New-York tribune., 1901-12-17
ALL SINECURES MUST GO.
MIR. LOW SAYS CIVIL SERVICE LAW
DOES NOT PROTECT NEED
LESS OFFICIALS.

Mayor-elect Low publicly served notice yes
terday on those officeholders who have sinecures
or are IN any way working the city instead or
working for the city that the municipal gov
ernment would have for them after jan
uary l. The Mayor-elect also showed that he
had looked into the Civil Service law, and was
able To back up his determination by means Of
that law If necessary. His announcement
caused no end of dismay in many departments,
where scores OF idle partly idle employees have
been resting easy because of the belief that they
were protected by Civil Service, and that the
incoming chief executive would not be permit
ted to disturb the feathers with which they had
upholstered their nests IN the last four years.
In speaking of his purpose to weed out sine
cures and dead men" from the various munich
pal departments MIR. Low said:
vent the abolition OF unnecessary places the dis
rnissal of incompetent or an unsatisfactory en-
tor the working force in almost every depart
ment can be aud should be iatrgely reduced Many y
rot mean that there will be many vacancies to be
a Of this n ,s now & f4T sTyc TSf hdas ths
who conscious that their places are not likely
10 he retained. to have fair warning, so that they
may find other employment when possible. And l
tain positions under the city goEeTnInert that IN the
eXempt class is small. Such appointments as are
made Of this character must be made from the eli
gible lists prepared by the Civil Service Commits
sion Many OF these lists more than year old,
and I hope that fresh lists will be prepared when
possible.
three to seven, in order not to make undue de-
mands on the time of the commissioners, who serve
without paw The creation of the Tenement House
Department and the transfer Of other departments
to the presidents of the bOrOughs is likely to give
them much unusual work IN the immediate future.
1t may be well point out that Mr.. Perrre Is the
business agent of the Iron Moulders' Conference
Board. labor organization containing two thou
sand members which he is now representing for
the ninth year. 1t is very desirable that the sys
TEN established by the Civil Service law should
know of no better way to further that result than
place a representative labor man upon the ccm-
mission.
Referring to the men ne had appointed rem-
bers of the Civil Service Commission. Mr. Low
said
The law requires that not more than two-thirds
Of the commission shall be members of the same
political party" AS applied to a municipal Civil
Service board ! have interpreted this meaning
that the municipal minority shall be fairly repre-
sented
Nessrs Mason and Dykeman members Of
the present commission and have been glad to
reappoint them. apart from all other reasons be
cause of the great Importance of giving to the
commission the character Of continuity. The Civil
Service Commission Is not intended to be an en-
gine by which the Mayor work out any
suits he pleases It is intended rather to secure
Civil Service for the city which, as to its subord-
nate places shah be as favorable possible In
this connection it may be well for me TO correct
misc