Public Service Of Merit Necessary

The rottenness of the post office department is often referred to by opponents of public ownership as an illustration of what may be expected generally should public utility corporations and business pass under public control. But this does not necessarily follow. Today the government service is organized upon the notorious spoils system, which is intended primarily to give good positions to the worst element developed by our democratic form of government. Notoriously disreputable men are thrust into business offices, not because of any fitness they have for the positions, but because they have done a certain amount of dirty work for superior officials who hold elective offices. They are almost certain to be gentry of very easy public virtue, and they are placed so as to provide livings for others of their ilk. They have no purpose of conducting their offices for the good of the service, but with the intention of being just as corrupt and as much given over to graft as possible without being caught at it.

The heads of departments of course are not expected to be experts in the work of their respective departments, but those who have immediate charge of the business should by all rules of business be men who have wide knowledge in that kind of business, and with a service of merit which should be installed there would be no difficulty in getting and keeping thoroughly competent and honest men. But such a service is scarcely possible under the spoils system. A service of merit would have to take the place of the present corrupt spoils method of filling business offices, before government operation of public utilities on an honest basis would be possible. Indeed, the present condition of the post office department shows the imperative necessity of it.

But so long as a premium is put upon graft and corruption in government service as is the case now, no one need expect integrity in a large part of the government forces. The representatives of the people themselves are to blame for this and the people for suffering such methods to continue. But nothing of all this is necessarily a part of public ownership.