, 1923-03-19
Retain the Complete Power

GUCCESSFUL business men will approve the pro
~ posal that the selection of postmasters in the
larger offices be placed entirely within the juris-
diction of the postoffice department. At present the
civil service commission conducts an examination
and submits the names of the three men who pass
highest in the test. From these three men the de
partment is required to make Il selection.
There isn't a successful business man conduct
ing n large enterprise who would permit his sup
ervisory employees to be selected by any such meth
cd as that. In practically every large private bust
ness promotions are made on merit. But every large
business enterprise retains the right to promote or
denote, according to demonstrated ability, and TO
employ new men whenever they deem best. The
personal Judgment of the head of the enterprise
concerning his leading supervisors or assistants is
the controlling factor. No business enterprise calls
upon any outside agency 10 conduct an exami
nation for it and select the men who shall be EN-.
ployed.
In purely routine work where efficiency can be
determined by a competitive examination, undoubt
eddy the present civil service system is better than
appointment on the personal judgment of one or
two men. That does not apply, however, to men
occupying the position of postmaster in cities of
from ten thousand population up. To manage n
business of the magnitude of n city postoffice, TO
supervise the work OF his employees, to keep in
touch with the needs of the community and TO
make the postal system meet he public needs, re-
quires something more than ability to pass a tech
nical examination. Some of our most successful
managers of large business enterprises have been
men of very slight school education.
One Of the principal arguments made against
appointment of postmasters without a competitive
examination was that it opened the door for max
ing postmasterships a reward for political effort,
The converse of the adoption of that theory is that
If a man is politically active he thereby removes
himself from eligibility because if appointed after
political activity, he would be open to suspicion of
owing his appointment to his political influence as
well as shaping his policies by political consider
atoms. We have been complaining in recent years
that business men do not give more attention to
public affairs. Giving attention to public affairs
means participation in politics. What an absurd
thing, to urge business men to take more interest
in politics and then tell them that they shall there
by be discredited for appointment to such a posi-
ton as postmaster of their home cities.
Each party presumably is anxious to perpetuate
itself in power, and in order to accomplish that
end, it must render service satisfactory to tho vot
ers. No party will deliberately appoint any con.
siderable number of men who are likely to prove
inefficient and injure the party prospects by incur
ring public disfavor.
The classified civil service system is sound
enough and proper within reasonable limits but
the selection of men for important supervisory pc
sitions is something that can not be successfully
: accomplished by n competitive examination con
Quoted by a body outside of the department in
which the men are to serve.