Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-11-21
GOVERNMENT PRINTERY.
Millions of Publications That Are
Never Distributed.

Never Distributed.
Congress is strenuously attempting to
reform Itself with relation to the busi-
ness Of printing. To accomplish this.
says writer in the New York Times,
Congress has appointed a joint commits
sion to investigate its monster printing
bills. and that commission has reported
that the wastes In this direction amount
to tens OF millions. and that. despite the
great expense. the end aimed at is not
accomplished.
Uncle Sam has. the commission states,
gang OF laborers at work regularly de-
stroying books which It has cost him
millions Of dollars to print. Almost any
Gay these workmen may be seen with
axes choppng viciously into great stacks
OF leather and cloth bound books such as
would be an ornament to any library
Every few years the government finds
itself the poasessor OF vast quantities of
printed matter stored in many ba sements
as Is grain in granaries. In the vaults
under the Capitol II Is no uncommon
matter to find thousand tons of worth
less public documents which Congress
finds itself unable to even give away.
Yet these documents have cost millions
of dollars in the printing. and those
millions. according to Congress itself are
absolutely wasted
Every day through the congresslona,
season there is mailed from the Capitol
and the House and Senate office build
.ngs an average of 20 tons of printed mat
ter. The men who mail 1t confess that
the vast majority of it is intended to
m mn .,ff 4
card which reminds the constituent that
he Is remembered The cost to the most
office department in sending this matter
through the mail amounts to 81 200 DAY
Every year the federal government
sends ont moro than 5OOn0 expensIv.
books to certain designated libraries in
different parts Of the country. Very few
OF these libraries use the books Many
OF them return them to the government
printing office at tho expense of the
government. while tho great majority
simply discard them. Extremely techni-
cal books, some of which are filled with
expensive plates and weigh as much as
Il pounds per copy. are thus broadcas ed
to people who do not want them.
These and scores OF other equally SEN
satlonal facts have been developed by
the joint commission OF the House and
Senate. headed by that conservative
statesman. Senator Reed Smoot. All
trese statements are from the mouth Of
Eenator Smoot, and may. therefore. he
regarded as safely within the facts This
commission. which has been seven years
IL compiling its facts. has Just reported
| upon conditions in the government print
ing office and recommended an entire new
printing law, with the idea OF obviating
a great many Of the old abuses
This commission reports that since 1895
there have been printed 100000 publ-
| cations that It has never been posi- BILE to
distribute. The commission further no!ds
that this number is merely n baga telle
compared with the vast amount Of gov
| eminent publications that has been
wasted by improper distribution and OF
which it was unable to find a trace The
| commission holds that II is conservative
to estimate that the l0OgrN worthless
documents that have accumulated in
| Washington during the last Il wears cost
| the government an average of 80 cents
each, which would indicate a net loss OF
IS. 0O0, 900 on this definitely known accumu-
lation Senator Smoot places the est-
ing and distribution methods on the part
o. Congress and the federal departing n It's
at ser, o0o, 900 for the last Il years
When the joint commission began to
look about for accumulated documents
| It's first nnd was In the various depart
ments. In Easements and storerooms of
! those departments 1t dug up more than
| 5000, ono hooks that had been printed on
which had never been distributed. There
were about 200 tons OF this material
| This mea MS that 1t would NIL IS big freight
ears to their capacity. The raw paper
alone In this quantity OF material would
| be worth $4,000. The distribution Of doc
uments on the part of the members OF
| Congress- costs the government about
q. 500 a year for each member, or an az
gresate of about 81, $50 600. 1t is probable
that not more than 10 per cent of the ma
teriai serves any purpose whatever.
The Joint commission has a scheme for
fixing all this which 1t offers to Congress
in the form OF a bill Through this bill
II homes not merely to do away with the
superhuous matter that is provided for
members of Congress, but to give to them
all thew want of documents that are par
ticularly interesting to their constiti-
ents. 1t proposes to place tc the credit
OF each senator $3.50 year. and to the
credit of each representative $500. and
these members may draw whatever pub
| locations they wish from the government
nr,nter and have them charged IN to
their Individual allotments
The government printing Office at
Warrington represents an Investment OF
rs ,OoD 90 To operate II costs the gov
srpment from $e.oO00o0 to s1.00o,ON n
wear The cost for white paper alone
| amounts to 81. $1,000 year There are
Oooa0OO copaos of publications issued