New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-05-11
THE GOVERNMENT PRINTING
!. HARD NUT FOR THE COMMITTEE TO
CRACK
,nrss,v7 NEED OF REFORM - RESULTS OF
TIE PRESENT. HArHAzARD METHODS
WASTE AND woRTHLEssSEss RUN
NECK AND NEcK-How THE
REPORTS OF DEBATES
HAVE GROWN.
rnY rELEGhAPH TO THE TkiBuNE.l

rsY rELEGbAPH TO THE TklBuNEl
washington May 10.-The Congressional Committee
fo ncure into the amount and kinds OF printing DONE
and the number and extent of publications officially
,ssued by the Government annually and TO make
recommendations for future action, has already as
covered that only by the most constant and perseVer
ing indusry and the cordial aid and cooperation OF
large number OF officials who interested will 1t be
able to submit complete report next winter. Proo"
bly, there not dozen senators or Representatives
In the last Congress who realized in anything he ."
adequate degree, the magnitude or difficulty OF e .S
imposed upon the committee. and IL Is douo'Iu an
the members OF the committee itself ala So 1no9
might have been better informed If they had cselui4S
studied the report made by the commission OF wich
Librarian spofford and superintendent Ames OF the
Interior Department were members several years ago.
or the exhaustive annual report OF the latter or 'e
year 1880 a full abstract of which was p"ohs'.N ~
The Tribune more than year ago. IL Is u"e 'i''' Wv
main object of both Of those reports was 10 uesooo ~
explain the careless system want OF system "lich
mas governed the distribution OF the oihciai puon
4,ons ~ tho Government and 70 recommend necdl IT,
forms Int incidentally they threw-much light on o'her
matters relating 10 the subject OF public printing anu
publishing ,.,. . ,,,,,o
aocpneuas that in 1876 careful and thorough III
situation under the direction OF the interior oe
partment. showed that complete collection OF Such
sr1,nants did not exist in any public or official
aenositorv in the United States: in fact. that the
least imperfect collection was in the British Museum
There has not been much amendment IN the last nteeh
wears although, thanks to the urgency Oh Librarian
spofterd and other eminent librarians and tne lhlen
gent and earnest efforts of superintendent AheS anu
Others the XLvIIth Congress did enact that inc h0
hellion records and the reports Of the Tenth Census
should be distributed in sets. and that the Sainc
erson should not receive than one set OF tose
Qualifications In several OF the Departments ana
bureaus also greater care has been exercised " P'
vent Implications and TO send documents ohN " u'"
persrns and institutions as would or couio inaho "i'
nsefl: but in the absence of any central agency VI
distrbutaon such efforts have been nnIlneo 10
eat ext4nt nv the demands of Senators, Representa-
ttves and Government officials. The natulsA Co'is0
o,ene has been that thousands OF persons WHO hoe"0O
comics of any report for legitimate use nave peeh U
able 10 obtain them, because the supply mas Deei
swhars,.a nv the demands of dealers who had q
sharp eye 10 pecuniary profit ana ny p0fSon' WV
cared nothing for the publications after they "eic
obtained .s ns,s,ve
rhere lxs been much unnecessary ana expensive
duplication, Implication and even qusnrupi'caHon III
the pubushing as well as in the distributor Oh evou
snents A majority of the special orders Oh puoiO"
ton made by Congress have speehcaly orccVe" rN'.
so many copies of each Of the doculhenVs oiu0'0~
sbould he Cor the use of the Senate so many copies
,oo, for the use Of the House." and SO many more
for the head of the Department Bureau OF oaoe H0i
which the document emnated In hunoleos VI oascS,
too documents published " in accordance VIII HI"
have Appeared In Two. three or more puDncaNons uu
der different titles and double or treble EXPENSE on
ooun4 ~ tvpeetting steqeotypng, electrOtyping ana
,resswork Again and until within few years there mas
been 10 Intelligent editorial supervision OF "overhe'
publications rule and thS consequence ""s o'0'
a great and constant expansion by tle pu0no@uon "
4 vast amount of matter which was wholly hTeloValC
md generally of little or no value Almost every
and an4
felt the pride Of authorship and been ambitious 10
distinguish themselves by swelling te SIC Oi cd an
Ssen the SNiing of some most extraordinary and
worthless documents Al tile public expense. Among Ie
duties of his once was appointment Of eompe-
tent editor Of the Qihcia pubhcatlons OF lne p1P1
c,rSaier economy expenditure, but in great I'M
provement in the documents Issued from uaV Dep@V
Editorial supervision is also exercised over the
consular reports and some Other pu9heaos Ti tg
state Department the publications VI the Oeoogch
Survey and perhaps, oil two or three oulT bIoAgs
the heads of which care more about the quality OIL "a
document than they do about vast, barren waste OF
print These Isolated exhibitions OF good sense seem
10 have arrested the attention and excited tie interest
piataon for public printing and binding Tor the next
fiscal provision reqrng that the h1aa te Gr
annual reports W Congress, tle pruning Oh winch
is chargeaDle to this Appropriation, shall cause tle
same 10 be carefully examined and shall exclude
therefrom all matter including engravings. maps,
drawings ana illustrations EXCEPT such as sney shi
be necessary and 70 relate entirely to the TRANSACTION
OF public business" ,
to any attempt TO curtal the quantity Of its own
printing and yet the growth Of The Congressional
Record has been far beyond anything which the
nature aud quality Of its contents has justified 1t
has become the most mIwtadly and illdIgested and,
Sn many respects the most worthless and Inaccurate,
publication issued by the Government. com
paratve statement showing the extraordinary ex-
panson of the reports of Congressional proceedings
within a short period viii be pertinent and inter
eSting. , -
the first beginning July A. 1861 and the last one
ending March 8, 1868. The reports of the proceed
ings of the three sessions filled s9S pages There
were two sessions Of the NXXNlIlth Congress between
December 7, 1863, and March 4, 1861 and the re-
ports of proceedings of that Congress filled 4,024
pages making Q total for the I'VE sessions OF TWO
virtually covered the entire period OF the war OF the
Rebellion the most important and momentOus period
There were two sessions of the Lth Congress which
covered the last half of the not very eye9tfnl 40
chiefly by wordy but fritess war against American
,S and the S 20 Snea as ma%y
less 577 pages the five sessions of the two great
war Congresses and the proceedings Of the second md
Congress OF 1924 pages. Other comparisons quite
as Instructive might be made. but this one alone
priety Of submitting oopye for The Record" to the
pruning Of COMPETENT and tudiciOus editor
II is q rather difficult and tedious task TO separate
all the items account Of public printing and bind
Ing from other items OF appropriation and expenditure,
making appropriations for the fiscal year ending June
30, 1902 shows that the total Of the items specified
exceeds S3.000OO0. II there should be an unex-
pended balance the end Of the year everybody would
be surprised For years Congress has been Obliged TO
Of deficiencies for printing and binding. This item OF
expense has become heavy that Congress cannot
afford much longer 10 disregard It,
REFUSED TO BEAR HIS FATHERS NAME.
ROMANCE OF ADMIRAL DE ROHAN-HIs QUAR-