Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1886-05-15
GOVERNMENT WORK.
THE EMPLO YMENT OF WOMEN IN THE
DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.


DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.
Responsible Positions in the Treasur
Departmental the Law Division
Interior OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Work
ers-State, War and Navy.
There are about 4 900 women employed b
the government, and although the work
chiefly clerical they are also valuable assist
ants in a variety Of other occupations, man,
Of which are comparatively new TO women
The greatest number are employed in tn
treasury, which was the first department {
make use of their services The occasion arcs
during the late civil war, and was entirely
question o. expediency and even necessity, IL
order to fill the large number of vacancie
made by the enlistment Of the employees
Women were first employed as counters o
currency, and soon afterward as clerks, copy
lists, etc. As counters of homework re
curing chiefly quickness Of sight and defines
of hand-women have always excelled anC
have been uniformly preferred TO men. Theil
undoubted honesty has also contributed mucl
to their value in this work. 1t is said by tn,
officials in charge Of the currency division
tha: a case Of dishonesty ON the part of
woman has never occurred since their EN-
ployment in the treasury.
TREASURY AND INTERIOR DEPARTNEyrs
There are $40 women employees in the
treasury department, including $50 in tn,
bureau OF engraving and printing. They aTy
employed as corresponding clerks, account
ants stenographers, copyists, counters, Ii
brarians, and in some few instances as chief
In charge of sections, their duties being super
visory- Some of the books kept by womer
are models of beauty and accuracy. In tn,
issue division a lady has for several years haG
charge Of the books containing the exac,
amount OF currency issued, redeemed, des
troyed and outstanding; also the amounts OF
daily currency redeemed and destroyed in the
several states and territories. This involves O
vast amount Of detail and accuracy of ac-
counts which it is difficult for the uninitiated
to conceive Of
The annual report OF the controller of the
currency, with the bewildering columns of
statistics, is almost exclusively the work OF
women clerks. In some of the auditors off,
ces the women are obliged to have a knowl-
edge of banking as well as of mathematics
The difficult and responsible work Of the
redemption agency is done entirely by
women. This division is devoted entirely to
identify ing burned and mutilated money,
which is brought here under all sorts Of
strange and remarkable circumstances from
every part of the country, 10 be redeemed
Sometimes it is so badly defaced as to seem
almost to defy Identification. The most sue
cessfui expert in this work has been here for
twenty years, and has in that time saved
many millions of dollars.
Another conspicuous example of ability,
and also in quite new line, is that of a
woman employed in the law division of this
bureau, and who prepares the briefs for the
solicitor of internal revenue in the various
cases arising out of violation of internal
revenue laws She is considered one of the best
law clerks in the bureau. and is engaged upon
the most difficult and complicated compromise
cases.
The interior department employs 6ls
women as examiners Of applications for
patents, clerks, stenographers, typewriters,
accountants, tracers of drawings, copyists,
pastors, etc. The work of women as ex-
aIniners of applications for patents deserves
the highest commentator, since it requires
a knowledge of physics, mathematics, chems-
try and machinery-branches of study with
which at present women have only limited
opportunities to become thoroughly &C
quaintei, the snattering of science taught at
the average girls school being OF little value
for any practical uses.
PosToFFICE, STATE, WAR AND NAVY.
The postoff;ce department employs l24
women, principally in clerical work, but
some branches of this work are of q difficult
nature and require a peculiar fitness and
class of qualifications. A knowledge of the
modern languages and complete and minute
familiarity with localities are requisite in
many departments. A lady in the dead let
ter division is the most skilled expert in
deciphering instructed and illegible letters
In this country, and as illustrating her pc
culiar powers in this field she is called the
blind reader"
The state, war, and navy departments have
fewer women in their employ than any Of the
others few women are employed as trans
iators, but in this work, which, according to
popular ideas, would be especially suited to
the requirements and taste of women, few
women succeed. Their knowledge Of Ian
guages is usually not exact and thorough
enough to qualify them for the service which
requires grammatical and idioma.ic knowl-
edge of foreign languages. The official trans
lator Of each department is man, and gen.
orally foreigner. In the same connection it
may he stated that it is a singular fact that
in the occupations in which we would natur-
ally expect women TO excel, such as translat-
OTIS, botanists, etc, we find no conspicuous
cases OF ability, while the universally ac-
knowiedged and notable instances of superb
ority are in those departments where we
would least expect to find them at all, much
less to find them taking high rank
There are fifty-five women employed in the
quartermaster's office in the war department,
and about the same number assisting in the
of the H0fficial Records of the
War OF the Rebellion" In the navy depart
ment few women are engaged in the work
Of the photographic Office, in map drafting
and tracing, and as telegraph operators, typo
writers and clerks
The agricultural department employs liz
women, including those engaged in the seed
room They are chiefly corresponding clerks, |
keeping an account of seeds sent TO each sena- |
ator, representative and delegate; also. the |
records OF all applications for seeds, plants, |
shrubs etc Much OF the work is manual. |
such as making seed bags, labelling, and put
ting up seeds.
The government printing Office, which is
he largest establishment of this kind in the |
world, employs 200 women as stitchers and |
'olders of pamphlets. gold-leaf ornamenters,
operators of ruling. folding. and sewing ma
,hines, press feeders and couipositors.-New
York Times