Sunday Washington globe., 1902-05-18
ADECEPTIVE REPORT
BY the Civil Service Commits
sioners on Representation.
THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
In Reality Has Representation In
the Government Service Equal 90
One Half the States Of the Union
Combined Whole Families in
Ohce-The Recent Wholesale Ad-
missions to the Classified Service.

The Civil Service Commissioners in their
report to Congress on the state apportion-
meuts to the classified service says.
"Promot ons from the unclassihed service
has the same effect, as people resident in
the District are appointed to uuclassiied
positions and later placed under the civil
service rules
These principles operate generally to
produce inequality In the apportioument
but their effect in increasing the number OF
appointments received by residents Of the
District Of Columbia has been peculiarly
marked. Up to January T. 1902, 5II appoint
ments in the departmental service at Wash
ingtou had been charged against the District
OF Columbia; but as siXty.oue separations
from the service had been credited tile net
charges on that date against the District
was $50 appointments. As, however, on
the basis of the results of the twelfth census
the District of Columbia, is entitled to only
twenty.eight Of the 7 59I appointments rep.
resented by the present allotment, it Will
be seen that it has received 422 appoint.
ments, or about ,5oz per cent in excess Of
what it is entitled to by a strict apportiou-
ment under the present allotment
The Commissioners, it will be observed
refer only to District employees giving the
District of Columbia as their legal residence.
And even in this case they are in excess by
1897 per cent over the quota to which the
District is entitled
But when il is recalled that there are not
only hundreds but many thousands Of gov
ernment clerks and employees credited to
states in which they have never lived or
voted some idea Of the pull" residents of
this District have in securing official EN-
ployment may be formed Whole families
in Office, the head Of which may have come
from some state or territory originally, but
the remaining members, the sons, daugh
ters, sonsiulaw, daughters-in-law, wives
ana mothers have oeeu residents here all
their lfva comprise a vast army of pap
suckers 10 the exclusion Of the proper rep
resentatiou Of states and territories in the
government service.
Take for instance the Collins and Brian
families in the Government Printing Office
as SAMPLES or examples. There are not less
than sixteen members of the Collins family
and its immediate connections and probably
an equal number Of the Brian family in
government employment from chief clerk
and foreman Of the printery to sonin-la
Purdy of the Pension Office, not one of
whom votes in or has residence in the states
to which they are accredited, but all of
whom are actual bona yide residents of this
District.
Aud we only instance these two families
as examples because they occur to us on the
spur Of the moment and not because they
are exceptional by any means. There are
others" by the scores and huudres and the
Civil Service Commissioners are aware of
them but have concealed or ignored the
facts IN their report 70 Congress
A resolution calling upon the Commis-
siouers to furnish the lists of families In
Office or Of persons having more than one
member Of the family in Office; and a List
or lists Of individuals claiming residence in
states IN which they have not been re-
gistered for the past Ave, ten, or twenty
years, would show the real and actual rep
resentatiou of the District Of Columbia in
the Government service to be not only ,5o7
per cent, but equal to one.half the states of
the union combined
Take for another example the recent ad.
mission to the classified service of BIacheu's
Rural Free Delivery clerks and the tempo
rary clerks Of the War Department, ninety
five per cent Of whom were residents of the
District of Columbia and its immediate
tributary territory in Maryland aud Viz
ginia no state or territory had an opportu-
nifty to compete in civil service examina-
tions or in apportionment with these thou
sands Of District residents.
And when a law was enacted by the Con-
gress 20 admit to the classified service the
Census clerks representing every state and
territory In the union both the President
and the Civil Service Commissioners de-
-eated the measure the latter by protest
and the Former by - we'll Hopkins, the
Illinois Senatorial aspirant. knows
Our recollection is clear that the Civil
Service Commissioners went In body to
he White House and recommended the adj
mission 20 the classified service of 1Iachen's
Rural Free Delivery army Of clerks, ninety
per cent. of whom were the relatives Of de-
1artmeut employees and of Washington
newspaper Publishers and reporters. In
act we can name an even dozen of the
alter These same commissioners raised
howl of protest against the classification
II the census clerks because they had passed
competitive examination and were the ap-
'oiulees of Congress ssmeu and Senators from
very state and territory in the Union
Veither Machen's Rural Free Delivery
Jerks nor the temporary clerks of the War
Department. who were admitted to the cas-
ihed service took competitive or any other
ind Of examinations and many Of the
rass widows in Machen's caravansary are
ualihed physically only TO earn the salaries
aid them by the government.
The Commissioners have made Congress
deceptive report either knowingly or
trough ignorance. In either case they
ave been guilty Of furnishing inexcusable
to the Congress touching
he District representation IA the govern
FINISHES data fos Congress TO develop cor
sct information on the subject aud sug'
ests a resolution covering the points here
Decihed