The civil service system is democratic. It gives everyone an equal chance. It matters not who the candidates are, whether rich or poor, Republicans or Democrats, with friends or without friends—all have an equal opportunity. Merit is the only thing that counts. And it is the only thing that ought to count in filling public positions. It is true that the candidate with an education usually has an advantage in answering civil service questions; but does not education help a man or woman in every branch of life? In a country where education is free can we call a system of appointment “undemocratic” because it gives the educated candidate an advantage? Under the merit system men and women win appointments; they do not receive appointments by favor. They hold their posts during good behavior and are protected against dismissal without cause. The cause must be specific and stated in writing. This being done, the appointing officer usually has the right to dismiss a subordinate and this right is necessary to the maintenance of proper discipline. Under the civil service system, however, dismissals are not frequent.[[29]]

Direct Legislation by the People

Some definitions.

The Initiative and Referendum: What they are.—The machinery of direct legislation consists of two political devices which usually go together and are known as the initiative and referendum. By the initiative is meant the right of a stated percentage of voters in any state or other political division to propose a law and to require that if this proposal is not forthwith adopted by the regular law-making authorities it shall be submitted to the people for their decision at the polls. The initiative usually covers constitutional amendments as well as laws. To put it in less technical language, if anyone believes that a new law or ordinance should be passed, he draws up the law or ordinance in such form as he desires; then he gets a certain number of voters to sign a petition asking for its passage. If the legislature enacts it, well and good; if it does not enact it the question whether the law will be adopted goes on the ballot for the voters to decide.

The referendum, on the other hand, is an arrangement whereby a measure already passed by the legislature or city council may, under certain conditions, be withheld from going into effect until the people have had an opportunity to accept or reject it at the polls. The conditions usually are that a certain number of voters shall present a petition asking that the measure be withheld from going into force. The referendum, as a rule, cannot be invoked in the case of emergency measures.

Their Progress in America.—It is only about a quarter of a century since the initiative and referendum, in this form, made their appearance in America, the first state to establish them being South Dakota in 1898.[[30]] Other states soon took up the idea and today nearly half the entire number of states have made provision for direct legislation in one form or another.[[31]] |Spread of direct legislation.| From the states the movement spread to the cities, a large number of which now have provisions for the initiative and referendum inserted in their charters. The extension of the system to the national government, by means of an amendment to the constitution, is now being urged by some organizations, including the American Federation of Labor.

Reasons for this rapid extension.

How is the rapid spread of this movement for direct legislation in the United States to be accounted for? Two reasons for it, at least, may be given. One is the decline of popular confidence in lawmaking by legislators. The work of the legislatures in many of the states, and of the city councils in most of the cities, has been unsatisfactory to the people on a good many occasions. It has given vogue to the idea that the people themselves could not do much worse and might do a great deal better. The second reason may be found in the habit of waiving responsibility which many legislatures and city councils have acquired in recent years. When difficult questions come before legislatures, the legislators frequently find an easy solution, so far as they themselves are concerned, by “putting the matter directly up to the people”. In other words they agree to place the questions on the ballot at the next election. In many states this practice of passing measures with a “referendum clause” has become very common. It has paved the way for direct legislation on a wider scale.

The Initiative and Referendum in Practice.—In actual practice the initiative and referendum do not provide a simple and easy means of making laws. Their use is hedged about by all sorts of formalities and conditions. In no two states are these conditions exactly alike, but in a general way the practical workings of direct legislation are somewhat as follows:

The petition.