The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-06-14
The Washington Post Office
Used for Political
Purposes.
THE DEPAR TMENT GUILTY
Il Made Use of the Post-0fice 10 Such an Ex.
tent That the Postmaster Was Shorn Of
All Authority and Became Mere
Figure Head.
lBy the Associated Press

Washington, June 1S.-Chaixman Proc
tor, of the civil service commission today
submitted to Postmaster General Payne
the report made by the commission, at
the request of the Postmaster General
with reference to the charge of violation
of the civil service regulations in the
Washington Postoffice The inquiry COW
cred the following points:
IL. Whether all of the employees out
side the force of carriers were regularly
in the service and entitled to their po-
sitions: (2) whether the civil service rules
had been observed in the employment and
assignment of laborers, and (S) whether
there had been a general observance OF
the civil service law and rules in the adj
ministration of the washington postoffice
office during the incumbency of the pres
ent postmaster.
In addition to the report proper and a
transcript the testimony taken Mr..
Proctor presented a summary of the find
ings. This summary concludes as follows:
a departure from the observance of
the civil service rules appears in the pro-
motion of certain employees in the Wash.
ington postoffice, which have been direct.
ed by the department, although reports
of efficiency are neither requested nor
received by the department. cas- in
point is that of lady who was nominally
appointed in the Moorestown, n. j., post
office. but never left the Washington
postoffice; who owed her appointment TO
the classification transfer method; was
promoted from September 1, 1900 to July
/, 1901, from $500 to $1,000 per annum
by direction of the department, and is
doing the work formerly done by an EN-
ploye who received a compensation OF only
$1,000 per annum.
The information disclosed by the in
vestigation seems to warrant the state
ment that appointments to classified po-
sitiOns in the Washington postoffce with
out examination, by the devious method
of appointment in small unclassified offices
or IN offices about to be consolidated and
subsequent transfer, and the appoint
ments of those laborers who were APP
pointed and separated during the admin
istration OF the present postmaster show
a wide departure in policy from a strict
regard for the public interest and af-
ford indications that the department used
the Washington postoffice for political and
personal purposes to an extent which
left the authority of the postmaster in
but little more than nominal, mad placed
the office in many respects In the rela-
ton of a bureau to the department
THE investigation seems to show clearly
that most of the irregularities herein
set forth were directed by the department
OF requested or suggested by high depart
mental officials and in either case came
to the postmaster with all the force of a
direction.
The investigation indicates that the
employees who entered the service by trans
fer and without examination are, in gen
eral, inferior to those appointed through
competition. The investigation made by
the commission show that many of the
persons who entered the service by trans
fer had failed upon competitive examina-
ton, were from States which were in ex-
cess of the apportonment, or had not
passed with sufficiently high grades to be
reached for appointment by the regular
methods.
Among the employees in the department