The Forrest City times., 1912-12-20
REFORMATION OF SPENDING CONDITIONS" IN FEDERAL
 SERVICE BEGUN.
SAVING MAY BE s1OO,OOO,O 900
Postmasters Fear Wilson VIII Rescind Taft's Civil Service Order and Take Away Their Jobs-Movino Day for Government Officials Ap- breaches.
By GEORGE CLINTON.

Washington.-Men who have made study of spending conditions .n i the federal service believe and have reported that more than s100,000,000 year can be saved to the govern ment if certain recommendations for economy be observed. and the claim l is that this saving can be made with out in any way crippling the service.
 It Is probable that before the next congress ends the entire system Of making appropriations will be 1 changed, that many bureaus will be consolidated and the supply bills cut many millions of dollars. the money l saved to be used for extending the useful services of the government to 1 fields not already covered.
 When Theodore Roosevelt was pres ident he appointed what was known as the Keep commission" It was the duty of MT. Keep and his col | leagues to study business methods in vogue in the different departments and to see how the work could be shortened and yet be just as effective as 1t was under existing conditions.
 Start Made On Economy.
 When President Taft came into office one of the first things he did was to call his cabinet officers to- gether to urge upon them the neces- sity of economic administration. Secretary Macy Eeagh was made the chairman of cabinet committee charged with the work of economic | administration. It was soon dis covered that in single departments of the government the different bur eaus purchased their supplies inde- pendently of one another and that different prices were paid for pre- cisely the same article One bureau for instance would pay two or three cents a dozen more for lead pencils than another bureau was paying for the same article of the same manufac- ture.
 A good many economies, small as compared to the saving which 1t Is lished, were made. It was a start, however, for greater things. The system which was in vogue in the treasury department, or perhaps it had better be called lack of system. was the same which held in nearly every other department of govern ment. All the secretaries got busy in the saving venture and there was an economic squirt" all along the line.
 Not long after the first initial econo- mic venture President Taft appointed a commission on economy and eff ciency with Frederick A Cleveland as it's chief. This commission has been at work for more thon two years and It has worked out an elaborate and yet at the same time simple scheme for saving Uncle Sam money.
 Budget System Approved.
 President-Elect Wilson has sane toned the budget system of appro- the present president and by the com mission on economy and efficiency budget system all the appropriations asked for go to dozens of committees of congress. For instance. the naval appropriation is acted on by several different committees, each one talk Ing part and no one of them know ing just what the other Is doing. The result is a scattering of energies and scattering of money. Under the budget system all the appropriations will be considered by the chairmen of different committees acting together They thus can get concrete knowledge of the whole situation at once and by intelligent direction can stop many holes of waste
 If the economy and efficiency com. missions recommendations finally be adopted by congress 1t is believed that the agricultural interests of the country largely will be aided There are bills now in congress looking to this very thing, but the cost is said to be prohibitive because of the pre- sent extravagant methods. With a saving of sl00,000 900 a year. and some of the experts place it as high as $300,000,00 year. many of the helpful measures now under con. sideration by the law makers can be passed, the money will be forthcom- ing, and the treasury will be just as we'll off as it is now and the benefits to the people will be multiplied This matter is going to be live issue In congress from now on.
 Postmasters Fear for Jobs.
 Naturally the Democrats of both house and senate are looking ahead to the glad time when they will come in. to full possession of the administra- tion in all It's branches The Demo- cratic leaders are nonplussed as to what to do about the blanket civil service executive order issued by President Taft not long before the election. the effect of which was to put nearly 10000 postmasters of the country on the civil service list. II goes without saying perhaps that nearly all of these postmasters are Republicans. many of whom have held oihce for years and who. unless the