Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-13
THE WEATHER BUREAU.
MIR, Dyrenforth Comments on the Ike
organization Bill.

To the Editor of The Evening Star:
Referring to the article in last nights
Star regarding the remarks of Prof. Wills
8. Moore, chief of the United States wealth
er bureau, on the position which the l mon
Veterans Union takes against measure
of the Department Of Agriculture, or OF the
weather bureau in that department tWhlch
measure has been formulated into bill,
HR No $685. and is now before the COM
nittee on AGRICULTURE, and also referring
to me- pers onally have to say that:
lst The measure, among other things,
provides that no person shall enter the
weather service, as observer, clerk or STE
nographer, VINO is more than thirty years
of age; as an artisan, Waterman or me-
chanic who is more than thirty-five years
of age, or as a messenger VINO is more than
twenty-five years of age; that no person
who has been in the service and has, for
any cause, been separated therefrom (and,
by inference he must have been in that
particular bureau ever TO get there on re-
inStatement into the government service)
shall be reinstated who is over forty-five
years of age. and if five years have passed
since separa ton from the bureau, and that
each person shall undergo rigid mental
eXamina tion-which is right and proper and
in accordance with the civil service law at
| present-but that the kind of examination
must be prescribed by the chief of the
Weather bureau, since tue civil service CUM
mission can only give the examination upon
agreement with the chief of the weather
bureau.
I'd Such a measure this means, en-
phatically, No veteran need apply"
3D. 1t appears to be for the express pur-
pose of defeating the exception in the civil
service law favoring the Union veteran as
to age limit
4th. Prof. Moore implies by the remarks
that the measure refers only to observers
and mechanics; that is, to men in whom,
perhaps. specific technical weather service
training is requisite. so that they ought to
begin early in life; whereas, as matter of
fact it includes. as above shown, clerks.
Stenographers and watchmen, and there
seems to be no reason why clerk ste
nographer or Waterman in the weather bu-
reau should require any more particular
qualifications than clerk. stenographer or
think that such amazingly occult. abstruse.
scientific, and, at once. technical knowledge
is required in some man to guard build
ing as a Waterman that old soldier
could be appointed. However. I still believe
that 1 might possibly find some especially
gifted veteran who could fill the position of
Waterman in the weather bureau.
5th. Prof. Moore showing thai there are
a. the present time so many veterans in
the weather bureau, this measure may be
the means of separating them from the
weather service, since, under the bill, If
any man is once separated from the service
he cannot be reinStated if more than forty
five years of age.
9th. If the rule as to age of clerks, ste
nographers and watchmen be applied to the
weather bureau, there seems to be rea-
son why it may not. with equal prepriety.
be applied to every branch of the govern
ment service. r. G. DYRENFORTH.