The evening times., 1899-07-22
stated in the annual reports Of the Civil
Sxats.i .il.c rurin

damentai rules Of the Pendleton act? The
| first makes provision for competitive ex.
aminations for testing the fitness OF appii-
cants The second, that all offices, PLACES,
and employments in the classified service
shall be flled by selection as The results
OF competitive Examinations provided for
by Rule /. The third, that all appoint
ments in the departmental service at
Washington shall be apportioned among
the several States and Territories and the
| District OF Columbia upon the basis of
population as ascertained at the last pre-
ceding census, and certain qualifications
OF residence OF the applicants for place.
The fourth, that there shall be a period
OF probation before absolute appointment
or employment. The fifth, that no person
in the classified service is under obliga
] tion to contribute to any political fund,
or be removed or prejudiced for refusing
sc to do. The sixth, that no person in the
| classified service shall use his official au-
| thority or influence to coerce the action
ot any other person or body. The seventh
makes provision for nom competitive ex-
aminations when competent persons do
not compete to fill vacancies in the classi-
fed service. The eighth makes provision
that the appointing power shall notify in
writing the Civil Service Commission OF
persons selected from among those who
| have been examined, their place of resi-
] dence,' the rejection of any such person
after probation, of transfers, designations
and removals, and of the dates thereof,
and that the Commission shall keep
docket thereof
The Pendleton act was approved jan
uary 16 1883.
by section OF the act the Secretary
of the Treasury. within sixty days from
the date OF its passage, is directed to ar
range in classes certain clerks and en-
ployes therein named, and that thereaft-
er from time TO time on the direction of
the President he shall arrange in classes
other clerks and persons. Clause of said
section places certain clerks and persons
In the Postoffice Department in classes. and
makes similar provision as to other clerks
and persons when directed by the Presi-
dent. The third clause of said section
\ directs that from time to time as directed
by the President the Secretary OF the
/ treasury, the Postmaster General and the
| other heads OF departments, and any head
OF an office, shall place in classes subor-
dinate places, clerks, and officers not hith-
erto placed in the classified service.
| Ii is self-evident that these Offices, en-
ployments, and positions placed in the
| CLASSIFIED service by section of the Pen
dleton act are SO placed by the law itself.
and that the President Of the United States,
unless empowered by other provisions of
the act, upon which point / express no
opinion for no such opinion is nee
| essary for the purposes of this COM
munlcation, can not by Executive rule
| or order waive or exempt these places
from the operation OF the law. Ii is the
duty OF the President under the Constitu-
uon and laws to execute and enforce all
laws; not TO repeal, abrogate waive, or
modify valid and subsisting statute.
1T would be unlawful and void for the
head of any department to appoint any
person to any Office, place, or position so
placed in classes by this act OF Congress
ana II one so does or attempt TO so do !
should not hesitate when convinced that
the law had been SO violated to do nay duty
and in proper case withhold payment OF
inc salary OF such illegal appointee. 1t is
not only the duty of the President the
heads of departments, and the Comptroller
OF the Treasury TO obey the Civil Service
law, but il is equally the duty of the Civil
Service Commission to obey and respect
its mandates.
''As before stated, rule thereof, which
is an integral part of the law and not a
rule or regulation of the Civil Service
Commission or the President. commands
that appointments in the classified .ervice
in the departments at Washington shall be
apportioned among the several States and
Territories and the District of Columbia
upon the basis of population as ascer-
tained al the last preceding census.
1T has been charged, and not in so sar
as l am informed officially controyerted BY
Mr.. Proctor or the Commission, that an in
spection of the official register will dis-
close the fact that the District of Colum-
bia and surrounding States have a much
larger representation in the classified serv-
ice in the departments at Washington than
they are entitled to by law. II such be
the case, il is plain violation of the let
| ter and spirit of the law, for which viola
tion the Commission is directly RESPONSE
bic. for heads of departments are confined
in their selection of persons to fill These
places to eligible lists furnished by this
Commission.
If this charge be true, ii would seen
that Mr.. Proctor would be more 9rofita-
bly, engaged in removing from the offcia
eye of his Commission this beam of ,io-
lated law than in rushing into print, dur
ing my absence from the city, and at.
tempting to point out to the public a ju-
dicial mote of error, which has no exist.
ence in fact, in one of my decisions.
IF such appointments have not been ap.
portioned among the several States ant
Territories according to law, it would seen
that all such made in violation thereof ar,
unlawful, which would leave for carefu
consideration the question as TO the right:
of such incum bents to receive salary
''As result Of this and other uncontra
dicted charges, and the fatal use tha
former President Cleveland made of tn,
discretion vested in him by section 6 o
what when properly and conservatively ad
ministered is a most wise and just law, q
direct from time to time the further classi
fication of places, TO wit, his blanket orde
4 of 1896, wherein he covered with the fold
| of civil service protection thousands of per
sons who came into the public servic
| through party influence, and through /
alone, Congress has assumed hostile atti
tude to the merit system, as witnessed b,
| exempting the entire force of the Censu
Bureau from the operation of the law, an,
also the temporary force OF clerks mad
necessary by the recent war with Spain
good system is more apt to be endanger
ed by incompetency in its administrator
and by the misdirected zeal of its intem
perate friends than by the open hostilit
of the unthinking and uniformed masses
Briefly reverting to the two objection
able points of my decision OF April ! last
as viewed from the standpoint of Mr.
Proctor, let me consider for a momen
whether they are correct enunciations o
the law. ] held that the action of tn
President, directing or ordering the hea
of a department to place certain position
not placed in the classified service by tn
! law itself, is not a law but an Executiv
regulation, and that l would not go be
hind the certificate of appointment of tn
head of the department and enquire int
the fact as to whether in making such ap
pointment he had violated such Executive
regulation. Mr.. Proctor contends in hi
letter that such direction of the Presideu
, las he calls il, rule-is made, and nee
essarily made, by virtue of the following
provision of the Pendleton Act: