The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1912-01-17
MESSAGE ON
ECONOMY and
EFFICIENCY
President Taft Reviews the Re.
port Of Special Commission,
COmmGndS Findings and
Urges Continuance.

Shows a Prospective Saving In Gov.
ernment Expenditures Of Upward Of
s5,ooo,ooo, With investigation Only
6esun-Waste In Single Rem Of Dis.
tributne Public Documents Amounts
20 $25oooo Annually - Saving In
Order to Spend Moro Wisely.
Washington. d. c., Jan 17.-The
president sent the following message
to songress today:
TO the Senate and House OF Repre-.
sentatives:
i submit for the information OF the
congress this report of progress made
in the inquiry into the efficiency rad
economy of the methodJ Of transact
ing public business.
Efficiency and economy In the GOV
ernment service have been demanded
with increasing insls.encc fer gen
Grafton. Real economy is the result Of
efficient organization. Ry pcrfecting
the organization the same benefits may
be obtained at less expense \ reduc-
tlon I'm the total OF the annual appro-
priations is not in itself a proof Of
economy, since It ii often accompanied
by decrease in efficiency. The needs
of the nation may demand a large in
crease of expenditure, yet 20 keep the
total appropriations within the eN-
pected revenue IS necessary TO the
maintenance of public credit
Upon the president must rest q large
share Of the responsibility for the de
mands made upon the treasury for the
current administration of the exCcu-
tive branch of the government Upon
the congress must rest responsibility
for those grants Of public funds which
are made FOR other purposes.
Reason For the Inquiry.
Recognizing my share Of responsible
ity for efficient and economical admin
istration, have eudeavOred during the
past two years. with the assistance OF
heads Of departments, 10 secure the
best results. As one Of the means TO
this end requested grant from con
grcss to make my efforts more Circc'
tive.
An appropriation of 100000 was
made June %, 1910, TO enable the
president to inquire into the methods
of transacting the public business Of
the executive departments and other
government establishments aud TO rec
Ommend to congress such legislation
as may be necessary To carry into eff
feet changes found TO bc desirable that
cannot be accomplished by executive
action alone" l have been given this
fund to enable me TO take action and
TO make specific recommendation with
respect TO the details Of TRANSMITTING
the business OF an organization whose
activities are almost 0s varied us those
OF the entire business world. The Cp-
eratlons OF the government affect the
interest of every person living within
the jurisdiction of the United states
Its organization embraces stations and
centers OF wor,. located In every city
and In many local subdivisions If the.
country. Its gross expenditure amount
10 nearly Sl,O0OOOO,U0O Annually. In.
cluding the personnel Of the military
and naval establishments. more than
100000 persons are required to do the
work imposed by law upon the cyccu.
tive branch Of the government.
Magnitude Of the Task.
This vast organization has never
been studied in douil as one piece Of
administrative mechanism. Never have
the foundations been laid for
thorough consideration Of the relations
of all of its parts No comprehensive
effort has been made to list its multi
fariOus activities or To group them IN
such way as TO present a clear pic
ture of what the government Is doing.
Never has n complete description been
given OF the agencies through which
these activities are performed. st no
time has the attempt been made 90
study all OF these activities and Ggcn-
cies with n view 10 tho assignmcut ~
each activity to the agency best fitted
for its performance, 70 the avoidance
of duplication Of plant and work, to
the integration of all administrative
agencies Of the government, so FAR as
may be practicable, into unified or
ganizatlon for the most effective and
economical dispatch OF public buA'
ness.
First Complete Investigation.
Notwithstanding that voluminous re-
ports are compiled annually and pre-
sented to the congress. no satisfactory
statement has ever been published Of
the financial transactions Of the gov
ernment as whole. Provision Is
made for due accountability for all
moneys coming into the hands Of Of
lhcers Of the government, whether as
collectors of revenue or dlsbursing
agents, and for insuring that authori.
zations for expenditures as made by
law shall not be exceeded But no
general system has ever been devised
for reporting and presenting informa-
ltion regarding the character of the
expenditures made In such a way as
TO reveal the actual costs entailed in
the operation Of individual services and
an the performance Of particular un-
dertakings ner In such a way as %
make possible the exercise o. intellI-
gent Judgment regarding the discretion
displayed in making expenditure ana