The business of the departments was conducted promptly and in a thorough businesslike manner, and effective supervision was maintained over the related offices throughout the country.

The records of the Treasury Department show that for a number of years prior to January, 1883, the losses of the government by defalcation of its officers amounted virtually to nothing; so that at the time of the passage of the Civil Service law there was nothing in the departments to reform so far as integrity, capacity, and efficiency in the transaction of the public business was concerned.

In fact, the Civil Service reform agitation was not directed to the improvement of the business methods of the departments, nor was the law enacted for any such purpose. It is entirely consistent with truth to say that no abuse in administration has ever been corrected, and no improvement in methods introduced, because of the Civil Service reform agitation or the enactment of the Civil Service law. There has been a healthy public sentiment in favor of wise laws and honest administration, and the executive government has struggled to keep abreast with that sentiment. The Civil Service reform agitation had but one object in view, namely, the elimination of politics as a factor in the appointment of people to office. The present law was passed in response to that agitation; it provides for classifying certain places in the departments at Washington, and in custom-houses and post-offices having fifty or more employees. The law authorizes the President to extend the classification further to other offices of the executive departments and service. The law prohibits. the collection of political assessments by one set of government officers for other officers or employees, and prohibits the filing or consideration of recommendatious for office of senators or members of Congress, except as to character and residence of the applicant. The law contains no limitation upon the power of removal from office.

Under the law about 15,000 clerks were classified during President Arthur's term. President Cleveland added about 7,000 more during his first term. President Harrison caused the classification of the employees of the free-delivery post-offices, numbering nearly 8,000, and the natural growth of the service brought the number up to about 43,000 clerks at the date of President Cleveland's second inauguration.

During his last term President Cleveland issued twelve orders increasing the classified service and adopting rules governing the same; he added about 44,000 persons to the classified lists, and issued a rule declaring that no person in the classified service should be removed or changed in grade on account of his political opinions or affiliations, and fixed a penalty of dismissal from the service for a violation of this rule. Mr. Cleveland did not confine his action to the clerical force; his orders bring into the classified service the entire body of the Civil Service in and out of Washington, except a few Presidential appointments, and the fourth-class postmasterships, and in his annual message he advocated placing these offices in the classified service, one of the reasons assigned being "the peace and quiet of neighborhoods." All heads of divisions, chief clerks, appointment clerks, law clerks, and disbursing officers of the departments and bureaus are now in the classified service; the Deputy Commissioner of Internal Revenue, the Supervising Architect of the Treasury, the Chief of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Medical Referee of the Pension Office, and the Internal Revenue agents are all now in the classified service. It would be fair to suppose that a President who had done so much to add to the number in the classified service would govern his own actions in regard to appointments by the rules of nonpartisanship which he prescribed for the government of his successors. But what are the facts? When Mr. Cleveland became President in 1885, after appointing a Democratic cabinet, his administration at once entered upon the work of removing Republicans from office and appointing Democrats in their stead; a complete change was made in the heads of all bureaus and their assistants and deputies, new chief clerks, new appointment clerks, and new heads of divisions were appointed in all the departments and bureaus. Not one Republican was appointed. Every new man was a Democrat; in fact, almost every position above and below the classified service was changed and Democrats put in place. Many young men were appointed messengers, laborers, etc., and assigned to clerical work. Outside of Washington the same rule was observed. All collectors of customs, all collectors of internal revenue, naval officers, appraisers, assistant treasurers, district attorneys, marshals, pension agents, and postmasters, great and small, were changed and Democrats appointed. The

entire diplomatic and consular service was changed and filled with Democrats. Changes were made in almost all the unclassified offices and employments in the departments and offices, and Democrats appointed.

