sentences:  The objective of the Association was to establish a system of appointment and promotion in the Civil Service depending upon suitability assessed by competitive examinations, open to all applicants properly qualified, and that removals should be made for legitimate cause only, such as dis-honesty, negligence, or inefficiency, but not for political opinion or refusal to render party service.The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act in 1883 made it law that government positions should be awarded on merit, however the Association continued to push for compliance, improvements, efficiencies and reforms in the U.S Civil Service.Stokes became chairman of the National Association of Anti-Imperialist Clubs, a movement formed in 1898 to oppose the annexation of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines at the end of the Spanish‐American War.