The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-11-27
EXTRAvAGAhCE
RUhh|hG RAMPll
Red Tape in Government ~
partments Cause of Enor-
nous Waste
EIGHTEEN SYSTEMS
BOOKKEEPING IN ON
Congressional ''Pork Barrel
Also Attracts Attentions
As DO Large Over !
head Charges

WASHINGTON. Nov. 2s.-pur6s
with years Of moss laden traditaon
held fast in meshes OF red tapA
United States government - fonoN
q wastefui system Of admtniatZnA
which in Its sum total dwarfs
sxtravasancss Of all history. 0aea1o
from thousand leaks. the sovs1
mental waste expressed In mo4
reaches staggering sum- When lss
ally checked by the applicatton
modern business methods, the 9oeos
900, 900 saving suggested By 6snaa
Aldrich will In comparison fesea
q poor box contribution.
This Ii tho concluston which ~ uN#
Ing reached by the PreDtdenc0
mission on economy and emcienc3 aas
the government. While the report &C.,
be rendered to tho President bsforo e
end of December may not put Il IN k
same words, its findings and SOco
mendations will bear out the Aoos9@
statement
II 10 known that the commi1130m 49,
found q large percentage OF Wo0&oMS
ene-~y and money In every departn
Of the government Just what TIA -
eral average II has not yet -
struck, but q comparatively small pe
centage OF money waste on the onoe
| nous business conducted Will roacM
staggering figures in the aggregate
Handling u oiiliena
1t takes moro than 4 billion 0ON4k0a
| q year to run the ordinary affairs
the government. In addition, a6cues
| the departments. The comU,1o0e
| has found tilAt with every m@vauD1Ge
| Of these tremendous amounts thNr4s
| 10 waste. and that wasted e6orfo -
volvirg waste Of money has grown -
around every function Of national -!
Too many false motions In thA CO.
! Duct Of tho governments busInsuA t1os
/ much use Of the hands, and no4s
enough OF the head together with e.
| hAmpering Of administrative refot13s
| by the tenacious hold Of archaic meta
| DDS II eaid to be at the root of t1o@
| trouble.
/ For instance the commissions l1eas
| discovered that no fewer than etghtoNH9
intricate ana entirely different SystoGilg
| Of bookkeeping are In vogue In t1os
| treasury department This necenM1Na
tates the same work being done cve
and over again ut q great cost In 49,
and labor. 1t will recommend -
this complex mass be simplided Int
/ "Per,< Barrel" to Shrink. s
The congressional pork BARREL VIM
| come In for the commissions cQ0S5
domination. The greater part OF -
annual distribution Of about $685. 81
900 in congressional district apprupg3AS|
| with further waste occurring In G1Mg
handling Of each portion which -
district gets.
For instance every congressman 49,
has q creek in his district spe14M
strenuous moments struggling for CO.
appropriation to have It deepsned co
navigation.
Senator Tillman was quoted 60
timo ago a. saying that he kn41
this pork barrel was not GoM&
thing. but that IL all the -other naau
berS Of Congress got some OF q, WD2e
should the people OF his distr1ce ~
left out 81
The commission will recommen1s
that such appropriation. whefo t19
work IL not Of concrete and e
seQuent value. shall cease. l
Conditions such an Senator La I9[
lette discusses In his autobiosran
will be gone into In the report. 49,
the Wisconsin senator first went TT
Congress. the government was ro9ese
ing postal service cars from the rQ
roads for 100000 more amnun1
than 1t would cost to build. &C.,
and keep the cars IN repair ssN
Work Ii DupllcASed. 81
He declared that when he retu1M
ed to the Senate seventeen years la&
the same rental was still being -
and in spite OF his efforts to eoeX
change. 4ha matter h. still @aaxt ytas
threshed out In the next CongxG
The same conflict Of method -
in many cases duplication Of WN
that exists with the Treasury Depm
ment has been found throughout 81
waste does not exist IN Wash1n93
only. but extends wherever the Ums
eminent sails q ship or has = t06
In some places the waste II cG
, paratively trivial and In others 1
average Is brought up by the c.
ence Of costs that can be totally e1e!
mated. VI s*
y In conjunction with the plana
Secretary Of the Navy Meyer to n1m
his department on = better bualn
plane. the commission has wee1
out an elaborate report, In whicA
needless details Of administrAS
and eliminate them. The sanie
is to be applied to other dep41
ments.
Overhead Expense
Top-heavy overhead expense
; sulting In inehiciency and wuAe9S
. the actual work. has been fouA1
erywhsre. To enable dspartmen
scutives to put their AnEers o.
inenictency. charts hayo oee4
pared showing the actual work
lies at the bottom Of all depAx1
effort. and which trace ooG4
relating 70 the work Cifoor
overhead direction - ~ eht1
J dapArtment q y IN
II In most tnstaunaa h eAak3
, show sh0St cuts 10 ho1e9 euEGl
!. Consoat1aticu uf 6u1U4nl am1
a1ona which make lupe H
II Dor end eepafat1on - 30no
: properly frelAted Win ~
: - ~ the coxAmlm4oo. yne40Y
bureau en- ~ IT, Nns4 oGss1
xnsrs ., ~ - 49, 49, Hns