Evening star., 1948-10-17
|vFW Report Cited
As Proof Of Dewey
SIur on Civil Service

The Democratic National Com
mittee last night renewed its charge
that Gov. Dewey had called civil
service workers mediocre" and as
serted that minutes of Brooklyn
veterans meeting proved it.
The committee cited an Official
report" to the Brooklyn Council of
the Veterans of Foreign Wars" on
conference held with Gov. Dewey
in Albany last March. These min
utes, the committee said, also prove
the Democratic charge that Gov.
Dewey would abolish the civil serv-
ice system If he had his way.
The charge was made by the
Democratic Committee September
80 The report at that time was
called "a damn lie" by Clyde Lewis,
VFW senior vice commandant, who
attended the Albany meeting, in a
statement released by the Republi-
can National Committee.
Gov. Dewey, himself, in a mes
sage last Monday to the National
Association of Letter Carriers, AFL,
praised the civil service system and
pledged protection for Government
career workers regardless of polit-
ical affiliationS.
Issues Report of Speech.
With its statement last night, the
Democratic Committee made public
report signed by Mai. James j.
Mackin, chairman of the Brooklyn
councils Legislative Committee,
which, it said, included this:
When he (Mr. Dewey reached
the bill sponsored by the Civil Serv-
ice Employees Association and in
dorsed by the VFW, he few into a
rage and gave the civil service a
severe tongue lashing"
The bill, the report said, provided
for an automatic increase for a
State civil service employe who had
10 years of satisfactory service, and
who had reached the top of his
grade.
THE Governor says I'D never
sign thing like that. This would
pay the son of sea cook for breath
ing. Not while I'm governor the
report continued.
AT that point everybody chimed
in and said a kind word for the
civil service employees, whereupon
he turned around with a broad grin
and said all civil service is mediocre
I explained that such employees were
essential but he stated that if they
could not make good in 10 years
they should get out.
Finally, he stated in the course
of the conversation that If he had
his way he would abolish the entire
civil service system. This made ev-
erybody present very angry and
after the meeting there was con-
siderable comment on his tyranni-
cal attitude towards civil service
employees.
| In his statement to the Letter
/ Carriers, Gov. Dewey said, Il am
looking forward with great pleasure
again to working with the Federal
civil service for which I have the
same high regard which I hold for
the army of devoted and loyal civil
service employees of the State of
New York"
He referred to federal and state
career civil service systems as the
keystone of successful government.
| G.. o. p. Releases Leaflet.
And as the flood Of campaign ar
guments piled up, Republican Cam
paign Director Herbert Brownell. jr.,
released leaflet attacking the Tru-
man Administration for its handling
of subyersives in government jobs.
In this, the Veterans Campaign
Division, headed by Harry w. COL
merry, former national commander
of the American Legion, charged
that more than 1,700 Federal work.
ers were Communists or members
of Communist-front groups and that
the Justice Department had investi-
gated only about one-third" OF
them.
| From the Congress of Industrial
Organizations came a statement by
Van A.. Bittner, chairman of its
Committee on Social Security and
vice president of the United Steel
Workers, declaring "only the SHELF
of the social security system may
/ remain If the Republicans are