Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1909-02-06
VETO FOR THE CENSUS BILL
President Objects to spOils System of
Appointments.
PRINTING PROVISION DISCUSSED
Thinks Work May ne Done by Com
tract IL Eight-Hour Law is
Applied b Elective
Fashion.

WASHINGTON, FEB. 5.-'"The evil effects
OF the spoils system and OF the custom OF
treating appointments to the public service
as personal perduisites OF professional poll
itic,ans are peculiarly evident in the case
OF a great public work like the taking OF
the census, a work which should emphat-
ically be done for the whole people and with
an eye single 10 their interest"
In these words President Roosevelt today
summed up a message to the house of rep
resentatlves returning without his approval
the bill providing for the taking OF the
next census, because OF the provision pro-
vidng that appointments shall be made on
the basis of noncompetitive examinations
instead of through the Civil Service COM
mission. AS passed by congress the bill
permitted members and senators to desig-
nate persons for positions after they had
undergone a simple examination.
Incidentally the president referred to the
provision authorizing the printing of cen
sus reports by private concerns and laid
stress on the point that where work was
so allotted the eight-hour law should be
applied in effective fashion.
Outside of these matters the president
said that on the whole the bill was salts
factory to him and represented an inn
provement on previous legislation on the
subject. The house adjourned without ac-
tion on the message.
what the President Says.
The president says he vetoes the bill with
extreme reluctance realizing the value of
time in beginning the census, but declares
1t is of high consequence that 1t shall be
conducted with extreme accuracy, that II
shall not be open to the suspicion of bias
on personal and political grounds nor to
bring a waste of the peoples money and
fraud.
Section OF the act" he says. PRO
vides in effect that appointments to the
census shall be under the spols system,
for this is the real meaning Of the pro-
vision that they shall be subject only to
non-competitive examination. The proviso
is added that they shall be selected with
out 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 them after competitive exsmina-
tion from the lists of ellgibles provided
by the civil service commission"
Perquisites of Politicians.
Continuing, the messags says:
'ro provide that the clerks and other
| employees shall be appointed after non
competitive examination. and yet to pro-
vide that they shall be seleoted without
regard TO political party affiliations, means
merely that appointments shell he tresfed
as the peruuisites Of the politicians Of both
PARTIES. instead of as the perquisites OF
/ the politicians of one party. I do not be-
lieve in the doctrine that to the victor
belong the spoils. but I think even less
of the doctrine that the spoils shall be
divided without fight by the professional
| politicians on both sides: and this would
be the result of permitting the bill in its
present shape TO become laws Both OF
| the last censuses. the eleventh and the
| twelfth were taken under provision OF
| law excluding competition; that is, neces-
stating tire appointment being made under
| the spoiIs system. Every man competent
to speak with authority because of his
knowledge of and familiarity with the
work of those censuses has stated that the
result was to produce extravaganza and
decentralization"
Examination Provision Vicious.
After quoting from official reports in
support of his position the president con-
tinues:
I'm view Of the temporary character of
the work It would be well to waive the
| requirements of the civil service law as
regards geographical apportionment' but
the appointees should be chosen by COM
petitive examination from the lists provided
by the civil service commission. The non
competitive examination in case like thiS
is not only vicious. hut is in effect fraud
upon the public. No essential change Is
effected by providing that 1t be conducted
by the civil service commission, and tc
provide that the employees shall be selected
without regard to political party affilia'
tions is empty and misleading, unless a
the same time. It is made effective in the
only way In which 1t is possible to make i
effective; that is, by providing that tn'
examination shall be made competitive.
81 also recommend that II provision II
made that the census printing work may
be done outside the government printing
office It shall be explicitly provided tina
the government authorities shall see tina
the eight-hour law is applied In effectlV'
fashion to these outside offices.
"outside of theae matters l believe ina
the bill Is, on the whole, satisfactory ant
represents an Improvement upon previou
, legislation on the subject"