The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-09-24
Mr.. L0EB's REFORNs.
me OthsS side % the Case A. Toa n, =.
Customs OmelnI


To TIE EDIroR OF TIE sr~ ~, vha.
In Maine this simmer I had occasio Il. go.
| that the pressnt regime ia the Nsv 20
Gu siom House had its press AFents s,,r,.i-
at work outside the state 4 sp.,IaI e..
patch vas .snt To the Name Iat.er. a.
printed by them. ia which appeared M. -
falashOOds about the adm u - rat .au ~ ,t.
present Collector. and the sio-y "a. mo-.
prominently displayed than would he t.,..
sible In any New lork paper TO-DAY
Two facts we're especially noticeable NJ.
LOsb's boast thar he had d = harEed mon.
men than any Of his predsors-ot.. ana IL.
asa rttOn that he had secured great -..-.
omy' by doing away With the OLD corn. .,
night inspectors The old Corps IA, '..-,
about 90 men there are 3Uo usn ID ,..
corps 81 Natchmen- organized IN ~ f,a,.
A. many Of the old inspectors N-r. no, 10.
duced in pay. u - q problem hos SEQ.
could have been saved by employing tan.
the number
word or two a. TO the tr-Atmen' % n.
night INSPECTORS will not he out 81 rI.,,
The iutrigues against this forCc Wst. %
LONG standing other Collectors had been
importuRed to degrade them from ,n. t.,si
anu title given them by Law but not ln,.i
Mr Loeb came in with reform oollhg from,
every pore was the thing done Wi'bout
having met a single one OF our force No,
the new Collector discharged a great mAny
OF the night inspectors. His excuse "a.
that the force was a nesting place for uorn.
out politicians That was not true Tba
corps had been recruited from ciyil serVlc.
lists aud contained a number 90 a. hne fsl
lows as have ever met Men Of the very
cleaneul records had To 10. One poor Old
man was reduced To teoo q year because he
waS not capable Of doing his work and
L.
Was harder. longer and more DANGEROUS to
his health. lie has since died may add
that he Was an old teacher and one o. our
gentlemen. using the term IN its proper
sense
Another man was dismissed because h.
was said To be absent without leave
To quote the record In the case. he re-
p TTnsH mo to rd =. sS ss ss.s nTs"o%
been made against him. and Charge
mean dismissal under Mr. Loeb such a
man absence without leave consissed
IN being home nat on his back with an IN.
nes- The detective sent TO look into the
cas- found him AZ home few days later
the detective again called and The man vas
out by this time whereupon the charge ot
being absent without leave vas hled
agains' hIm II resulted in his dismissal
although, a. have said the record reads
quite dsCuTou-ly that he resigned
Gus and hone-i man lie had not hesn sb.
sent from duty in SIX wears except when
On en- election day. ,G,, ara ara Tor rna'.sr q
illnes~e- His record in short. VAS one Of the
very best IA the force
The result - that the Corps Of wktrhmsn
fun of men Who have never passed civil
service examinations men who can scarcely
read ana write. n two cases these men
have been promoted over the heads Of others
who came in under the civil service laws
one NOTORIOUS case Of rapid promotion
10 that Of an absolute gnoramu- he
ha pf
in a promotion examination upon his hrst
trial lie MAS and u one Of the sang that
In short. when Mr. Loeb came IN. deter
mined 70 hit somebody. hi- bloNg tel
upon a force thst VAS not 20 blame for the
frauds committed upon the Government
revenue a force that was not under ohatges
a nd that had never even been suspected Of
conniving At any frauds Indeed Nss
any fraud On the revenue. ~ all dock COM
- MES have their own private Nairhmen,
Nhn ere w nea ~ rNrIl az az, Ni ~, ~,
10 90 m N. docks Degradation ~ good
and farhful men. reductions ~ pav ~
random. diSmir-1lS for no reasons W for
reasons utterly fal-e. flooding the force
with ignorant day Ia horerz. all these things
came To pass The force Wa- nearly, doubled
IN size and NoTk of the most frivolous sort
was gwen the mon 10 do They we're az
signed 10 docks 80 watch hsrEes of oats.
goes on ships u hose matches were M ttened
down The docks were full Of Natchmec
l he design, OF course. was ana - to stop
smuggling, that II to say, smuggling n
pats IN bulk, or oil casks that could not h
taken away from the dock without tea ma.
nd all the time that this foolery v going on
the invoices upon witch shipments are made
are . matter Of record and the Government
" ould not lose cent II the whole csrso
were stolen or destroyed. in fact. the duty
i paid almost a. soon as the goods arrive
Thus " may be seen how little opportunity
The night man has to aid In smuggling 4p07
any sort Of scale. or 20 he guilty. 81 any ~
The offences charged asainst oficals Of the
port
Hut the same old gang il IN control Of the
here one OF the hest ono ais q the ser.
~ insideI. here. We all know u. We all
EEL q. We can point them oIt hey
run the service. and none 81 " dares ay
would 20 M on charges and be dismissed
" ithout a hearing worth the name Even I
when Deputy surveyor Cloyes was dis |
missed elaborate pains we're taken - eN-
plain that he had nothing to do with the
crimes that had been discovered in his oe-
part msnt and Cloyes. ] may add vas one
" the very men in whose Interest Iheodore
Roosevelt once suspended the civil -ervic9
rules in order that he might get in without
he formality Of an examination 90 deter
nine fitness
Napoleon used 10 say that II a fiction 80
wenty -four hours start 81 the truth
would become immortal ~ u IL. Tear. VIZ
NT Loeb and his reforms
NV YORK SeptemheF 20