Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-03-15
NEEDED REFORM.

Improper Methods of Conducting Business in
Some of the Executive Departments Pointed
out by a Special Committee.
WASHINGTON, March S.-The report SUBJ
mitted today by Sen. Cockrell from the
special committee which has been study
ing the methods of transacting govern
ment business in the executive depart
ments. is volume of 26S printed pages,
in addition to the volumnioUs appendices.
The committee finds much in certain
places to commend, and very much in
other places to condemn as unnecessary
ridiculous and farcial circumlocution.s The
report olassiies the forces
employed by the government, including
officers and men of the army and navy
and finds q grand total of 171,746 indi-
vlduals. The reports received from the
various departments in reply TO the COM
mittee's letters of inquiry failed to show
| the connection of bureau with bureau,
division with division, in respect to any
single item of the business transacted,
and for the purpose of getting infor-
nation of this character the committee
caused q few specimen items to be
| traced from their initiation to thRir COM
pletion. The first of these is an expend-
iture of $4,000 by the treasury depart
ment for Stationery for thu fiscal year of
1887. 4 simple statement of the course
of this transaction from estimate to set
! Element warrant" requires twenty-one
printed pages. Other cases instanced are
/ characterized as showing ''farcical rout-
! inc, examinations, Qualifications, entries
| and counter entries, and red tape aG
nauseum," when a direct course
of settlement would have been fel pre-
ferable. The committee finds the seq
ond auditors clerks writing thousands of
letters to the quarter master generals
clerk for information to be obtained from
copies for pay rolls in the Quartermastez
generals office, the originals of which
we're prepared in and are now on file in
the office whence the inquiries ema nate.
It finds the condition of business in
the general land Office for many
years past "chaotic," which re-
suits from the want or lack of plain
| and correct business methods and re-
/ quirements promptly and uniformly en-
forced upon the local land offices and
| employees of she general land office. 1t
finds that the books of the Office have
been neglected since the year 49, and
| that Information which should be readily
accessible is by reason of this
gross carelessness and negligence
| TO be sought here and there
| through the records at great expense of
| time and labor. It finds that the registers
and receivers instead of exercising the
quasi judicial functions conferred upon
them by congress, are treated
merely as clerks of the depart
ment, heaping upon the Washington
Office vast accumulations of undi-
gested matter, which takes its
chances with accommodations of past
decades. The committee finds the patent
Office suffering for want of classified
abridgement" of patents granted "a
work begun several years ago, but
unavoidably delayed, and it sub
mits a bill appropriating $4,000
for the speedy completion of the work.
The report discloses many tricks of
patentees and would-be patentees, for
practically extending the life OF their
patents. The committees recommends
tions are scattered throughout the re-
port.