The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1910-12-06

| which II properly encouraged. viii.
| produce results equal to those securAi
| in the best managed private enter
! prises.
In handling government expenditure
the aim is not profit-the aim is the
| maximum Of public service at the
! minimum Of cost. We wish to reduce
the expenditures OF the government.
| and we wish TO save money TO enable
| the government to go into some OF the
beneficial projects which we are de-
barred from taking up now because
| we ought not to increase our expendi-
lures.
| At a later date ] shall send to con-
gress a special message on, this gen.
eral subject.
| Civil Service Retirement.
| II Is impossible to proceed far in
| such an investigation without perceiv-
ing the need Of suitable means OF
eliminating from the service the super
animated. This can be done in one OF
two ways-either by straight civil pen
sion or by some form of contributory
plan.
Careful study Of experiments made
by foreign governments shows that
| three serious objections 10 the civil
pension payable out of the public treas
ury may be brought against IL by the
taxpayer, the administrative officer
and the civil employee. respectively.
A civil pension is bound TO become
nm enormous. continuous and increas-
ing tax on the public exchequer. 1t is
demoralizing TO the service, since Ii
makes difficult the dismissal OF incom-
petent employees after they have part
! ~ earned their pension. and II Is dis
advantageous TO the main body of EN-
| ployees themselves. since it is always
taken into account in fixing salaries,
| and only the few who survive and re-
main I'm the service until pensionable
age receive the value Of their deferred
pay.
| For this reason. after half century
| of experience under q most liberal pen
| sion system. the civil servants of Eng
land succeeded about year ago in
having the system so modified as to
make 1t virtually contributory plan
with provision for refund Of their the
orctical contributions.
| The experience of England and 9th
| er countries shows that neither can a
| contributory plan be successful. hu-
| man nature being what It il, which
does not make provision for the return
OF contributions with interest, in case
Of death or resignation before pension
able age. Followed to It's logical con-
clus;on, this means that the simplest
and most independent solution Of the
problem for both employee and the
government is a compulsory savings
arrangement. the employee to set aside
| from his salary sum sufficient. with
the help Of a liberal rate of interest
from the government. to purchase an
adequate annuity for him on retire
| ment. this accumulation to be inalien-
ably his and claimable II he leaves the
| service before reaching the retirement
age or by his heirs in case of his
death This Is the principle upon
which the Gillett bill. now pending, Is
drawn.
The Gillett bill, however. goes fur
Their and provides that the government
shall contribute to the pension fund Of
those employees who are now so ad-
vanced In age that their personal con-
tributions will not be sufficient to Gre
ate their annuities before reaching the
retirement age. In my Judgment this
provision should be amended SO that
the annuities Of those employees shall
be paid out of the salaries appropri-
ated for the positions vacated by re-
tirement and that the difference be-
tween the annuities thus granted and
the salaries may be used for the en-
ploy ment Of efficient clerks at the low
er grades. If the bill can be thus
amended / recommend its passage, as
1t will initiate a valuable system and
ultimately result In n great saving In
the public expenditures.
| Interstate Commerce Commission.
There has not been time to test the
to the interstate commerce law con.
tanned In the act approved June IS
1910. The law as enacted did not con.
tain all the features which l recon-
nounce as unlawful the purchase by
one Of two parallel and competing roads
Of the stock Of the other.
Nor did 1t subject to the restraining
influence Of the interstate commerce
commission the power Of corporations
engaged In operating interstate rail
| roads to issue new stock and bonds
Nor did 1t authorize the making OF
temporary agreements between rail
roads. limited to thirty days. fixing the
same rates for traffic between the same
places.
do not press the consideration OF
any OF these objects upon congress a,
this session. The object of the frs
provision is probably generall- covered
by the antitrust law. The sscond pro
| vision was In the act refc~~>l to the
consideration of a commission to b.
! appointed by the executive and to re
port upon the matter to congress Tha,
commission has been appointed and 1:
! engaged in the investigation and con
J sideration of the question submitted
under the law. 1t consists of Presiden
: Arthur L. Hadley OF Yale university
, as chairman, Frederick c. Strauss
: Frederick n. Judson, Professor B. II
{ Meyer and Walter l.. Fisher. with vii
liam E. S. Griswold as secretary.
The third purpose led to SO mucl