Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-09-16

finding the amount of work done by
Or. Rusby during the preceding two
years. You approved this appoints
ment Z
After the appointment. DIR. Bigelow
wrote DIR. Rusby that he thought the
present arrangement was better than
the former arrangement. when he was
receiving $50 day for laboratory
work and $50 q day for court work.
because he said you are now assured
OF getting n certain amount each
month. irrespective of the time spent
and you Gan still so plan your work so
as TO interfere with your regular
duties to a minimum extent"
This did not satisfy DIR. Rusby and
he sought further information in let
ter dated March 3. 1911 as follows:
KINDLY recall that ON my side, the
basis of compensation is not less than
$50 per day At that rate, only eighty
days work per year are provided for.
and that is not time enough to salts
factorily perform more than the cur
rent port work here, leaving no time
Tor examination of interstate samples,
especially microscopical examinations.
or for attendance at court. For every
day at court, on the average one day
of preparation is required.
The above facts lead to the inquiry,
would not the salary named compel
me to either do very much more than
eighty days work per year or other
wise fail to do the necessary amount
of work i'm satisfactory manner
On March 4th. DIR. Kebler wrote to
DIR. Rusby, stating among other things
the following:
PERSONALLY | am of the opinion that
your new appointment is much better
than the old. Under this appoint
ment you can do as little as one days
work per month and you get your sal
airy. On the other hand, If you work
five or ten days, your salary would be
the same per month. 1t seems to me
that you have the matter largely in
your own hands. / am satisfied that
If you do not accept the new appoint
ment, nothing more can be done, and
your services SO far as our work Is
concerned can no longer be utilized
materially in the future.
On March 9th DIR. Rusby wrote to
DIR. Kebler, saying that he had de-
cided to accept the appointment.
The nub of the charge by the
perscnnel board was that DR.. Wiley,
DIR. Kebler, DR.. Bigelow and DR.. Rus
by in effect conspired to put on the
record a contract for a general en-
ployment of Dr. Rusby's services for
1880 a year, but actually and secret
ly made a contract with him, by
whica he was only to do enough work
during the year for the $500 to Sc
cure 70 him "A compensation Of s2o
day, and that this was done i'll de-
liberate and defiant violation of the
law as interpreted by the attorney
general in the opinion already refer
red to, in which he held that Congress
had limited the compensation of eX-
perts TO 50 day.
After YOU submitted to me the re-
port Of the personnel board l asked
the attorney general to examine 1T
and give me his opinion in respect TO
the iaatter, because it concerned the
violation of the law as interpreted by
him in one Of his opinions. He did
so and advised me that the recon-
mendations of the personnels board
ought to be carried out. In connec-
ton with his recommendations he in
Nited attention TO a cause in the act
Of Congress approved March 10, 1898,
still in force, that enjoins upon the
head of each department the duty Of
exacting from the employees in that
department, who are under an annual
salary labor amounting TO seven hours
every day hut holiday.
,f . n
isiied me that the questions had not
been presented to the persons Involved
in such "a Way as to enable them To
make fun defense. They had only
been called as witnesses and cross ca
AHMED without q fun understanding
that they were under trial which
might involve their dismissal, accord
ingly | directed you to submit the
whele record, together with the opia-
ion OF the attorney general to each
one Of the persons charged, and IN
vite from him an answer. These an
swers were filed in due course. and
are quite full in detail. The answer
of DIR. Wiley specifically denies that
he ever saw the correspondence be-
tween pr kebler and DR.. RuSby, or
that he ever consciously entered into
az arrangement by which DIR. RuSby
was in effect to receive compensation
at rate in excess of that prescribed
by the statute as interpreted by the
attorney general. The truth is, it APP
pears from the answers of DIR. Wiley,
DR.. Kebler, and DR.. Bigclow. that
there had been good many proceed
ents in the department which seemed
to justify the employment of DR.. Rus
by at an annual salary when it was
not expected that his entire time
would be taken up. This was the case
with respect to the employment OF
what was known as the Remsen board.
That board was created by order OF
President Roosevelt for the very inn
portant purpose of enabling the Sec
rotary of Agriculture to have re-
viewed the decisions of the Bureau
of Chemistry in cases where those
decisions involved disputed technical
questions. and would. If sustained de-
stroy valuable and profitable business
heretofore regarded as lawful. In
such cases it was deemed wise not
to allow the destruction of what
would be otherwise lawful property
n