The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-05
waste BASKET EXAMINERS.
Two Women III the Treasury Department
Who Look for Stray Bonds.

"OHicial Examiner Of the Waste Basket"
such is the title conferred on two women
Mt the Treasury. Nor il the title Il vain ono.
The women are clasScd rs experts" and
their duties are reckoned important
From to 4 O'Clock each day, except Sum
day. they may be found In the basement
of the big and dirty gray.brown building
wherein Uncle SANS sinews OF commerce
and war, peace and prosperity are kept.
, Hour by hour they carefully go through the
big piles Of waste paper dumped ont for their
critical inspection from the capacious naws
Of the hundreds of baskets. which are sup
posed to catch the litter of officials and clerks.
from Secretary Shaw down. IL is the word
supposed that gives these experts employ
ment. Too often "A document or paper OF
value slips inadvertently into the baskets,
and were 1t not for the wntchful eyes of these
women would find its way into the fiery fur
mace of destruction.
People have been wont to Joke about tho
ridiculous titles that certain Governments
employees bear, and in a popular farce of
few years ago there was character who
styled himself the official cleaner of Governs
ment cuspidors. But there are. in fact. two
official examiners OF waste baskets in tho
Treasury Department.
The necessity OF employees OF this kind
that drafts, vouchers and bonds worth any
where from 81 up to $4,000, and even more,
are handed about and sent from one room
to another az though they were OF no mora
value than so much cambria. Frequently
the carelessness of a messenger permits onB
OF these slips OF paper. representing mlnv
hundreds, and even thousands. Of dollars. tc
fall into waste basket A sudden gust Of
wind may carry n bond from chiefs DESC
and toss 1t into the same receptacle. whila
q hurried official may tear in half a drafa
lnr
into the basket Until the adoption Of tbs
present system Of examining the contents
of these baskets at the end OF each day all
mishaps of this, sort wore past Immediate
correction. While they did not always result
In the actual loss of the face value
OF each paper. they Invariably caused
great deal OF trouble and annoyance. Banks
that ordered shipments of notes failed to geb
their money until weeks after the time ID
should have been delivered. Then, again.
the disappearance Of an important draft or
the honesty Of employees and kept tho
treasurer In constant hot water, Now most
Of this trouble Is avoided through the skill OF
the lynx-eyed examiners. who examine every
article that goes into the baskets.
There is well regulated systcm for hand
ling this work. Every basket in the building
il numbered n tag telling in what room and
to what clerk it belongs. Each employee
has two such baskets, which are used on alter
nate days, One SET Is examined one day
day. The baskets ARE brought into tn" eS-
aminers room exactly as they are left by tho
clerks.
The general orders throughout the dennrt-
ment nro that no scrap Of paper shall be
thrown into basket without being first torn
in halves So the examiners are on the look
out for official looking documents, and ca
ppcially for papers that have not been torn.
All papers Of this description are laid asilo
utter being labeled, with the number OF IN,
basket from which they were taken. lg
frequently happens shat much of The stnI
picked out in this way is of no value, BUS
not long ago one Of tho women engnged on
this work found II sio.0OO United states bond.
II " the duty OF the chnrwomrn ~ givs
N casual glance through vast" baskets before
they are carried to the room Of tho examiners.
4 few weeks go the chief clerk of the dnpart-
ment threw into his basket 4 worthless cir
cular which WIS folded III the shape OF mn
oficial document He failed to dsfisure
it. and the next morning h" ywns somewhls
myst fod to find thr paper on his d"sk again.
He tossed il into the basket second timas
but the next morning it was on his desk No
usIIal 4 third time the process was repeated.
and the chief clerk Nnally learned thnt tho
faithful charwoman WAS tn" person VINO
nersistrntly rescued the document That he
was anxious to get rid Of