The Government of England Part 16

[148:3] Victoria Const.i.tution Act, Com. Papers, 1903, XLIV., 109, pp.

7-8.

[149:1] _Cf._ Hans., 4 Ser. LIII., 1133-34.

[149:2] _Ibid._, CXCIII., 389 _et seq._

[149:3] In fact in 1874 the bill was amended so as to make this clear.

Hans., 3 Ser. CCXIX., 797-800. For 1868 see Hans., 3 Ser. CXCIII., 405-06.

[149:4] _Cf._ Hans., 4 Ser. XVI., 1218; LIII., 1131.

[149:5] _Cf._ Courtney, "The Working Const.i.tution of the United Kingdom," 151.

[150:1] Hans., 3 Ser. CXCIII., 393.

[150:2] _Ibid._, 397.

[150:3] Rep. of Com. on Increased Cost of Tel. Service, Com. Papers, 1875, XX., 643, p. 5; 1st Rep. Civil Serv. Inq. Com., Com. Papers, 1875, XXIII., 1, p. 9. For information and references on the efforts of the civil servants to raise their pay, and on their pressure upon members of Parliament, I am indebted to Mr. Hugo Meyer, who kindly showed me his ma.n.u.script on "The Nationalisation of the Telegraphs in England."

[150:4] See, for example, Hans., 3 Ser. CCLXV., 141; CCLXXI., 429; 4 Ser. x.x.xIX., 596-98; LI., 351-52, 355; LIII., 1107 _et seq._; LXVI., 1523 _et seq._; LXXII., 119; Lx.x.xII., 199 _et seq._; XCIV., 1382-83; CVI., 680; CXXI., 1023; and Cx.x.xIX., 1617, 1618, 1629, 1632. 2d Rep.

Com. on Civil Estabs., Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs. 17444-47, 17821-28, 20238; Rep. Com. on Post Office, Com. Papers, 1897, XLIV., 1, Q. 11706.

[150:5] 2d Rep. Com. on Civil Estabs., Com. Papers, 1888, XXVII., 1, Qs.

10562-63, 10742, 10745-49, 17444-47.

[150:6] Hans., 3 Ser. CCCLII., 870.

[151:1] Hans., 4 Ser. V., 1123 _et seq._

[151:2] _Ibid._, 1536 _et seq._

[151:3] _Ibid._, VII., 188-90.

[151:4] _Ibid._, XVI., 1218.

[151:5] _Ibid._, LIII., 1138-39.

[152:1] Hans., 4 Ser. CXXI., 1023.

[152:2] _Ibid._, LXVI., 1550.

[152:3] _Ibid._, LIII., 1107 _et seq._

[152:4] _Ibid._, 1138. In the course of his speech he pointed out that the membership of the trade-unions in the postal and telegraph service had grown very much of late years. But he declared that they were accorded all the privileges enjoyed by trade-unions elsewhere.

[152:5] _Ibid._, CXXI., 1023.

[152:6] _Ibid._, CXXII., 329, 331, 333.

[152:7] _Ibid._, Cx.x.xIX., 1600-36.

[152:8] _Ibid._, CLIII., 357.

[153:1] It may be observed that the use of compet.i.tive examinations was made general by the Act of 1870, pa.s.sed shortly after the enfranchis.e.m.e.nt of revenue officials.

[154:1] The prevailing American sentiment, on the other hand, is expressed in the Declaration of Rights of the Const.i.tution of Ma.s.sachusetts, adopted in 1780, which says (Art. viii), "In order to prevent those who are vested with authority from becoming oppressors, the people have a right at such periods and in such manner as they shall establish by their frame of government, to cause their public officers to return to private life; and to fill up vacant places by certain and regular elections and appointments." This lays down the principle of rotation in office, and although by no means so intended by its framers, may be said to be the charter of the spoils system.

[155:1] Parker, "Sir Robert Peel," I., 50, 160-62, 222, 269. At this time the permanent under-secretary in Ireland was expected to take an active part in politics, for we find Peel writing to him to use every exertion to get the Irish members to support the government on the Catholic question. _Ibid._, 73.

[155:2] Dorman B. Eaton, "Civil Service in Great Britain." Although not always accurate, this is the best, and indeed almost the sole, history of the patronage system and the gradual subst.i.tution therefor of appointment by examination.

[155:3] "Recollections and Suggestions," 33.

[155:4] Sir Thomas Erskine May, although writing when this system was pa.s.sing away, seemed to regard it as essential to party government.

Speaking of the effects of parliamentary reform upon the state of parties, he says, "But throughout these changes, patronage has been the mainspring of the organisation of parties." "Const. Hist. of England" (1 Am. Ed.), II., 99.

[156:1] Parker, "Sir Robert Peel," II., 140.

[156:2] _Cf._ Lowell and Stephens, "Colonial Civil Service."

[156:3] Com. Papers, 1854-1855, XLI., 369.

[156:4] These have since been reduced to two.

[157:1] 22 Vic., c. 26; ---- 4, 17.

[157:2] Com. Papers, 1860, IX., 1.

[157:3] _Ibid._, 1870, XIX., 1, p. vii.

[157:4] ---- 2, 7, and Schedule B. _Cf._ Orders in Council, Aug. 19, 1871, -- 1; Sept. 15, 1902. The Order of 1870 requires a certificate of qualification from the Civil Service Commissioners as a condition of employment in "any situation or appointment in any department of the civil service," not specially excepted from the operation of the Order.

The exceptions were enumerated in Schedule B, and are those described in the parenthesis of the sentence to which this is a note. The order originally applied, therefore, to all other positions whatever their nature; but by -- 8 the chief authorities of any department were given power, with the concurrence of the Treasury, to add to the schedules, or withdraw situations therefrom; and this power has been used to add to Schedule B, and thus exempt from examination altogether a number of positions, almost exclusively menial, such as those of messengers, porters, charwomen, etc. The Orders in Council and Treasury Minutes relating to the civil service may be found at the end of the Civil Service Year Book.

[158:1] Schedule A at first contained a list, not of situations, but of departments; so that the system of open compet.i.tion applied to all the positions (not specially expected) in some departments, and to none of those in others. This irrational cla.s.sification recurs constantly in the history of the civil service examinations, but in the case of open compet.i.tions it has been changed under the reserved power to modify Schedule A. Clerkships, and other posts, in departments not previously included, have been added to the schedule; while large cla.s.ses of situations have been withdrawn therefrom. These are, for the most part, manual occupations, such as office keepers, messengers, porters, foremen, artisans, labourers, matrons and domestic servants. Some of them, as explained in the preceding note, have been exempted from examination altogether, and for the rest the candidates are nominated subject to a pa.s.s examination, or a limited compet.i.tion. The requirements in the case of the more important cla.s.ses among them will be described in a later part of this chapter.

[158:2] _Cf._ 45 Rep. Civil Serv. Comrs., Com. Papers, 1901, XVIII., 129, pp. lx.x.xiii-lx.x.xvii.

[159:1] _Cf. Ibid._, pp. lxxiii-lxxv.

[160:1] Under Order in Council June 4, 1870, -- 7, and Schedule B.

Playfair's commission remarked of these positions, that in order to obtain superannuation pensions the holders must have been appointed with a certificate from the Civil Service Commissioners, or must, under Section 4 of the Superannuation Act of 1859, be excepted from the rule by the Treasury on the ground that the office is one requiring peculiar qualifications. The commission found that in fact the examination was not in general required. (Com. Papers, 1875, XXIII., 1, p. 6.)

[161:1] They covered reading, writing and arithmetic, often dictation, precis, geography, English history, Latin and French, sometimes bookkeeping, and occasionally something more; 3d Rep. of Civil Serv.

Comrs., Com. Papers, 1857-1858, XXV., 1, App. B.

[161:2] Rep. of the Com. on Civil Service Appointments, Com. Papers, 1860, IX., 1, pp. vii-viii.

[161:3] 16th Rep. Civil Serv. Comrs., Com. Papers, 1871, XVII., 1, App.