Evening star., 1936-06-07

Oi IHlIlgS HuSI DC NLeNtu IIOHl lNO
angles.
Undoubtedly, the Postmaster Gen
eral-chairman does not overlook many
bets in putting his own in those places
which are properly Tor improperly
the fruits of political victory But
it has not all been beer and skittles
for Farley. so far as concerns control
of the huge volume of non-civil serv-
ice berths in the New Deal agencies.
1t is true that his aides have been
posted at strategic points, where os-
tensibly they have the say-so on job
seekers, whose principal stock in trade
consists of letters from Senators,
House members or others whose names
presumably are potent. This system
unquestionably is valuable, but there
is another of widespread usage that
carries a world of weight-snd always
has-and this is the application OF
the element known as personal equa-
tion. Let John Jones and Bill Smith
go after the same job in the same
place. John is carrying around SO
many letters that he has grown lop-
sided. Bill knows a fellow who works
there. John gets cordial reception
and Bill is odds-on to get the job.
Ramspeck's Opinion.
Hear Representative Ramspeck,
Democrat, of Georgia, the blunt
spoken chairman of the House Civil
Service Committee, on this point:
Hell, they talk about 'Farleyism.'
There are not a half dozen places
where Jim has any influence. Ickes,
Hopkins, Miss Perkins-they don't
pay any attention to him. Nor Wal
lace, either.
mo. I'll tell you what we've got.
It's not civil service and it's not
patronage. It's worse than patronage.
It's a system under which jobs are
obtained through church affiliation,
or lodge affiliation or through a fra
ternity, or some relationship, or in
some other way.
I'm for civil service. I'd be fer
civil service if it didn't do anything
but keep down expenses, for I know
what patronage establishments are;
you're always under pressure to find
one more job for this one or that
one, and the organization grows top
heavy. But this is certain: If I make
a patronage appointment, and it is a
bad one, my constituents have their
redress. The way things are now,
there is no comeback against bad
appointments"
Mr.. Ramspeck has never been ac-
cused of using his hat for mega
phone.
Other Abuses Feared.
But wherever the trouble rests, there
is a condition to be faced now, and
one that admittedly has serious pos
sibilities. Even at the best, evil
precedents have been set, precedents
that easily can lead to other abuses,
for "an eye for an eye" is always
good political philosophy, and any
administration lasts only so long.
A particularly bad spot has been
created by the great infiltration of
non civil service workers into civil
service agencies, and this is view
that is shared by many. There is
pretty well-founded idea abroad that
the next few months will witness
another retrenchment in government.
The intense activity in Senate and
House, where reorganization" moves
have been launched, shows the way
the wind is blowing. No matter
whether the Democrats are returned
to power or the Republicans come in,
economy looms as the order Of the
day, and that means the workers will
bear the brunt.
The question that will arise then is
how the savings measures will be ap-
piled. Rightfully, civil service work.
ers are entitled to preference. To get
it, however, will mean a battle, and
no one thinks otherwise.
Here is the way the personnel pic
ture shapes up.
At the end of February, 1888, just
a few days before the Roosevelt ad-
ministration took over, the 10 depart
ments and SO independent establish
ments making up the executive branch
of the Government, had on their rolls
563, ,487 persons. At that time the
proportion with civil service status
was running right around 80 per cent
had been for some years. This would
mean. then, that the total was COM
posed approximately Of 45l,000 civil
service workers and $4,000 non civil
service, This Is the closest estimate