Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-07-09
SHAW LIMITS TENURE
Secretary OF Treasury Believes
Five Years Service Enough
for Officials.
Many Will Lose Their Jobs in
Treasury Department Under
the Rule.
Shaw Believes Usefulness OF
Employees Is Impaired by
Long Terms.

Washington. July 9.-Secretary Shaw
has defined one policy in his admins
tration of the treasury department upon
which he entered last February which
promises some extensive changes. This
policy, or rather doctrine, of the Sec
rotary pertains to tenure of office
among the staff of assistant secretaries.
division and bureau chiefs, and minor
officials of the department, and briefly
stated is this: The usefulness of any
and every officer of the treasury de-
partment must of necessity have be-
come seriously impaired after period OF
four or five years of incumbency.
An intimation of this policy was Civ
en- as early as April, when it became
known that within few months Assis-
tant Secretary Spaulding. who is in
charge of the customs administration,
would have to make way for success
sor. General Spaulding has held the
office for five years, and according to
Mr.. Shaw, has outlived his usefulness in
the department, not from any failure to
do his work, but simply because no fed
eral officer can continusato act with
the same efficiency after the lapse of a
few years.
The same rule is made to apply to
Assistant Secretary Taylor, who
has charge of the administration of the
immigration laws, and other important
matters in the treasury department.. 1t
has been an open secret for several
weeks that Mr.. Taylor would within
few months receive an intimation that
his resignation would be acceptable to
Mr.. Shaw.
Mr.. Shaw's policy as to tenure of
office in his department is not restricted
to the officials of the treasury and Its
branches, above the ranks of clerks
Assistant Secretary Allies will probably
continue to hold his place, for he has
been in office only little more than
year.
At least two or three divisions of bu-
reau chiefs are believed to be slated for
dismissal, and in all cases these are
men who have held their present places
for four years or more.
Mr.. Shaw was quoted recently as
saving that he believed Secretary Gage,
Assistant secretary SpiuiuliiS, stHet <as-
sistant Secretary Taylor, should have
been superseded at the end of their
four-years term. He recommended the
removal of T. V. Powderly, commissions
er general of immigration, and carried
his point, altho strong influences We're
used to secure Mr. Powderly's rcten-
ton.
1t has been said that George e. Rob-
erts, director of the mint, would resign
some time during the present summer
but Mr. Roberts will neither deny nor
affirm the report, and it cannot be
learned whether Mr.. Shaw desires his
resignation or not. The fact that Di-
rector Roberts was appointed from
Iowa, the secretary's state, and that
they have many friends in common. is
believed to weigh in the directors ia
vor.
The recent civil service order of Pres
ident Roosevelt, which held that the re-
moval of federal officer in the CLASH
fed service shall not necessarily be pre-
ceded by formal presentation of
proved charges, is relied on to protect
the secretary in carrying out a policy
which he believes is for the best inter-
ests Of the treasury administration.