The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-12-28


 which is to share in the ultimate bene- fits of the completed waterway. are de- sirous of the promptest possible com pletion of the labor with a minimum of expense and friction. If that end is to be accomplished only business principles and methods can be permitt- ed in the organization provided.
 Now it has become apparent already, as 1t should have been perhaps earlier that the present commission of seven members is too cumbersome body to have charge of a work in which con- centration of personal responsibility is on general principles prime requisite When man builds a house he does not put the contract in commission: and while the parallel is not complete enough to warrant entrusting the con- struction of the canal to one unadyised and unsupervised engineer, the plan of having as many as seven men sharing in the direction of the enterprise has ! already disclosed it's weaknesses, The awkwardness of the arrangement seems fully to have impressed itself on the Congressmen who recently made visit of inspection to the isthmus; in- deed, their testimony was hardly ne-s cessary to conviction thata mistake was made In the appointment of so large 9 commission. The opportunities for dif- ferences of opinion and continual frie- ton are too great in such body of men; no labor can be expeditiously and smoothly carried on under so many bosses with equally shared authority and responsibility.
 The proposition now said to be fa- vored by the Senate committee on the canal, to reduce the number of commis- sioners from seven to three, is there- fore commendable Abundant exper- fence in public works proves that that. IS as large a number as can possibly work together satisfactorily. lndeeo, the nearer approach can be made to the l method of one-man responsibility, pro- vlded the man selected is thoroughly i capable, the better the results are like- ly to be. Even, therefore if only three men are retained as commissioners care should be taken to restrict them as far as may be to advisory functions, leaving Chief Engineer Wallace, as to whose capabilities there is no question, as free as possible to carry on the ae- tual work of construction in his own way and on his personal responsibility. Just what should be the qualifications sought in the three commissioners, whether they should be engineers or men of different training and experl-. \ ence, is possibly an arguable question. But this much is certain, that men j really fitted for any duties in conriee- l be obtained for so small salary as seventy-five hundred dollars The sen- ate committees report intention to re- duce the salaries as we'll as the nuns bers of the commissioners is decidediy unwise.
 Chief Engineer Wallace believes 1t : will be unwise also toenforeethe classi- fled civil service rules rigidly in the selection and shifting about of the men above the grade of common laborers who are to be employed on the work; ] and his protest against the Presidents ! order in this respect Is at least entitled to consideration. The real purpose of the meritrules isnot tsomuch to compel- the employment of certain men who have been able to show probable fitness as to prevent the employment of men who are at least under suspicion of be- ing unfit. With a man like Mir. Wallace in full authority there would presutn- ably be little danger that the positions under him would be filled by the pros , teges of spoilsrneri, while 1t is conceiv- able that the restrictions of the civil service rules might, as he says, be a i, hindrance to him in the marshalling of his forces for the quickest and cheap- est performanueDf his work. His views on this subject should have some VI weight even with those who are most \ firmly convinced of the general neeess- ity of the examination system of ap- pointment and promotion in the public service.
 The construction of the Panama Canal is public work of q special na- , ture; some of 1t may best be done by methods that might not be suited to , ordinary governmental enterprises
 The chief end to be kept In view in preparing for 1t Is the elimination so for as possible of red tape and ofticial- ism and the concentration of authority and responsibility in the fewest possible hands. Some degree of supervision and |. of protection against individual errors of judgement will of course be necess- ary. But. with this qualification. the nearer we can come to turning the : whole work, over to MT. Wallace and : leaving him to do III the ways that : his special knowledge teaches him, } are best, the more expeditiously, [ smoothly and economically 1t will be completed Providence Journal.
 ! RnnsEYE1. .1r AND -nI.n- -IAcnR-