Evening star., 1934-06-05
M'KELLAR LOSES
! DRY FORCE FIGHT
Cummings UphoIds Civil
Service Body in Rehiring
Prohibition Workers.

The action of the Civil Service Com
mission in reinstating several hundred
former employees of the old Prohibi-
ton Bureau in the new liquor set-ur
of the Treasury Department. which
had been fought by Senator McKellar
Democrat. of Tennessee, who charged
political plot" to take care of job
less Republicans, was upheld by an
opinion Of Attorney General Cum
mings made public today
The opinion was submitted to the
White House in response to a request
from the Civil Service Commission
after Senator McKellar had inaug-
urated an investigation of the matter
by the Senate Civil Service Commit
tee.
Charge of McKellar.
McKellar said that the rehiring OF
the men-former prohibition agents
who lost out when the bureau was
abolished several months ago-waS in
direct contravention of the general
governmental reorganization order
promulgated last June by President
Roosevelt. which he said was designed
losing out in various shifts, after four
months.
The commission, however. de-
Tended its action on the ground that
the personnel involved had competi-
tive civil service status and that con-
Sequently under civil service rules had
been held to retain the usual rein
statement right depending on length
of service. Under this proviso. en-
ployes may be reinstated at the re-
quest of any agency, and the COM
mission, it was brought out at the
hearing, had viewed the action of the
Treasury Department in seeking tC
re-employ the men, as founded on
proper procedure. Because of the
doubt raised by the executive order
however. which Harry B. Mitchell
president of the commission. conceded
might have made its action Illegal, "
the Attorney Generals opinion was
asked.
Attorney General Cummings said
that the President had not deprived
employees of reinstatement status nor
had he attempted to by his crder.
Language Held Plain.
The language of the paragraph in
question is plain and unambiguous, -
the Attorney General said 1T speaks
for itself. Under the provisions of the
paragraph, the personnel employed in
connection with any abolished agency
or function disposed of are separated
from the service, but the head of any
successor agency is authorized to re-
appoint within certain period four
months, without denomination or
loss of civil service status, any of
such personnel required for the work
of the successor agency. The purpose
Of this provision. as its language
clearly indicates, is to enable the head
of the successor agency within a linn
tied period to make reappointments
from among such personnel without
regard to the civil service act and
rules. (This means without regard to
prlorltyO Not even by the remotest
implication of the language employed
can it be said that it deprives or
attempts to deprive those who are not
reappointed within the prescribed
period of the civil service status pos
sessed by them at the time of their
separation from the service"
Sees Hoover Men Back.
Senator McKellar charged that the
Treasury had brought back more than
1900 Hoover appointees. and his
resolution would require all to take
another examination. His figures were
disputed by the Treasury. which said
that the actual number rehired was
It's, and added that they were brought
back into the service on the basis
Of records Of efficiency running any,
where from two to seven years Not
only had they taken a competitive
civil service examination for entrance
into the service, it was emphasized
but also had undergone a rigorous
character examination. In conse-
quence, it was said. they were held
by Secretary of the Treasury Nor
genthau to be we'll fitted for handling
the new problems with which the Gov
errment is confronted with the le-
galization of the liquor traffic.