When Mr. Cleveland became President again in 1893 his policy in regard to the patronage was unchanged, but was carried out with more thoroughness. Outside of the classified service wherever a Republican was found in office he was superseded by a Democrat. The number of Republicans left in office was so small that their retention scarcely made an exception to the rule; their services were required for particular reasons, and they were kept. But in addition to this the classified service was invaded, and large numbers of clerks were removed or reduced in grade for no reason except that they were Republicans, and their places were wanted for political and personal favorites. This was notably the case in the Treasury and Interior Departments. In these departments nearly 3,000 clerks and employees were retired. Of these 1,564 were messengers, watchmen, etc., not in the classified service. They were turned out because they were Republicans, and their places were filled with Democrats. If this great work of turning out Republicans and appointing Democrats had been done upon the alleged ground that the people had, in electing Mr. Cleveland President, decided to change the policy of the government by changing its officers and employees, the reason would be intelligible; but while this work was in progress loud claims were made that the President and his administration were in favor of Civil Service reform, and to verify this claim as soon as these changes were well under way Mr. Cleveland began the work of putting his appointees under the protection of the classified service. This work began May 11, 1894, and continued from month to month until the promulgation of the rules of November 2, 1896. The work of classification was left to the Civil Service Commission, and this was not completed and promulgated until after the inauguration of President McKinley. As a result of these various orders the great body of the official force of the government is now in the classified service, except the fourth-class postmasters and a few Presidential appointments, and the Civil Service Commission, supported by Mr. Cleveland, favors placing these fourth-class postmasterships in the classified service, and they also advocate the repeal of all VOL. CLXV.-NO. 489.

12

laws fixing the term of four years tenure to certain offices. These measures will, of course, deprive the people of all action in connection with the appointment of the official force of the government.

There was no public demand for these sweeping changes either through the public press or by petition from the people. The party platforms of the great political organizations had not demanded them; and there were no resolutions of either branch of Congress recommending them. It was the act of the President and the Civil Service Commission unsupported by public sentiment; it was strictly a partisan measure, the effect of which Mr. Cleveland no doubt duly considered. He knew that it would prove a great embarrassment to the incoming administration. He believed, no doubt, that if the orders were allowed to stand, there would be serious discontent in the Republican party, and if the orders were revoked, or largely amended, the advocates of Civil Service reform would attack the administration. This action forces on the country the consideration of a number of grave and important questions. It is claimed by Mr. Cleveland and the Civil Service Commission that there will be a marked improvement in the public service.

Let us consider this point.

It has been the experience of every officer whose duty it was to make selections for appointments from the list certified by the Civil Service Commission that the examination papers do not contain the necessary information to enable the nominating and appointing officers to form a just estimate of the character of the candidate, or of his fitness for departmental work. These papers contain no endorsements of well-known persons, certifying to the good character, the judgment, discretion, aptitude, integrity, or fidelity to trust, or any of the qualities, which make a trustworthy and loyal subordinate. Dependence must be placed solely upon the academic examination. No experienced officer would prefer to appoint a man to an important position simply upon the examination papers of the Civil Service Commission. It has therefore become a universal practice in the departments to appoint all persons coming through the Commission to the lowest grades. and lowest salaries. It is therefore the fact that men of high standing who are competent to fill the higher positions, recently classified, do not take Civil Service examinations. The conse

quence is the appointment of men who are yet to prove their capacity. In fact, the Civil Service Commission advocates this plan of making appointments into the low grades and earnestly opposes the bringing into the public service to fill the higher places recently classified of men of well-known character and capacity.

Men of splendid ability, broad experience, and high character will accept positions as chief clerk, appointment clerk, law clerk, head of division, etc., in the departments, and will be an actual reinforcement to the public service, but they will not pass through the Civil Service machinery to accept small salaries as clerks. It must be borne in mind that the law fixes the responsibility of administration upon the President, the heads of departments, and certain other officers appointed by the President. The business of the government is performed under their supervision and in their name; they are responsible to the country for the success of the administration; their chief clerks, appointment clerks, and heads of divisions receive almost all the business that enters their offices, and take the initiative in disposing of more than nine-tenths of it. The volume of business in the departments is so great that it is impossible for the principal officers to examine all the work; they must depend upon the men who have it in charge; and they should be permitted to exercise the broadest discretion in the selection of persons for these importan positions. They should not be confined in their selections to the employees in the office, but should have the right to select competent men from private life.

The heads of departments should have the right now, as their predecessors from time immemorial have had in the past, to appoint men of their own selection to the important confidential places in their departments. It is a safe rule to allow an officer charged with the performance of important duties to appoint his chief subordinates. From these considerations alone it seems clear that bringing these important positions into the classified service is not an improvement, but will prove a serious detriment to the service, and in this view of the case it is important that the existing Civil Service rules should be reformed.

The Civil Service reform movement had its origin in a distrust of the political integrity of the people and distrust of and contempt for government through party organization. The appointment of competent men to office upon the petition and recom