The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-04
W. D. FOULKE in THE CITY
HE TALKS OF WORK OF THE CIVIL
SERVICE COMMISSION.
President Roosevelt, He Says, Is N
Warm Adherent of the Com
petitive System.

one of the civil-service commissioners APP
pointed by President Roosevelt, was in In
dianapolis last night. He will go TO Rich
mond to-day to vote and will return to
Washington on Wednesday,. Mr.. Foulke
was appointed a member of the Civil-serv-
ice Commission about year ago. He was
asked how he enjoyed the work of the COM
mission.
First rate" he said. II think the COM
mission has had a better time in the last
year than IL ever had before. In former
times the road was often rocky one.
Congress was sometimes unfriendly and the
commissioners were subject TO attacks,
sometimes from the press. sometimes from
Congress and sometimes from other
branches of the service. l do not believe
there ever was time when all the depart
ments of the government worked as har-
moniously for the enforcement of the civil
service law as they do to-day. We have
made numerous extensions to the service;
the rules have been strengthened and made
more rigid in great many particulars and
have generally been thoroughly enforced
In all this we have found scarcely any OPP
position anywhere. There may be breakers
ahead, but we cannot see them yet, and
up to this time ii has been perfectly plain
sailing
ITO what do you attribute this satisfac-
tory condition of affairs" Mr.. Foulke was
asked.
WARM ADHERENT.
ITO the fact that the President is not
only the warmest adherent of the competi-
tive system who has ever held the execu-
tive Office, but has had more practical ex-
| perience in enforcing the civil-service law
| himself than perhaps any man in the coun-
| try. He was civil-service commissioner all
| through President Harrison's administra-
| ton and far into President Cleveland's sec
| ond term. His relations with Mr.. Cleveland
| were very cordial, and he would undoubted-
| ly have remained in Office during the whole
| of that Presidents administration except
| for the fact that he wished to resign in or
der to take the place of police commits
| sioner in New York city, where there was
| fight on in behalf of good government.
| During this long period of service he be-
| came thoroughly familiar with all the de-
| tails of the working of the competitive sys-
| tenn, so that whenever the commissioners
| want anything done to strengthen that sys-
tenn they do not have to argue or explain
| ton perfectly, and the measures proposed
| are speedily adopted"
What about the enforcement of the law.
Mr.. Foulke?"
THE law is enforced as think II never
| was before. Whenever man is caught
| who willfully violates ii in a substantial
| way and the case is fairly proved the man
| is invariably separated from the service.
| He is either dismissed, in the of
Collector Dillon at FL Paso, or resigns, as
| in the case OF Collector Sapp at Louisville,
or he doesn't get a reappointment when he
asks 1t, as in the case of Postmaster Hicks
at Philadelphia. These are only a few in
stances out OF quite number. Sometimes
there may be a difference of opinion as to
the sufficiency OF the proof as to the
substantial character of the offense, but in
clear case the man is very sure to CO..
What can you say about former Presi-
dents, were they not friendly to the law?'
Undoubtedly. but they had not the same
President Roosevelt has had a longer ex-
perience with this particular department
of the service than many others. He was
| has ever had, and the result Is he is in
thorough sympathy with our work"
| What are the most important extern
| nader"
IMPORTANT EXTENSIONS.
| THE rural free delivery service, the out.
side branches of the War Department ant
the labor registration system. This regis
tration system was developed from the fol
lowing circumstances: The civil-servic,
law itself does not provide for the cIassif
. cation of laborers, but it had been founC
, by practical experience in Boston, in tn,
navy yards and elsewhere, where seriou.
evils had grown up on account of the EN-
ployment of laborers for political reasons
that these could be obviated by the selec
, ton of these laborers from a register wher,
: their qualifications for doing particular
kinds OF work could be competitivel,
tested. This registration system worked
admirably. 1t prevented large numbers o
| men from being appointed just on the ev
, | OF an election for political purposes whel
they were not needed for actual work Thel
there was another evil. When politician
found that they could not appoint any on
= to place In the classified service the.
, | would have the proposed .appointee EN-
! | ployed as a laborer without examination
D and afterwards set to doing classified work
, | In this way the law was evaded although
= or course, the person appointed could no
; get more than a laborers pay. Sometime
, | we would find women employed as labor
) ers who were entirely unaccustomed I
! | manual work. They were often persons O
= | refinement and they were assigned to cler
: ical duty. But hereafter all persons so an
pointed cannot be assigned to any duty ex
cept that of mere laborer. The exact char
acter OF their work must be reported [
= the commission and they must be selecte
A | in regular order from registers kept by TIL
different departments where they are rate
In accordance with their proved capacit
y to do the particular kind of work for whic
q | they are TO be employed. This labor regis
tration system has only been adopted b
I the departments within the last two O
three months, but the reports which com
p | 10 us from every side tell us that il is work
:. ing satisfactorily. 1t is applied as yet onl
I to the labor service at Washington, but W
{ hope that IL will soon be extended to en-
I brace the federal labor service in the lare
; cities, such as Boston, New York and Phiis
= | delphia-''