The Washington herald., 1907-12-12
THE GOVERNMENT CLERK
FREDERIC HASKIN
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

The men and women who form the
cOgs in the big governmental wheels of
this nation will command a great deal
OF attention in the Sixtieth Congress
The report of the Keep Commission and
the dozen or more bills that have been
introduced for the retirement Of super
annuated government clerks are but the
desultory firing on the picket line pre-
liminary to the big parliamentary battle
which viii be waged TO determine whether
the government clerk is an underpaid or
an overpaid individual and TO settle the
question whether he is entitled to a civil
pension or not. Big guns are loaded TO
the muZzle with oratory ready for the
fray, and the small arms will not be
wanting
There are innumerable ways proposed
by which TO retire the superannuated
government clerk. Some propose TO pen
sion him outright The better advised
friend of the clerk does not think. how
ever. that the American people viii stand
for q civil pension list. Others propose
that the government shall go into the
life insurance business and provide an
nuities for the clerks. deducting stated
amount from the monthly salary OF edcn
clerk TO meet these annuities. The Keep
Commission has found that one and five
tenths per cent OF the salaries of the
clerks will be sufficient TO provide an
nuities for all of those who become
superannuated in the service. II is pro-
posed 10 pay the Superannuated clerk
one and fve-tenths per cent of his pay
for every year of service he has rem
dered Thus. a clerk who had been in
government employ from the time he was
twenty until he reached seventy at Sl,200
a year. would get $500 a year upon his
retirement If he wanted TO retire he
fore he was seventy, he could get the
money out of that he had paid in under
the assessments.
The friends OF this idea claim that it
will cost the government nothing but
the expense of administering the fund.
1t is found. however, by reference to the
report Of the subcommittee of the Keep
Commission. that it viii cost something
more than this The deductions from the
salaries Of the CLERKS would not be suf-
ficient 10 meet the annuities until 1879,
and in all the intervening years the gov
ernment would be expected TO put up the
difference. The subcommittee figured out
the amount Congress would have to APP
propriate each year TO meet the de-
ficiency. 1t would begin this year with
S725.ll0. and would keep on in an increas-
ing ratio until 1897, when il would re-
Quire S1.746.56L From that date the an
nual contribution TO the fund by the
government would decrease until II would
fr, Hal-
the government would be giving the
clerks in the establishment of their fund
would be $65. 100000 taking no account
OF the millions that il would cost &C
administer the fund.
Nowhere else does one get more vivid
idea Of the growth of the United States IT
territorial extent, in power and might
and in influence. than he does when h'
looks at the ever increasing number OF
people IL requires TO man the big gov.
ernmental machine Arithmetical pro-
gression finds no place in American ma
tiOnal mathematics. The United States
goes in for the geometrical progression
As far back as 1916 the little machine
was fairly strong. for IT furnished tn,
backing for the American Eagle while +
licked the British Lion so badly that il
has kept at a respectful distance from
that day to this. 1t then took 6.326 peopl,
TO manage the machine Twenty-fiV,
years later the government found in an
other reckoning that it required NOR,
than three times as many people TO run
this machine as it did in 1916 In othe
words, the little machine Of 1916 ha,
grown to a pretty good-sized one in 1S4l
requiring 1924 people TO man it. Thirt!
years later it had grown three time
larger again, and required 53,917 employees
In the next twenty years 1t increases
more than threefold, so that 1891 foun,
the machine some twenty-seven times a
large as It was three-quarters of cen
tury before II then required 66.375 EN-
ployees. To-day it requires some $50 90
people 20 run 1t. It will be seen from thi
that while the population has Increase
only about eightfold since 1916 the mum
Der OF government employees has increase
nearly sixtyfold.
The government comes closer home Z
the average individual to-day than it di
in those days. Then. II the average. ma
had a post-office within five miles h
thought he was conveniently located
Besides his occasional letter and an alma
mac at the end Of the year, the govern
ment brought him but little To-day. if
farmer is not within a hundred yards c
a rural free delivery route or a post
office. he thinks it time 10 petition 70
the establishment Of one or the othei
Then the average citizen was Statistic
with one delivery of mail a week. No
nearly 80 per cent of the people have ma
every day. and some of them as high q
half a dozen. Then meat inspection puI
food laws, and thousand other thing
IN which the government now concern
itself. were undreamed Of This. no les
than the wonderful growth Of the cour
try, accounts for the unprecedente
growth Of the civil service Of the Unite
States.
Uncle Sam employs all sorts of peop
in his big establishment. One might wor
der what need he has for hearse driver
and yet ne has them on his list The ic,
man finds employment with him, and 5
does the spudman, the tea faster &c
corral bosses. darners. cellar sweeper
dietitians, and tick eradicators.
There are nearly 5000 people REGULAR
employed by the government in the Di
trict Of Columbia. and their aggregat
annual compensation amounts to ov,
SS1. 100000 a year. Two-thirds Of the GO
ernment employees in Washington al
furnished by the District Of Columbi
New York. Pennsylvania, Maryland. vi
ginia. Ohio. and Illinois. Congress T
quires that appointments shall be mac
from the different States. in proportiC
I.1Sgzssasg1vz.-,---