100-103. superior skill, courage, and force of will make him, as such Hart, Actual gifts always do make their Gov't, dominant possessor, his among fellows. An army led by a council seldom conquers; it must have a commander-in-chief who settles disputes, Bryce, Am. decides in emergencies, inspires fear or attachment. The Commonwealth, head of the ring is such a general. He dispenses places, II, 104-106, rewards the loyal, punishes the mutinous, concocts schemes, 108-111. negotiates treaties. He generally avoids publicity, preferring the substance to the pomp of power, and is all the more dangerous because he sits, like a spider, hidden in the midst of his web. He is a boss." 1 Boss rule is chiefly objectionable because it represents an extreme concentration of power, with comparatively little chance of enforcing responsibility, although in the long run no boss can maintain his position in the face of popular opposition. 41. The Voter and Political Parties. tion, 265 -Every voter must The quesdecide for himself several important questions regarding tion of independent his relation to the political parties. Shall he remain inde- voting. pendent of all the parties, voting first with one and then with another, or shall he identify himself with one party? Macy, Party Will it be best for him to vote always with his party? If Organizanot, when shall he espouse the cause of his political op- 270. ponents, or vote for some other candidates? Many earnest citizens believe that, by holding aloof from all parties, they Woodburn, Pol. Parties, can be independent and vote for the best candidates with295-303. out prejudice. They, of course, are debarred from taking part in the primaries of any party, as they belong to none. Some corrupt men also neglect to ally themselves with any party, but vote for the one which offers them the best inducement at a particular election. The majority of the voters, however, are party men, some of whom are bound to their party by the strongest of all ties, those of sentiment. Many of these men believe in the motto, "our party, right or wrong," and support it at all times and under all circumstances, even when the nominees 1 Bryce, American Commonwealth, 2d ed., II, 104. Partisan voters in general and local elections. Methods ment. are unfit men acting as the tools of dishonest politicians. Most party men are undoubtedly willing to "scratch" their tickets, that is, to refuse their votes for a man whom they consider unworthy, although in most cases they will vote a "straight" ticket-supporting every candidate of their party. Among men who vote a straight ticket at national elections and even at state elections, there is a decided movement toward voting independently in local elections. They think that in state and national elections it is necessary to uphold the party's policy, but that when municipal or county officials are chosen, the question of the individual fitness of the candidates is the thing that must be considered first. THE APPOINTMENT OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS 42. Appointments and Removals. In none of our govand needs in ernments are all officials selected by popular vote, but the appointmajority of the persons who hold office through appointment are employees rather than officials, although many who have duties of the greatest importance are appointed. A few of these appointed persons are connected with the legislative branch of the government, a larger number belong to the judiciary, but an overwhelming majority have executive or administrative duties.1 Almost all high officials are chosen by the chief executive of the government to which the position belongs, that is, by the President, governor, or mayor, with the advice and consent of the national or state senate or of the city council. This division of responsibility frequently leads to real appointment by some member of the legislative body instead of by the chief executive, so that no blame can be attached for poor selections and no credit given for meritorious appointments. Less important places are filled either by the head of the department or 1 The term administrative will be used as practically synonymous with the word executive, although it refers to subjects like finance, education, or public improvement, which involve the execution of law very little, but its application to a marked degree. bureau in which the person is employed, or by special civil service commissions. Two requirements are usually demanded of persons in an administrative position: (1) special fitness to perform the duties of his office; (2) willingness and ability to coöperate with others in his department in order that by working together results may be obtained. Terms of appointive office are usually short or indefinite. Removals. In order that the head of each government may have a set of workers dependent on him, who will carry out his plans. and policy, he or his subordinates frequently have the right to remove persons whom they appoint. The power of removal is essential to efficient, responsible government, but its