The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-07-05
NOT AN EASY JOB.
Mnny and Arduous Duties OF tho Secre-
tary OF tho Treasury.

hinny ana AruuouS Duties OF tho Secre-
tary OF tho Treasury.
The position of secretary of the treas
ury is one of work in several different
lines. The word treasury, says Kate
Footc in tho independent, makes
one think only of tho millions in the
vaults. But the departments under the
treasury roof arc numerous. They aro
those of the supervising architect, the
bureau OF engraving and printing-that
is where all our notes, bonds and Ger
tificatcs and revenue and custom stamps
ere printed; the secret service division
they watch OUT for countcrfeiters and
smugglcrsi the office of steamboat in
spection. the bureau of statistics, the
life-saving service, tho comptrollcrs
offices, the commissioner of customs,
tho register Of tho treasury, who is
tho bookkccrcr of the United States,
and who has to know how every dollar
CT the public money is spent or else
como to grief. Then there ore six AUD
itors, who help the register keep his
eyes on all the claims and accounts that
come to the treasury, and the treasurer
of the United States, who, with his
clerks, receipts and pays out money to
banks and keeps their bonds. The
comptroller Of the currency has the
organization Of our national banks and
the redemption and destruction of notes
that arc worn out and dcfaccd, as we'll
as the issue and preparation of the
national bank circulation Tho COM
missioner of internal revenue, who at
tends to our internal revenue taxes
and matters pertaining to distil-
iS Gn
sinners" of North Carolina swear
at when sudden raid from
some unexpected quarter is made
upon their illicit distillcries OF
whisky. The director of the mint at
tends to these littlo mint drops, our
gold dollars, and estimates the value of
the coin Of foreign countries. The bu-
rcau OF navigation tries to keep us
from being blown up By reckless steam
boat owners, who for filthy lucrc would
send US to sea in ill-ftting vessels The
lighthouse board tries to keep US off tho
rocks and shoals when we have zone to
sea in the vessels that the inspector OF
steam vessels says are safe, and the re-
ports Of this board and the lights they
set up along our coast arc very interest
ing subjects to great many hundred
miles Of coast, both on salt water and
fresh water. am told that there is a
lighthouse away up in Lake Michigan
where the men are shut in for SIX
months. The weather Is such that they
cannot get away and the inspector says:
1--WE invariably find when we go up
there in the spring that they have quar-
relied and will not speak. One lives on
one floor and one on another and they
arc at loggcrhcads. The long isolation
is too much for human nature They
get frightfully tired Of each other and
always quarrel sooner or later" Tho
coast and gcodetic survey give flno
maps and the marine hospital service
has DIR. Billings at it's head. There are
twcnty-four divisions in the treasury,
each requiring its own arrangements
for working its set of clerks and q head
of each division who knows what he is
about 1t is very perfect machinery
in spite of its complications, and the
perfection of its working is shown in
the old, true story, that the accounts
were found to be three cents behind
and there was great stir and excite
mcnt. The three cents were found at
last upon the floor in one Of the vaults
and peace settled once more upon the
boundaries of Uncle Sam within the
treasury.
The moral Of this is that man who
is secretary of the treasury has rot only
position Of great responsibility, but
he has it in 4 multiplied form. All the
twenty-four divisions require q separate
sort of knowledge, although they flow
into each other in great final.