Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1909-02-11
4 REDUKE FOR sPOILsMEM
Evil Effects Of the System In conneo-
tIon With Taking Of the Cen
SuS Pointed Out by Mr.
Roosevelt.

bSNA9et VNtNNAb th9 NobO Vi
= great public work like tha taking
- the census, a work which should Ell
Dhatically be done for the whole pc
pie and with an eye single to the
interest"
a IN these words President Rooseve
y, Friday summed up a message to th
; house Of representatives returnin
without bis approval the bill PROVE
Ing for the taking of the next censuI
because Of the provision prescribin
that appointments shall be made O
the basis Of non-competitive examine
tons instead of through the civil sci
vice commission. AS passed by cor
gress the bill permitted members an
senator's to designate persons for pc
sitions after they had undergone
simple examination.
Incidentally the president referred
to the provision authorizing the print
Ing Of census reports by private con
Germs and laid stress on the point thai
where work was SO allotted the eight
hour law should be applied in eff
fective fashion"
Outside of those matters, the pres
ident said that on the whole, the bill
was satisfactory to him and represent
ed an improvement on previous legis.
lation on the subject. The house ad-
journed without action on the mes
sage.
Among other things the president in
his message says:
II herewith return, without ap
proval, H. R. 1884 An act to provide
for the Thirteenth and subsequent de.
cennial censuses.' do this with ex-
IRENE reluctance, because l fully real.
lie the Importance Of supplying the
director Of the census at as early
date as possible with the force neces-
sary to the carrying on OF his work.
But 1t Is Of high consequence to the
country that the statistical work of
the census shall be conducted with
entire accuracy. This is as important
from the standpoint of business and
Industry as from the scientific stand
point. 1t is, therefore, In my judg-
ment, essential that the result should
not be open to the suspicion OF bias
on political and personal grounds;
that 1t should not be open to the rea.
sonable suspicion of being waste of
the peoples money and a fraud.
Section 7 Of the act provides in ef.
feet that appointments to the census
shall be under the spoils system, for
this is the real meaning of the pro.
vision that they shall be subject only
to noncompetitive examination. The
proviso is added that they shall be
selected without regard to political
party affiliations. But there is only
one way to guarantee that they shall
be selected without regard to politics
and on merit, and that is by choosing
hem after competitive examination
rom the lists Of eligibles provided by
he civil service commission.
To provide that the clerks and
'ther employees shall be appointed at.
er nOncompetitive examination, and
ret to provide that they stall be Sc.
ected without regard to political
'arty affiliations, means merely that
he appointments shall be treated as ,
he perQuisites OF the politicians of I
9th parties, instead Of as the per.
uisites of the politicians Of one party.
do not believe In the doctrine that :
the victor belong the spoils; but 8
hink even less of the doctrine that
he spells shall be divided without a
ght by the professional politicians
n both sides; and this would be the Il
esult Of permitting the bill in its v
resent shape to become law. Both II
the last census, the eleventh and II
ne twelfth, were taken under a pro b
ision of law excluding competition; h
lat is, necessithtlng the appoint. n
tents being made under the spells F
gstem. Every man competent to 81
peak with authority because Of his II
nowledge of and familiarity with the
ork Of those censuses has stated that
lie result was to produce extrava.
ance and Generalization. H
I'm view Of the temporary charac. o
II of the work, 1t would be well to eI
awe the requirements OF the civil ia
'rvice law as regards geographical cl
'portionment but the appolntees te
lould be chosen by competitive ex. at
niRahon from the lists provided By 50
e civil Service commission. The
examination in & case
re this is not only vicious, but is in
ieet fraud upon the public. No IN
sential change Is effected BY pro- co
ding that It be conducted By the 70
vi service commission; and to pro. 20
Do that the employees shall be 20. q
tied without regard to political no
rty afaliations IL empty and mIs-
ding unless, Il the sane time. II
made elective IN the only way n
lich u 70 possible 70 maka n "a At