Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-16

der civil service rules. National bank ex-
aminers, receivers in the office or the
comptroller Of the currency, cable cleo
tricians under the War Department and
special agents in the general land office
appointed to investigate fraudulent entries
and other matters Of a criminal nature
are instances of such exceptions.
There has been marked development
In the work of the civil service commits
sion. This is disclosed by diminution
in the abuses which the civil service act
is intended to remedy. Positions formerly
regarded as impossible Of classification
have been classified otherwise with
drawn from patronage: examinations have
been applied with a greater measure OF
success to positions requiring high de-
gree of professional, scientific or tech
nical qualifications: political activity on
the part Of employees occupying competi-
tive positions has met with increased
prosecution by the commission: political
levies on office holders have been less
the government are being relieved from
the opportunities for positions.
Only about one-eighth Of the positions
embraced in the competitive service are
located at Wash
An Eighth of Them ington. In ad-
Located in Capital. r r1,lasS'''i in the the
service outside of Washington the COM
mission is aided by some LOO local
boards of examiners, having in all more
than 5000 members. The rules require
that none of these local boards shall be
composed solely of adherents to one po-
litical party when other persons are
available and competent to serve.
When there is a vacancy in the govern
ment service the official In charge of the
14v,n tn Id nt,
cancy occurs requests the civil service
commission to send him a list of eligibles
for appointment. The commission certi-
fieS to that official the names of the three
eigibleS for appointment having the high
est ratings upon their examination pa
pers. The appointing official may select
any one of the three. Formerly 1t was
the custom Of the appointing official to re-
ject all certif1cauons until he found the
name he was looking for. If a senator
desired the appointment of a certain con-
stituent who had succeeded in passing the
examination he simply went to the ap-
pointing officer sand got promise from
him to take care of that constituent. I'm
der present rules the appointing officer
may not reject a long list of certified ell
gibles in order to reach the name he is
looking for. The rules are being more
strictly enforced and their spirit more
thoroughly lived up to, and while there is
still opportunity for officials making ap-
pOintments to favor political friends these
opportunities are gradually disappearing.
4
Men have a much better chance in the
government service than women. The list
of employees
Men Have Better discloses the
Chance Than Women. q ner cen t" ny
the vast army of workers in the employ
of Uncle Sam are women. 1t may be said
to the credit of the women. however, that
the records of the civil service commits
sion show that they are able to stand
examinations better than their brothers.
During the course Of many years the
woman applicants have had higher ratings
on their examination papers than the
men. However, this does not result in a
proportionate favor among the govern
ment officials The law gives to the vari-
GUS cabinet officers and other appointing
officials the privilege of calling for male
eligibleS If they desire, and this privilege
is frequently exercised. Especially is this
true in the case of positions requiring con-
hdential service. In former years woman
eligibles found it comparatively easy to
get positions as stenographers and type
writers, but today nearly all such ap-
continents are made from the list of
male applicants.
Some positions are more easily secured
than others. This is true in the case
or young men for stenographers. The
supply of these has never exceeded
the demand, and the same condition
prevails in the railway mail service In
the more important positions the supply
of eligibles is far smaller than is the
less important ones. There may be a
thousand eligibles for clerkship and
only one for a place as craftsman. The
reason for this is that in the ordinary
! positions in the government service sal
aries are considerably higher than sal
aries for like services in private business
while in the more important positions the
| salaries paid by Uncle Sam are lower
than those paid in private business.
TOmOrrOw-THE GOVERNMENT AT
WORK. XIV. GOVERNMENT