Evening star., 1924-01-02
SOUGHT NO ADVICE
. ON CIRCULAR NO. IS
Minutes Show Classification
Board Voted Down Its Sub
mission to Attorney General.

That the personnel classification
board on December 29 considered the
draft Of letter to the President
requesting the opinion of the At
torney General as to whether or not
a statement adopted by the board on
November IL and circular (No. 13)
issued by the board legally con-
formed to the provisions of the classi-
f1cation act was revealed today when
the board submitted the minutes of
it's meetings and other documents in
response to a House resolution
The minutes show that on motion
of F. ]. Bailey. the chairman, 1T was
ordered that the letter be not sent,
as Guy Moffett. the representative of
the Civil Service Commission, voted
not to send the letter in the form
proposed and Harold N. Graves, rep
resenting the United States bureau
tion. Mr.. Moffett and Mr.. Graves
represent the rival schools of thought
in the reclassification controversy.
Take Diverse Stands.
Circular No. IS, which was issued
on November 13 by the board, has
been the bone of contention between
the board and its critics, and was
u
itself. the representative of the Civil
Service Commission on the board
voting against its adoption, and the
chairman and representative of the
bureau rssu,,, OF efficiency voting for it.
in the system of classifying the field
service. dropping the plan which had
first been inaugurated by the board,
to draw UP specifications for the va
rious jobs in the government service,
and prepare a schedule.
Record OF Documents.
Chairman Bailey forwarded to the
clerk of the House today the fol-
lowing records of documents of the
personnel classification board:
ID. Copies of all minutes of the
board from March S, 1923 (date of
f1rst meeting), to December 21, 1923,
inclusive.
CD. Copy of all papers referred to
in said minutes.
CD. Copy of all forms and circu-
lars issued by the board to date.
In his letter of transmittal, Chair
man Bailey said: "Our board has as
sumed that the resolution did not
contemplate the sending to the House
of Representatives of copies of all
individual questionnaires Numbering
upwards of 100000 sheets) and of
the more or less routine correspond
ence of the board. The board will,
of course, furnish copies of such ad-
ditfonal records as may be desired"
In the minutes under date of De-
cember is a memorandum in which
Harold N. Graves, representative of
the United States bureau of efficiency
on the personnel classification board,
recommends that the classification
grade be changed in the following
cases:
Department Of the Interior: Com
missioner of patents from a present
salary Of $4,000 to an ALLEGATION and
appraised salary of $500; first as
sistant commissioner of patents,
$4,000 to $4,000; assistant commits
sioner of patents, $1,000 to $4,000;
director of bureau of mines, $4,000
to $500; chief mechanical engineer,
$5,40 to $4,000; director geological
servey, $4,000 to $500; administra-
tive geologist assistant directory to
remain at the same salary, $4,000,
but the ALLEGATION to be changed
from grade in the professional and
scientific service to grade 6.
Commissioner Of reclamation sery-
ice, to remain at $500, but the allo.
cation to be changed from grade 13
clerical administrative and fiscal
service. to grade IA; superintendent,
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