abuse opens the way to the worst features of bad government. Bryce, Am. Commonwealth, 43. The Spoils System. For over half a century, it has Use and been the custom in the United States to change the whole objection. corps of minor appointed officials and many of the employees whenever there has been a change in the elected head of any department of government, on the principle that "to the victors belong the spoils." The places made Chap. LXV. vacant by these removals have been filled by followers of the new chief, or by persons to whom he is indebted for partisan favors. This custom, popularly known as the "spoils system," has given us neither a skilled nor an efficient body of public servants, and has done so much harm to good government that a widespread demand for "civil service reform" has arisen. The opponents of the "spoils system have worked earnestly for the adoption of a system in which officials should be appointed and promoted, not by reason of political influence, but solely on merit. They have claimed and shown beyond question that it is not necessary for these appointed officials to hold any particular views on political questions, but that, on the contrary, only trained and competent persons can properly perform the duties of these positions. They have proved that the old system of compelling ap The need of trained pub lic servants. Congress of reform. Ashley, Am. Hart, Actual 94, 133-134. The problem of the best civil service. pointed officials to give contributions of money and to work at the primaries and the polls for the heads of their departments or their partisan chiefs in order to retain their positions, was unjust to them and dangerous to a system of free elections. 44. Civil Service Reform.—The first real gain made by the reformers was in 1883, when Congress adopted the Pendleton bill, which provided for a Civil Service Commission of three members, not more than two of whom belong to the same political party. These commissioners are appointed by the President and Senate, and at first had power to examine candidates and make appointments to only a few positions. The number of places has increased so rapidly that about 200,000 of the 350,000 positions under the national government were in 1908 filled by the commission. Of the remainder, 60,000 are fourth-class postmasters. At first, an appointee of the commission might be removed by the head of his bureau, but it is customary now to permit removals only for cause, by the commission. The work done by the national commission and by the commissions which have been established in some States and cities has been of inestimable benefit in removing the worst evils of the spoils system. They have demanded some real qualifications for each position, have made tenure of office depend on efficiency and not on continuance of partisan services, and have rewarded merit in promotions, as well as in original appointments. It is maintained, often with some force, that the civil service examinations are impractical and do not determine fitness, that the service will become clogged with clerks who have outlived their usefulness, and that no chief can organize his force into a competent, unified corps of workers who will make an efficient organization of the department as a whole. Personality 1 Appointments made by the commission are provisional, since the retention of the employees depends upon their ability to perform the duties assigned to them. and ability to coöperate with a chief are qualities that can never be determined by any set of rules. The best results will never be obtained until we can trust and depend on the judgment and integrity of the men whom we elect to manage our public affairs. General References Ashley, The American Federal State, Chapters XXII-XXIII and §§ 341-345. Remsen, Primary Elections. Dallinger, Nominations for Elective Office, Part II. Hart, Actual Government, 65–112. Ford, The American Citizen's Manual, 84-144. Fuller, Government by the People. Macy, Party Organization and Machinery. Woodburn, Political Parties and their Problems. Topics 1. HISTORICAL CHANGES IN THE SUFFRAGE : Ashley, The American Federal State, §§ 73, 170, 223, 516, Appendix F, Table 1; Cleveland, The Growth of Democracy, pp. 128-152; Colby, J. F., in Lalor's Cyclopædia of Political Science, III, pp. 824-832; Thorpe, F. N., in Harper's Monthly, 94 (1897), 207–215. 2. THE NOMINATION OF A PRESIDENT: Bryce, The American Commonwealth, abridged ed., pp. 460-477; Dallinger, Nominations for Elective Office, pp. 74-87; Low, A. M., in Scribner's Magazine, 27 (1900), pp. 643–656; Hoar, G. F., in Scribner's Magazine, 25 (1899), 152-174. 3. THE PROGRESS OF CIVIL SERVICE REFORM: Rice, W. G., in North American Review, 161 (1895), pp. 602-611; Roosevelt, T., in Atlantic Monthly, 75 (1895), pp. 239–246; Fifteenth Report of Civil Service Commission, pp. 443–502; Larned (ed.), History for Ready Reference, VI, 145–148; Shaw, W. B., in Review of Reviews, 31 (1905), 317-324. Studies 1. The primaries in large cities. Dallinger, Nominations for Elective Office, pp. 100-121. |