The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-12-15
A Letter That Was Recently sent to
President Mckinley IL Given
to the Public.
REPORTS FROM MANY CITIES
ARE SUBMITTED, SHOWING THE
CONDITIONS THAT OBTAIN.
Carl Schurz Addresses al Audience
mt Plymouth Church-Other Pa
pers Read-A Resolution.

Sloi A1lCStAl6 vi ttS
Reform League. which began its nineteenth
annual meeting in this city yesterday,
showed an attendance of about forty MEM
bers of the league. The convention was
formally opened by a joint meeting of the
general and executive committees, which
convened at the German House yesterday
afternoon at 2 o'clock. Immediately after
the roll call Of delegates, the secretary
submitted his report, in connection with
which, after referring to the appointment
of committees, ETC., he submitted the fol-
lowing letter, that had been sent to Presi-
dent Mckinley, under date OF Nov. 10:
The undersigned, members of the execu-
tive committee of the National Civil-serv-
ioe f sa : Ls Ca 9ss f EespeGtfuily invite tie
January, 1899, a special committee, ap-
pointed by the league, called upon you for
the purpose of demonstrating against your
contemplated executive order for excluding
certain places from the classified service,
M to this committee you expressed your
intention of adding other places to the
service, greater in number than those ex-
cluded. After the PRONUNCIATION of your or
special committee, consisting of Messrs.
William Dudley Foulke, Richard Henry
Dana and Herbert Welsh, addressed to
you the following letter:
II unuSTSlkueQ OeS 10 IemlnO you Oh
the fact that in our conversation we ex-
pressed the hope that If you found it neces-
sary to make these exclusions you would,
at the same time, include within the CLASH
ton. at least as large a number of places
as those omitted, so that ii might appear
that no step had been taken. To
this you replied that 1t was your intention
those excluded, and that you hoped to
make the order SO comprehensive that the
reform of the civil service would be then
SO complete that nothing further would
need to be done in regard to 1t. Our disap-
pointment was, therefore, great when,
upon the appearance of your order, we
found not only that the number of exclu-
sions was far greater than had been pre-
viously supposed, but that there were none
of the inclusions which you had assured
us 1t was your intention to make, and
thinking it possible that these inclu~.c vs.
may have been reserved for your frtu-e
action, we write to ask whether We MAJ
not look for some extensions of the CLASH
fled service during your administration.
Iiie consular service (at least in part), a
registered labor service (Which, although
not required by the civil-service act. is
certainly not prohibited). and other
branches not now embraced in the CLASH
fled system, could still be included. And an
executive intimation requiring competitive
examination for clerkships and other posi-
tions in the Census Bureau would guard
against the repetition of many evils which
existed in that bureau at the time of the
taking of the last census. May we not hope
that it is still your purpose to make some
substantial and important extensions of
the present classified system?'
We believe that the large number of ex-
illusions made by your order of May %,
from the requirement of competitive exam
ination has been Injurious not only to the
civil service of the government, but to the
country at large, and we hope to satisfy
you of this oy the results of certain in
VeStiRatiOnS which we intend IN Law haforp
you at IN early date, and ask you for a
revocation of that order.
I'VE beg leave to inquire whether we
may not now look for the additions to the
lican platform of 1896. and which we were
then assured 1t was your intention to
make, and, If so, whether it will be agree
able to you to state at what time such ad-
ditions may be expected"
Secretary McAneny further stated that
the executive committee had received no
reply other than the following. under date
of Nov. Is:
MY Dear Sir-I beg leave to acknowl-
edge the receipt of the letter of the 18th
inst., signed by yourself and other men,
bers of the National Civil-service Reform
League. and to say that 1T will be brought
to the attention of the President. Very
truly yours, j. A. PORTER,
Secretary to the President"
Secretary McAneny also made the state
ment that the committee had written to
the secretary of the treasury asking for
information in regard to certain appoint
ments, and had received a letter from him
In which he denied them access to the pub
lie records of his office, and the secretary
had said further that 1t was in the air
that the National Civil-service Reform
League intended to criticise the admins
tratiOn, and he did not propose to furnish
ammunition for the enemy"
MIR. BONAPARTE'S RESOLUTION.
When the secretary had completed his re-
mort tho folloUipO resolution waS nra-
sented by Charles ]. Bonaparte. of Balti-
more, and unanimously adopted:
1.-The league pronounces the action of the
Treasury Department in refusing access to
public records relating to matters of public
concern, a violation of the u~ndoubted right
Of citizens in a free country to learn from
official sources how faithfully the public
servants they pay administer the laws. The
force of the reason assigned for this re-
fusal is gravely impaired by the fact that
similar Information has been previously
furnished to the league by the department
under the present secretary Of the treas
ury. This refusal exposes to reasonable
suspicion the good faith Of the officials re-
sponsible for it, and suggests the existence
of abuses which the records. withheld from
inspection, might disclose, and We demand
that this unworthy policy of concealment
and secrecy be abandoned"
REPORTS FROM ASSOCIATIONS.
The reports from the local associations
were then called for. Beginning with the
Boston association, Mr.. Richard Henry
Dana, who responded. said that for a num-
Der of years civil service had been ad9anc-
ing so steadily that 1t was an extremely
difficult matter to call attention to any
| radical changes that had been made. He
| said that the main difficulty experienced
| in Boston by the civil-service reformers
| was the soldier question. He said that the
a bill repeating the whole civil-service sys-
tenn, in which they proposed giving prefer
ment to the soldiers. This bill passed the
| LEGISLATURE, but in his repeal of IL Cover
nor Wolcott so exposed the fallacies of the
bill that his veto was supported. In con-
clusion he said there was a good deal of
| enthusiasm. and he was glad that he could
| report progress.
Mr.. w. w. Vaughn, of Cambridge, Mass.
| said that he could say that they were pro-
crossing with the work of civil service. but
| like Mr.. Dana had said OF Boston. the peo-
pie of Cambridge were placed in an unfor-
tunate attitude toward the veterans. He
said that they had no objections to the vet
| Grams receiving pensions, but he thought
they should be paid in cash and not in Of
fees.
Mr.. w. A. Aiken said there was much en-
thusiasm over the work of the league in
| Connecticut, and especially in her largest
| city, New Haven, where they had passed
a new reform bill that was proving very
beneficial i'm every department. OF the city.
| He said that IL would be but q very short
time until every one of the smaller cities
had followed the good example set by New
Haven.
Mr.. George McAnepy then gave a very
| encouraging report from New York. In