The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1912-06-27
SENATE DEFEATS
WILLIAMS BILL

WASHINGTON, d. C Special
/ Just before II passed the legislative
| JUDICIAL and executive appropriation
! bbill the Senate defeated the
amendment offered Thursday by Sen
ator John Sharp Williams. of Mfssiss-
! ippi, which provided for a five-year
I tenure of Office for Government en-
! ployes in the classified service with
reappOintment at the conclusion of
that period only 20 those who had
maintained the maximum grade Of eff
| hclency under the system proposed in
| the Senate amendment TO the House
bill.
AS the measure now stands. the
hve-year tenure of Office provision.
put in by the House. is eliminated from
the bill, and in its place is a provision
which calls upon the civil service COM
mission TO establish a system of eff
cheney rating for employees. This svs-
tenn OF ratings, the bill saws. is to be
based upon records kept in each de-
partment. and independent establish
ments, with such frequency as to
make them as nearly as possible rec
ords OF fact"
The senator's evinced a great inter-
est in Senator Williams proposal that
classified service terms should be five
years, with no reappOintments except
Tor those who attained the maximum
of efficiency. But they refused to vote
for the proposition. Senator williams
this was refused him.
Senator Cummins, of Iowa, chair
man OF the Committee on Civil Ser
vice and Retrenchment, reiterated his
objection, made Wednesday, to the
Hepburn amendment, which sought
10 fix terms at ten years, saying that it
would destroy the essential idea of
regulated, permanent civil service"
Few employees in the Government
service, he said, in speaking on the
Williams amendment. will reach the
maximum rating of efficiency 10 be
established 10y the Civil Service Com
mission. In school. in the Govern
ment service and wherever human eff
ficiency is tested few obtain marks
OF 100 per cent. ! do not believe that
when the Civil Service Commission
establishes maximum standard 10
per cent of the civil service employees
VIII reach that maximum
L do not know Just what that
maximum will be. but il 90 per cent.
or 80 per cent. of them fall below this
maximum, the greater part of our
employees viii be appointed or reject
eI at the conclusion of their tenure
OF oliice by chiefs OF their respective
uepartm ents. This will reintroduce
into the civil service all the obiec-
tlons formerly raised against a svs-
ing role"
Civil Pension Plan Debated.
me Iowa senator favored the es
tablishment of "A civil service retire
ment system, following the comDul
sorry contribution plan. He said also
Jhat the civil service should be taken
from the hands OF the executive and
vested in Congress-
senator Williams. who is opposed
20 an Old-aSe pension scheme for gov
eminent clerks, said that the diff
Culty could not be solved by Senator
frnS-f
employees themselves to create a re
tlrement fund by contributions
$500 on know and 1 know" said he.
mat the minute we make an ar
rangement OF that kind. these clerks
would be down here seeking an in
crease of their salaries TO cover the
ADDED expense placed upon them by
the adoption of the pension plan. And
we would give il to them"
To further protect the acts Of the
interstate Commerce Commission the
Senate also amended the legislative
executive and judicial appropriation
bliI tc provide that no single Federal
judge may enJoin or restrain the COM
missions orders.
The amendment offered by Senator
Cummins provides that injunctions
ana restraints must be agreed upOn
by a majority of three judges. who
snail be the Chief Justice of the
United States Supreme Court and two
other judges.
An amendment by Senator Craw-
ford to extend the Cummins amend
ment to injunctions against State ad-
ministrative boards was passed.
Senator McCumber asked the SEN
ate to assign the five judges of the
commerce Court to other United
states courts, bat il refused. 25 to
%. The House and Senate have voted
to cut off the courts appropriation
and the Senate has Veted to abolish
the court and end the terms of offices
of its justices.