During the nineteenth century, several attempts to reform the government hiring process were introduced but eventually failed; one, to test all applicants seeking government jobs to determine their qualifications, also failed because: Most applicants were not then able to read and write and their were no alternative testing methods, The examiners would often change test scores or simply fail to test those they wished to get the position. There was no one test that could appropriately determine all candidates' fitness for a position. O The testing process proved to be too expensive, ineffective, and unfair, and was quickly discarded.​