New-York tribune., 1912-01-06
ASSA|L DIX commission
Civil Service Reform Association
Replies to Message.
TOTAL EXEMPTIONS LARGE
Under Present Administration
Not a Single Transfer to Com
petitive Glass Has Been Made.

The Civil Service Reform Association. in
reply to Governor DiXs defence in his mes
cage Of his Civil Service Commission, has
tssued a reply in which, among other
things, at says;
We are surprised that the Governor
Snould nave been led into quoTing hgures
which. when aualyZed, reflect so severely
upon the record ot his commission Inc
number of exemptions from colnPeutiNs
examination granted by TINS CommlSSio.
during the one year 1911 t2iN is Compared
with the number granted during the loul
years 4 Governor Hughes tSIh. two years
Of Governor higgins uS4), tour wears OF
Governor Odell C2NSl and the second year
Of Governor Roosevelt CID. -
Gross hgures, whicn are quoted IN the
Governors message, mean little, ana par
tiCularlv when figures for one year are
compared with figures for four or two
Years. The exemptions granted pursuant 10
mandatory provisions of the civil service
Jaw must be deducted for each year. for II
Is the use. or rather the abuse, OF ITS as
Cretionary power Of clasSlhCation DE thlS
commission which has been the subject OF
criticism Again. mere transfer OF an
Office from the Jurisdiction of the city COM
mission to that of the state commission
maintaining the same NUMBER OF ,eAemP-
tions should not be regarded as lncreaS-
ing the exempt class Making these de-
ductions for the year 1911 ii shows 22l eA-
pmptions from competitive examination
during the hrst year OF me ,Ii LIS tTn srst
wear OF Hughes. l49 during the first year Of
higgins, and 81 during the hTst year OF
Odell
There are other considerations. however
which should enter into any tair Compare
son The first is that during the ten years
previous to Governor Dix extensions OF the
classification 10 counties and villages IN
volving a considerable number OF eXemp-
tions in each case were made, WhIe ~
such extensions were made during l9,L
Governor Roosevelt began this in me
wear 1900. the year for which the nSuISS
are quoted in the Governors message. he
extended the classification to hNe counles'
involving a large number OF eNempu0nS'
Deducting these, the net total Of discretion-
arv exemrtions during 1909 was lol Gov
ernor Higgins in his first year eXtendeo the
classification 10 four additional counties
with an eXemDt list Of Jos positions. Ihls
leaves the net number Of exemptions Tor
+be wear 1906 as Il and the net total for ms
two wears Il Governor Hughes during lrl
and 1910 extended the classification 70 elGut
additional counties ard seven villages.
When the eXemntions involved IN mes eA
tensions are deducted the net number OF
exemptions during four years Of the Hughes
administration was PSI, as compared Win
22l during the one year Of Governor DIX
administration
The reply goes on TO say that curing 'ne
ten years previous TO Governor DiX's ad-
1ninistration a large number OF places were
transferred from the exempt TO the com
petItive class. thereby placing them under
the merit system. The Commission has ad-
Y,,itted TO the association that not one single
transfer Of this kind has been made under
Governor DIX.