f honest and faithful subordinates whose duties are purely
administrative and have no legitimate connection with the triumph of any
political principles or the success of any political party or faction.
It is to this latter class of officers that the Senate bill, to which
I have already referred, exclusively applies.

While neither that bill nor any other prominent scheme for improving the
civil service concerns the higher grade of officials, who are appointed
by the President and confirmed by the Senate, I feel bound to correct
a prevalent misapprehension as to the frequency with which the present
Executive has displaced the incumbent of an office and appointed another
in his stead.

It has been repeatedly alleged that he has in this particular signally
departed from the course which has been pursued under recent
Administrations of the Government. The facts are as follows:

The whole number of Executive appointments during the four years
immediately preceding Mr. Garfield's accession to the Presidency was
2,696. Of this number 244, or 9 per cent, involved the removal of
previous incumbents.

The ratio of removals to the whole number of appointments was much the
same during each of those four years.

In the first year, with 790 appointments, there were 74 removals, or 9.3
per cent; in the second, with 917 appointments, there were 85 removals,
or 8.5 per cent; in the third, with 480 appointments, there were 48
removals, or 10 per cent; in the fourth, with 429 appointments, there
were 37 removals, or 8.6 per cent. In the four months of President
Garfield's Administration there were 390 appointments and 89 removals,
or 22.7 per cent. Precisely the same number of removals (89) has taken
place in the fourteen months which have since elapsed, but they
constitute only 7.8 per cent of the whole number of appointments (1,118)
within that period and less than 2.6 of the entire list of officials
(3,459), exclusive of the Army and Navy, which is filled by Presidential
appointment.

I declare my approval of such legislation as may be found necessary for
supplementing the existing provisions of law in relation to political
assessments.

In July last I authorized a public announcement that employees of the
Government should regard themselves as at liberty to exercise their
pleasure in making or refusing to make political contributions, and that
their action in that regard would in no manner affect their official
status.

In