cases for poll
teal reasons.
This statement IL misleading, and
therefore untrue. Not a clerk, not an
agent in the service OF the internal
revenue bureau has been removed for
political reasons. Very few removals
Of any kind have in fact been made,
and when made they have been in
strict conformity with the Presidents
order of July -, 1897. which requires
! anteccdent to removal, the filing Of
charges and the opportunity for de-
| fence
1t may be doubted however if your
secretary intended To refer to clerks
| and agents in the language he used. He
! speaks Of agents ana clerks known
commonly as deputy collectors. There
are no such clerks ana agents. There
are clerks, agents and deputy collectors,
| but they are as distinctly separated
as are the treasurer Of the United
| States, his bOokkeeper and his money
counters"
Sec. Gage says that if the remarks Of
the secretary Of the league were intend
ed to apply to deputy collectors Of in
ternal revenue, he knew when writing
that there had long been a contention
a. to the legal right Of collectors to ap-
point their deputies. Some collectors
have asserted the authority given to
them by section 31fS of the revised
statutes, and have dismissed the depu-
1
men of their own choice. Appeals have
| been taken to the courts. with the re-
] suit indicated in a decision of Judge
| Fitzpatrick Of the United States circuit
court. district of New Jersey, who de-
MED Il motion to restrain a collector of
! internal revenue from removing dep
uty collectors. and held the power of
removal rests with the appointing
power, the collector. subject to such re-
| quirementS as to notice rs the commits
sioncr of internal revenue may pre-
| scribe and cannot be reviewed by an
appeal to the courts.
With all the assertions of right and
| power made by the collectors to APP
point their own deputies. claim which
has been put in practice in certain
cases. it still remains true that the re
straininG influence of the treasury de-
partment has been such that out Of
| total of 9G3 such appointees, 752 deputy
collectors We're appointed. and on May
| % last held their positions under the
| provisions Of the civil service law and
| rules. which he. the secretary of the
| league. charges the treasury depart
ment with entirely disregarding.
THE I'll not thus accounted for in
clude those temporary appointments
made with the consent of the civil ser
| vice commission in cases where they
We're unable to furnish eligibles. The
remainder may be said to be those APP
pointments which are alleged to have
| been made in contraVention Of the civil
service law. But they We're made in
| View Of section 314S. revised statutes.
an authority invoked by collectors for
their independent action in the prem
| ises, ard. as he we'll must know. in
some instances sustained by the courts.
notably the case before cited.
In regard to statement Of the secre-
tary of the league that since the open
ing OF the war with Spain the number
of appointments in the Washington
office of the treasury department
through competition under the civil
service rules has been insignificant"
Sec. Gage says:
Suppose that only IA clerks have
been drawn from the commissions
eligible lists, as the secretary of the
Civil Service Reform League he must
know that there are eligibles under the
civil service commission. How many
soldiers eligible for reinstatement have
DceH restored as opportunity OIefcu
How many transfers under the law
have been made from other depart
ments to the benefit Of the service. af-
fording some promotion to deserving
and experienced clerks just as eligible
to appointment by transfer as any of
the candidates whose names are on the
waiting lists of the commission.
1T is not worth the time to look up
the data, but this | assert that every
appointment to the classified service IN
the treasury department has been
made either by taking eligibles from
commission lists. by reinstating eiSi-
bles. or by transfer of eligibles-in one
Of these three ways and none other.
He cOnfuses the question with quite
another question: i. e., the appointment
of temporary clerks made necessary by
the late war. These appointments
have absolutely nothing to do with the
question of whether or not this depart
ment has viola ted the civil service law.
and | fail to understand his motive in
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