Evening star., 1917-10-15
First Suspend Then Repeal Bad Law

First Suspend Then Repeal Bad Law
Under the stress of wartime condi
tions the evils Of the law apportionins
classified offices among the states ac
cording TO their population are empha
sized A vivid light is thrown upon
them.
This law deteriorates and Injuries the
government service. 1t is unbusiness.
like, illogical. hurtfuI. 1t prohibits the
highest national service efficiency.
This law violates the spirit of the
merit system. It is a relic of the spoils
system, held in the civil service Law
through weak and unwise compromise.
This law grossly violates equity in
its effect upon the local capital com
nsunity, whose sons and daughters. even
though found by rigid test to be this
sost meritorious and efficient, are barred
from this national service.
Government efficiency and the spirit
Of the merit system demand that the
government shall subject to the tests OF
exanination all Americans who apply
for Office and then select for service the
men and women who are found best
fitted for the particular work, regard
less of the state or section of the Union
in which they live.
Under the original spoils system the
Offices were distributed frankly as par
tisan rewards among political henehmen
The merit system pretended to over
throw this method of distribution. But
the spoils spirit still survives in dis
tribution of the offices. not among all
Americans on the basis solely of merit
but as bandits booty among the states
in proportion to their strength.
Whether in war time or peace time the
government should be able to call to its
service quickly the American best fitted
to meet the requirements of the par
ticular task for which he is wanted.
This bad Law hampers and cripples the
government and forbids prompt and
efficient service by saying YOU must not
employ for this job the man close at
hand, though he heads the merit list
when subjected to the tests, but you
must select for tue place the citizen of
q state remote from the capital which
has not yet been fed its full share of po-
1st,.al ..ya,N'' che ,f a
Office
The injustice to the local community
is obvious. Congress has by legislation
and by refusal to legislate reduced to
minimum the capitals commerce and
manufactures which in the ordinary city
furnish the industries that employ and
supply the means of livelihood to the
city's youth. For local factories and
varying industries Congress has largely
substituted in Washington the govern
ment workshops. the bureaus and de-
partments. Congress then under the ap.
portionment of offices law shuts out the
youth Of Washington from further EN-
ployment in the classified service, and
thus in effect bars the Washingtonian
claiming residence nowhere else from
practically the only great industries
which the nation permits to exist in the
nations city. Here the son is not en-
eouraged to work by the fathers side
and under the fathers eye to the bene-
fit of both employer and employed
Washington is the only: city in the whole
world, it is believed, where the employ
ment of local men in the only local in.
dustries permitted by the legislature to
exist is not encouraged Here it is al
most prohibited. The Washingtonian
must go abroad in order to become eli.
gible for this employment at home.
A vital problem for the Washingto
nian is: "How may my sons earn Their
living at home' Must they cease to be
Washingtonians in order to lives"
For the sake Of our sons we must not
only encourage light and clean manu-,
factures in the District and full deyel
opment of local trade, but we must co
operate with other advocates of nationa,
efficiency TO induce Congress to repea,
the apportionment law.
This law. which thus Injuries both ma
tion and capital, contains provision
that the apportionment system shall be
followed 'as nearly as the conditions OF
good administration warrant" Unde,
this qualifying clause the Civil Service
Commission has in the interest of poot
administration in war time certified with
out regard to the apportionment re
quirement for the War Department
Navy Department, food administration
exports administrative board and par
italy for the Treasury Department
The conditions of good administratio.
do not warrant the distribution of an,
ofnces whatever as spoils among tn,
states either in war or peace. Unde
iiberal administrative construction o
the Qualifying clause quoted this ba.
law should be suspended in war time
pending its repeal as soon as Conxres
can get at it.
Agriculture may have TO consider som