Service Reform League to New Haven. It is a special pleasure that Yale can use Woolsey Hall as a means of welcome. It makes me feel pretty old to think how I have witnessed the growth of civil service reform and of the National Civil Service Reform League from the beginning until now. I have seen it laughed at, I have seen it disliked, I have seen it gradually reckoned with as a power, I have seen it finally taken as matter of course. We have come to the time when civil service reform, in a broad way, has the people behind it. In fact its chief danger is that just because it represents the ideals of the community and has the nominal support of the most of the community, there should be a little apathy that will give power to the other side. When I witness the conflict between civil service reform and its opponents I am sometimes reminded of the Scotchman and his comment on the conflict between God and the Devil, for though the pastor assured him that God was stronger than the Devil, it only led him to the melancholy reflection that the Devil made up for his inferior strength by his superior activity.

"The Civil Service Reform League has no longer the task of creating public sentiment, no longer the task of making appeals for recognition, but of keeping the place it has won. I do not know what the speakers of the evening are going to say, but knowing who they are, I do not care very much what they are going to say. I feel as the boy did when the bishop came to consecrate the church and he went to the bishop and said he wanted to be consecrated too. The bishop explained to the boy the difference between consecration and confirmation; but the boy, after the bishop got through, said he didn't know as he cared very much what they called it as long as they did it to him. That is the way I feel about the speakers of the evening.

"The first speaker is an old friend. When I was a boy and used to go to Yale College Library for books, I looked to the man who was at that time librarian of Yale College as the compendium of all information in the world that was really worth knowing. I grew older and so did he. He left New Haven and went to California and went

to Baltimore and went to various other places and gathered experience all the time. He comes back here occasionally to visit us, and I find that my mental attitude toward the former librarian of Yale College has not changed; that I still think what the first speaker of the evening, President Gilman, does not know is not worth knowing."

Dr. Daniel C. Gilman, President of the League, then delivered an address.'

Mr. Richard Watson Gilder presented the resolutions in memory of the late Carl Schurz, President of the League from 1893 to 1900, which were on motion unanimously adopted.'

Hon. Charles J. Bonaparte, Secretary of the Navy, then delivered an address.

THIRD SESSION.

NEW HAVEN COLONY HISTORICAL SOCIETY BUILDING, TUESDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 20. HE League reconvened at 10:30 A. M., President Gilman in the chair. Mr. W. W. Vaughan presented the report of the Committee on Nominations, as follows:

THE

It was moved and seconded that the Secretary be directed to cast one ballot for the election of the gentlemen named. The motion was unanimously carried, the Secretary cast the ballot and announced the election of the ticket as read.

Mr. A. S. Frissell presented the report of the Treasurer. The Secretary of the League reported that as the fiscal year did not close until November 30, the Council had voted that the annual report of the Treasurer, to be printed in the proceedings with the report of the Auditing Committee, should include all receipts and disbursements up to and including that date.'

In the absence of the Chairman of the Special Committee on Consular Reform, Mr. Ansley Wilcox reported that the formal report of the committee had not yet been completed, but that by direction of the Council, when completed, it was to be published in the proceedings' Mr. Wilcox then reported informally upon the progress of consular reform during the past year.

In the absence of the Chairman of the Special Committee on Removals in the Civil Service, Mr. W. W. Vaughan presented the report of the committee.'

Mr. Horace E. Deming, chairman, then presented and read the report of the Committee on Resolutions. After some discussion and amendment the report was approved and adopted.

Upon motion of Mr. Ansley Wilcox, that portion of the report which dealt with the appropriation for the Federal Commission and the salaries of the Commissioners was ordered referred to the executive officers of the League, with power to secure the co-operation of others and with instructions to present such resolutions to the appropriate committees in Congress.

Hon. Nelson S. Spencer then presented the preliminary report of the Special Committee on the Application of the Merit System to the Higher Municipal Officers. On motion the report was received and referred back to the committee for further report.

Printed in full 1 at page 54; at page 76; at page 82; at page 70; at page 86.

5

A discussion followed the reading of the report, in which Hon. Henry F. Greene, Richard Henry Dana and Hon. Everett P. Wheeler took part."

FOURTH SESSION.

NEW HAVEN COLONY HISTORICAL SOCIETY BUILDING, TUESDAY AFTERNOON, NOVEMBER 20.

THE League reconvened at 2.30 P. M., President Gil

man in the chair.

Hon. Everett P. Wheeler read a paper on "The Birth of the Pendleton Bill Twenty-five Years Ago."

At the request of President Gilman, Mr. Richard Henry Dana then took the chair and the following papers were read:

"Civil Service Reform in Connecticut," by Hon. William F. Hennev. Mavor of Hartford."

"The Slow Progress of Civil Service Reform in New Territory," by Frederic Almy, of Buffalo.*

A discussion followed the reading of this paper, in which Hon. Charles J. Bonaparte, W. H. Hale, Hon. Everett P. Wheeler, E. H. Goodwin, Horace E. Deming, Mrs. Glendower Evans, Henry A. Richmond, Henry W. Farnam and Ansley Wilcox took part.

"The Enforcement of the Provisions of the Civil Service Law in Regard to Political Assessments," by Hon. Henry F. Greene, of the United States Civil Service Commission.

"The Best Method of Regulating the Political Activity of Public Employees," by Hon. Cyrus D. Foss, Jr., of the Philadelphia Civil Service Commission.'

A discussion followed the reading of these two papers.*

The Hon. Charles J. Bonaparte moved a resolution of thanks to the Civil Service Reform Association of Connecticut, to Professor and Mrs. Farnam, to the Ladies'

at

Printed in full 1 at page 94; 2 3 at page 120; at page 127; page 137; at page 144; at page 153; at page 170; at pages 168 and 178.