The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-06
DIRECTOR OF THE CENSUS.

Senator Cushman K. Davis was either
mapping or indifferent when Governor
Merriam was appointed director of the
cencus. The senator's wife concluded
that the feud had gone far enough.
Wowan-like, she became sorry for the
old governor after preventing his APP
pointment as ambassador to Russia.
All things considered, however, the
executive of Minnesota has good berth
and one which is destined to make him
an important factor in the Republican
party next campaign. Besides giving
him the best of opportunities to do eff
fective campaign work, it will aid the
administration in building up a ma
chine for use in 1900.
The director is to examine ali appli-
cants for clerkships at Washington, but
civil service rules are thrown to the
winds. Even in Harrison's administers
ton, when they were supposed to be
so strictly enforced, MIR. Porter, the SUI
perintendent of the census likewise,
gave all candidates an examination,
and, through a little indirection, as
signed those who failed and those who
passed to desks side by side Imagine
a senator of any spunk whatever per-
hitting a dependent relative or a
henchman to bear the disgrace of going
back home as failure, and losing the
costs of his trip.
Merriam is a politician, not states
man, and he has been appointed for
political reasons and purposes. But if
he were not a politician, if he were a
man of figures and cared nothing for
politics at all, he would have to make
the appointments demanded of him by
influential members of his party, re-
CARELESS Of qualifications and examina-
tons. The man does not live who, as
director of the census, could regularly
turn away, because of failure to pass
an examination, those persons in whose
behalf influential senators We're inter-
ested. If such u man could be found
he would not hold his place d week
Resolutions TO investigate him would
be in order, and, as the judges in his
case would be all pre1udiced against
such obstinacy, it would go hard with
him indeed.
The census law provides for an ex-
pert and a patronage broker at the
head of the bureau. In all probability
Merriam is to discharge the duties of
the latter, for he cannot handle those
of the former. 1t provides that it shall
be under the charge Of director of
the census specifies the method of his
appointment and his salary, but says
nothing about his qualifications, The
same section provides for an assistant
director, Ito be appointed in like man
her. who shall be an experienced statis-
tician, and shall receive an annual sal
airy of $4,000" This is as it should be.
For the difficulty in finding a man who
can in a high degree combine the quail
tiles of an expert statistician with the
ability of a dispensing poll
tician is well known.
This census will come in 1900, in a
presidential year, and one federal su-
perVisor in each congressional district
will be able to do considerable work for
Mr.. Mckiniey's denomination. These
supervisors will doubtless be hustlers,
appointed as politicians and instructed
for whom TO shout, may all get on dele
cations to the next Republican national
convention. The people have come to
expect such things, and they have be-
gun to resent them, too. Stranger things
have happened than would be the de-
feat of the Republicans at the polls in
1900, if they persist in creating for that
year, out of what should be scientific
investigation, a huge political machine,
and spending wastefuny the millions of
the peoples money.