The times., 1900-12-30
NO IMPROVEMENT ASKED
Record System in the District Com
missioDers' Office Satisfactory.
Comments of Secretary TindaII on u
Numbcr of Propositions for New
Librarian siude Necessary by the
Rapid Accumulation of Documents.

DR.. William TindaH, Secretary to the
Board of Commissioners. yesterday Sub
mitted his annual report of the opera
tions of his office for the past year. In
part he says:
THE record system in operation in the
executive Office appears TO meet ali the
practical requirements of the business of
the office, and to be sufficiently adapted
! to the character of the work performed
/ TO Justify it's retention until 1t shall be
| thought advisable TO rearrange the whole
method of keeping the correspondence
records Of the District Government.
"A number of propositions on the sub
| iect have been considered. The most al
| Turing OF these plans is to have one rec
! ord Office Tor the entire municipal corre-
| spondence system, with single numeri-
| cal series of letters received and one of
| the letters sent. At present nearly every
Office or department has u separate Sc
ries of its own.
While a system OF that nature might
, be productive of delay and embarrass-
ment in an organization having branches
or subordinates doing business in parts
OF the country or parts of the District re-
I
| that It is practicable to have all of the
offices of the District Government in the
same city, and nearly all in the same
! building. seems TO render the project
| feasible.
'As an alternative to such a record
| system, the correspondence records Of all
! of the several Offices under each COM
] missioner could have a series distinct
from those of the Offices under the otner
fDn narsNsc ce-afa -.
| the Engineer Department. At present
| the record of the one entry clerk in the
| Secrctary's Office. with the work Of the
clerk who keeps the account Of papers IN
| transit between the Commissioners and
the system provided by the order of July
| l. 1897, suffice 70 obviate embarrassment
| in the premises. but must be regarded as
tentative provision.
| 1T is very desirable that card index
| OF the minutes and orders of the Com
missioners from JUL 8. 1874. and a card
| index Of the opinions of the several At
| torneys of the District of Columbia
! should be prepared as early as prao,I-
| cable. and thereafter kept up 10 date;
| also that a like index of the letters re-
| ceived from the same date until the date
| OF the adoption OF the present card sys-
tenn for those records should be made.
Large portions of the indexes of those
4
the records themselves, are in many re-
| spects not only unsatisfactory and defect
| i've, but discreditable TO tn. ONCE. Some of
| the persons who were engaged at diner
ent times in the preparation of those in
deHes were materially untitled TO ade-
quately perform the work entrusted to
| them, and the results of their employ
ment were such as to lend emphatic en-
! dorsement TO the Commissioners recon-
nendations for civil service requirements
| in the matter of appointments of District
| officials. which would preclude a repeti-
| tion OF such state of affairs but | am
| glad TO state that this criticism is not
applicable TO any of the clerks at present
| employed in the executive office. Not only
was the character of the work done un-
der those circumstances defective, but in
consequence of the insufficient clerical
force in the executive Office for years
many forms OF record of indispensable 10
proper standard of official business were
altogether precluded.
The accumulation OF laws, reports, and
documents OF various kinds, and the ne
cessity for frequent references thereto as
well as to the cid records OF former mu-
inequalities in the District. has reached the
stage when the creation of the office OF
librarian Is advisable.
The librarian might in addition TO or
dinary duties Of arranging and caring for
the books be subject to the duty of or
ganizing and preparing statistical infor-
nation and other miscellaneous work. The
compensation should be sufficient to OBJ
tain an incumbent having capabilities COM
mensurate with the character OF the serv-
ice he would be expected to perform.
With the $500 provided in the deficien-
cy appropriation of June 6. 1900 for COM
pleting an index of the laws affecting the
municipal government OF the District of
Columbia very encouraging progress was
made upon system of said indexes of the
municipal laws. ordinances. and regula-
tions in force in the District. and to other
facts OF current and historical Importance,
to which 4 means Of ready reference is de-
sirable.
IAN item for $500 more for the same
purpose was included In the Commits
sioners' annual estimates for the fiscal
year to end June so, 1902, and it is be-
lieved win complete the work to date,
after which 1t can be kept up by the reg
ular office force.
During the year systems of card in
dexes to appointments made by the Com
missioners and Congress were devised and
established, and are very satisfactory
method of reference.
THE return TO this office of one of the
clerks who had been detailed to another
branch of the District Government has
enabled the Office force to more nearly
cope with the exacting demands upon it.
to the greater credit of the service, and
the improved accommodation of the pub
lie.
This report cannot Justly be closed
without commendatory allusion to the
competent assistance rendered the Com
mic hp he In, he