Evening star., 1951-10-28
Scandals, Politics and Civil Service

Civil Service Commissioner Perkins may lack
presidential support in her advocacy Of civil
service selection of internal revenue collectors,
but she is assured Of plenty of strong public
support for the plan. President Truman stands
almost alone in his apparent faith in patronage
system that has brought SO much trouble and
disgrace to the Internal Revenue Bureau.
Commissioner Perkins told the Personnel
Management Conference at Bear Mountain,
New York, that she is proud of the fact that
the Government civil service employees are not
involved in current charges of corruption, dis
honesty and misfeasance. She pointed out that
80 per cent of all Federal employees are civil
servants who came into the Government through
"the rigid process of examination, investigation,
selection for merit and high qualifications" They
were appointed, she said, without political con-
siderations and are hired and fired according to
rules and regulations.
She rightly regards it as highly significant
that the shocking disclosures of wrongdoing now
embazoning the front pages concern part of the
small percentage of public servants not under the
merit system. ut is my private view" she said,
that the great idea of the civil service reformers
since 1883 to abolish patronage and bring an
end to corruption in the Government has won
its battle, and that rather than decrease the
prestige and influence of these principles, more
and more Jobs should be brought under civil
service" She would exclude policy making posts
from civil service, on the ground that they should
be filled by persons responsible to the party which
has been elected on platform approved by the
voters. Beyond the policy jobs, however, she
believes that the public will demand that COL
lectors of internal revenue, postmasters and
some other scattered appointments should be
brought under the high selection standards Of
the civil service system.
Under civil service" Miss Perkins told the
conference, "the anonymous American citizen
can apply for any Government position without
asking favor or permission of any one, and he
can obtain the job If he can demonstrate in fair,
open competition that he is the best qualified
person for the job He needs no influence to find
this career In the service of his country and more
and more of the civil servants are proud of their
jobs and find prestige and satisfaction in their
performance" They have a right to be proud
and they have right to be dismayed over the
blot put on Government service by non-civil
service employees. For the smear tends to impair
public confidence in Government workers gener-
ally-unfair though this tendency may be-
Congress has dawdled with the Hoover Com
MISSIONS plan for taking the Post Office Depart
ment out of politics. There have been no postal
scandals happily, to stimulate public pressure
for action. But the people are thoroughly aroused
by the developing indications OF widespread cor
ruption in the Internal Revenue Bureau. Whether
the President Joins the reform movement or NOT, !.
Congress ought to face the patronage~appoint-
ment problem souarely as soon as it reconyenes
The way to meet 1t squarely is to forego tradi-
tional patronage rights" in the interest of good
government-by permanently removing post
masterships and revenue collector appointments
from the political arena.