CIVIL SERVICE 



1404 



CLAIBORNE'S REBELLION 



in 1832 laid down the principle that "to the 

 victors belong the spoils of the enemy." 



Each succeeding administration followed 

 Jackson's lead, and a wholesale removal of 

 office-holders on a change in the Presidency 

 was taken by the country as a matter of course. 

 At each change of administration Washington 

 was thronged by office seekers many of whom 

 had the support of their Senators and Repre- 

 sentatives in Congress. Parties were divided 

 into factions, and thousands of incompetent 

 men were appointed to positions of trust and 

 responsibility, to satisfy political demands. 



The Merit System. Government business, 

 under the spoils system, reached a deplorable 

 state, and thoughtful men began to seek a 

 remedy; but it was a difficult matter to secure 

 necessary legislation. In 1871 a bill was passed 

 authorizing the President to make rules for 

 admission to the civil service through com- 

 petitive examinations, and to appoint a civil 



service commission. President Grant appointed 

 the commission and a system of examinations 

 went into effect in the year 1872. This law 

 continued in force for three years, when the 

 political spoilsmen in Congress defeated the 

 appropriation for the commission and it was 

 obliged to abandon the work. The spoils sys- 

 tem was again in operation for six years. In 

 1881 the quarrel over patronage in New York 

 led to the assassination of President Garfield. 

 Immediately public sentiment against the spoils 

 system rose to such a high tide that the next 

 Congress (1883) enacted the present law, the 

 scope of which has been several times extended. 

 The last extension, and one of the most im- 

 portant, was to include all postmasters of the 

 fourth class (in the smaller offices) in the 

 classified service. E.D.F. 



Consult Fairlie's National Administration of 

 the United States; Fish's The Civil Service and 

 the Patronage. 



Civil Service in Canada 



Efficient Organization. Thorough organiza- 

 tion of the civil service has been slow in 

 Canada, as in other countries, but it has been 

 effective. The object of the organization is 

 to obtain the services of capable employees 

 and ensure the efficient working of all govern- 

 mental departments. All employees of the 

 Dominion of Canada, with the exception of the 

 heads of departments, are now included in the 

 civil service lists. The service is divided into 

 inside and outside branches. The inside service 

 consists only of employees in the governmental 

 departments at Ottawa; the members of the 

 outside service come more directly in contact 

 with the public, as customs, railway and post 

 and telegraph employees. 



The civil service is controlled by two com- 

 missioners, assisted by a secretary, all three 

 officials being appointed by the Governor- 

 General in Council. The commission, whose 

 headquarters are at Ottawa, holds examinations 

 and passes upon the qualifications of candidates 

 for admission or promotion in the service. 

 Admission and promotion are competitive, 

 length of service not being regarded as a recom- 

 mendation unless accompanied by proved abil- 

 ity. All employees on the civil service list are 

 compelled to pay five per cent of their salaries 

 into a pension fund. Those having served for 

 ten years or upwards or having reached the 

 age of sixty years, are entitled to a pension; 

 after ten years an employee retired or rendered 



incapable by bodily infirmity from performing 

 his duties draws a pension of ten-fiftieths of 

 his average salary for the previous three years. 

 For every extra year of service he is entitled 

 to an additional one-fiftieth. The legal heirs 

 of an employee who dies while in the service 

 inherit the pension due at the time of death. 



The Civil Service Insurance Act of 1914 pro- 

 vides insurance for civil service employees, both 

 male and female. W.F.Z. 



CIVIL WAR IN AMERICA. See WAR OF 

 SECESSION. 



CLAIBORNE'S REBELLION, kla' horn's re 

 bel'yun. In about 1631, WILLIAM CLAIBORNE, 

 an energetic, resourceful colonial adventurer, 

 established a trading post on Kent Island, in 

 Chesapeake Bay, inducing many settlers to 

 locate there. This settlement was then granted 

 membership in the Virginia Assembly. Three 

 years later, however, Lord Baltimore, under 

 the Maryland charter he had received in 1632, 

 claimed title to Kent Island, stating that Clai- 

 borne's rights were merely for purposes of trad- 

 ing. Claiborne rebelled and claimed independ- 

 ence and ownership; in these claims he was 

 supported by Virginia. For years the dispute 

 and rebellion lasted, causing loss of life and 

 property, so Claiborne has often been called 

 the evil genius of Maryland. Finally, in 1776, 

 Virginia released all claims to the territory 

 beyond the Potomac River, and the ambitions 

 of the obstinate Claiborne were thus defeated. 



