Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1912-09-04
TAFT DEFENDS
CIVIL SERVICE
FAVORS PUTTING ALL Federal.
POSITIONS UNDER CIVIL
SERVICE RULE.
PRAISES Federal WORKERS
Declares Hundreds OF Them Are Not
Paid Within Five Times of
What They Are Worth.

BOSTON. Sept. 3.-President Taft
tonight contrasted the conditions that
confronted a president In the days OF
the spOils system with the system OF
appointment under the civil service
attacking the democratic house OF
representatives for attempting to linn
1t the tenure of office OF government
employees, and declared that so lons
as he has the power. no old govern
ment clerk need fear discharge un-
less the United States has provided a
system Of civil service pensions to
keep him from want in his old age.
The president spoke in Faneuil hall,
He said that the job Of president in
these days is not thing of JOY when
appointments are considered, but In
the times of Lincoln. he added, must
have been perfect hell
More than anything else he has en-
countered In the White House Mr..
Taft said. the filling Of vacancies that
are not under the civil service has
proved irksome and distasteful to him
and three times he has urged vongress
to support the blanket civil service to
all positions in the civil service.
At o'clock tonight the president
left for Washington to keep an en-
gagement there tomorrow with the
International Association of Applied
Chemistry. He will return by way of
New York, where he will board the
yacht Mayflower, and on the way
north will stop at New London
Conn, to address the Atlantic Deep
Waterways Association. Chas. ID.
Hilles, chairman Of the republican ma
tional committee, and Geo. X. Sheldon
its treasurer, will be his guests over
night Thursday on the Mayflower'
Mrs. Taft probably will take the trip.
President Taft was wildly cheered
when he entered Faneuil hall tonight.
The president began by praising
"the faithful, skilfull, intelligent, en-
ployes of the government, who have
built up the machine Of government
in 1875 years, so that no matter what
president or cabinet officer or bureau
leaves Washington for vacation, the
public business goes on and the gov
ernment wheels still turn.
THE charge has been made" he
declared with a bang of his fist on
the speakers table, that government
employees are over paid. That is not
true. / know hundreds Of men in
Washington who are not compensated
within five times, or even ten times,
Of what they would have received In
other lines"
The speaker explained that once he
favored a system Of straight-out pen
sions for government employees. A-
ter observation of the working Of this
system abroad, however, he has come
20 the conclusion that 1t was not the
best.
And now" he continued. II be-
ieve in a system that might be called
an enforced system of pensions, where
the government pays part and the
employees contribute as we'll"
Mr.. Taft gave his reasons for the
,eto of the legislative bill He said
not only did ne oppose It because II
was unfair and because It was placed
before him in an improper dress. but
because 1t would have accomplished
nothing
THE bill would have accomplished
7othing'' he said. ut would just be
'so beating the devil around the
t.,t.,,