Civil Service

the great body of clerks, secretaries, and other employes required to attend to the business of a government. The civil service does not include the military service or the naval service. In connection with the postoffices, revenue offices, courts, and custom houses, and the departments at Washington, the United States government employs not less than 100,000 persons in a civil capacity. Under the Constitution, all these are to be appointed directly by the president, except as he leaves the matter to the heads of departments. This is the theory of the Constitution. Practically, when of the same party as the president, the congressmen have claimed the privilege of making appointments in their own districts, and the president has yielded so long that the custom has acquired well nigh the force of law. When a district is represented by members of the opposite party it is customary for the president to make appointments at the suggestion of his party leader in that district. When a party goes out of power, its officeholders are likely to be dropped, and members of the successful party appointed to office. Prior to 1829, six presidents made but 112 removals from office, but rotation in office, as described, has been the prevailing method ever since the inauguration of Andrew Jackson. He stood for the principle that "to the victors belong the spoils." It is called the spoils system. It is vicious. It gives a political party a large body of party workers to labor for party success rather than for good government. It has a tendency to fill the offices with those who are active for the party, regardless of personal fitness. It induces young men to join the dominant party for the sake of office. It leads to dishonesty and scandal.

Though described in the present tense, this vast political machine is partly of the past. In 1883 a bill was signed by President Arthur authorizing the president to establish a classified service to which appointments should be made for merit and during good behavior. Appointments and promotions were to be made on the basis of examinations and fitness, regardless of political or religious belief. This work of examining is placed in the hands of a Civil Service Commission of three members. Every effort is made to ascertain the actual efficiency of the candidates for the various positions. Successive presidents have extended the system until it now covers 80,000 employes, or four-fifths of the entire civil service, and a pay roll of $75,000,000. The higher salaries are not as yet included.

Now that the pressure for appointments has been taken from the congressmen, the tendency to pass acts creating more clerkships has been arrested. It is said that in the ten years succeeding the Civil Service Reform Act the number of clerks actually fell off a little, even in the face of increased work. The one argument urged by practical men against the reform is that appointees, feeling that they are in for life, grow independent and even disobliging.

In spite of drawbacks civil service reform, that is to say, the plan of holding office during efficiency and good behavior, is making reasonable headway. It has been taken up by several of the states and by a number of large cities. Of course the civil service of the states and cities contains a vastly larger body of workers than does the national service described above.