The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1899-06-23

but before his Inauguration, the mint
was placed by presidential order under
civil service rules, and those democrats
are there yet. The order was sweep.
ng.including even the superintendent's
private secretary, his cashier and chief
clerk. Many republicans have felt that
it was hardly far to sustain this sweep
ing order and maintain the injustice
which was done by the wholesale re-
moval that occurred under the Cleve-
land administration. The pressure has
been very hard upon President Nc
hlnley to loosen up the rules long
enough or far enough to establish at
least q fair representation of republi-
cans in these positions. The criticism
upon him is based upon the ASSUMPTION
that he has yielded to this pressure. Init
in fact he has not.
1t was inevitable that whenever the
change from the spoils system to the
nonpartisan system was made COM
plant would arise that the change was
made to protect partisans in their
places. That has not been moving
consideration in the present case.
The following positions in the Phila-
delphia mint, under the presidents re-
cent order, have been excepted from
the rule which requires that they shall
be filled upon competitive examina-
tions: Chief clerk, private secretary.
cashier, deposit weigh clerk, assistant
coiner. assistant melter and refiner and
assistant assayer; in all, seven.
Now for the reasons: The chief clerk
is the superintendent's main assistant.
He is a deputy. He is the acting sup
erintendent in the absence of the sup
erlntendent. The cashier has charge
of the money. The weigh clerk receives
bullion and gives the superintendent's
receipt for It. The places are positions
iiOf trust. The superintendent is held
by heavy bond responsible for them.
and he is fairly entitled to have these
places filled by people satisfactory to
him. No written examination can be
prepared which will surely develop all
the qualities that are required in these
positions. But under the presidents
orders these places are thrown open to
be filled by the free choice of the super
intendent. The criticisms all assume
this, but it is untrue. The order reads
that these places may be filled by the
superintendent, provided the persons
nominated by him ''shall have passed
the nOncOmpetitive examination pre-.
scribed by the commission after con.
sultatlon with the proper officers of the
treasury department.
There is no letting down of the stand
ard of qualifications. But In filling
these positions the superintendent Of
the institution is released from the
necessity of choosing one of three pass
ing highest in the examination. Ht
may make selection and if the person
he selects stands the tests provided by
the civil service examination, the ap
lpointment may be made. The party
making the appointment does not pro
vide the tests. The tests apply gener
ally to all institutions, and hence can
not be adapted to particular individ
uals.
submit to any fair minded person
that this is not an abandonment of tn,
merit system or a return to the spoil
system. 1t is simply a modification
which makes the rules more flexible il
cases where the good of the service re
quires that some discrimination il
selection must be used.
: You can take q bookkeeper in a com
petitive examination, and run no grea
risk, but you do not want to take
lprivate secretary or cashier withOu
looking the individual over and findin
him acceptable personally, in trait
, that cannot be estimated by writer
Questions and answers.
What is true of the new rules in tn
mint service is true of all the change
that have been made. The larges
single list of officials affected is that Q
deputy revenue collectors. They ar
appointed by collectors and the collect
ors are held for them upon their bonds