The Hawaiian gazette., 1913-03-04
UNCLE SAM PLANS
OFFICE BUILDINGS
Monumental structures No Long,
er favored for Use of Gov
eminent Bureaus.
(Mail Special to The Advertiser.)
By Ernest G. walker.

WASHINGTON, February l6. -
Uncle Sam" is apparently going
into the business of erecting modern
office buildings. Supervising Architect
oscar Wenderoth, of the treasury de-
part, favors it and the idea will be
| tried in a $2,500,000 structure for the
J Geological Survey 1t is argued that
the modern office building is a develop.
lnent of the demand for up-to.date CON
veniences for the transaction of bust.
ness and that it is not altogether
proper for the government to confine its
| employees in monumental buildings. OF
course, monumental buildings will con-
tlnue to be erected at Washington, rs
wei as at scores and hundreds of towns
and cities throughout the country: but
here and there will be exceptions Mr..
! Weuderoth favors modern office build.
ing for the custom house at Boston and
has been suggesting that it would be
far better if the government should
tear the old custom house of histori-
cal associations down, simply because
the walls have been so badly wrecked
by repairs to the foundations that it
is no longer feasible to attempt to pre-
serve them.
Elaborate and spacious as a monu-
iiiNhb"i huliulhS may De, UHefe are many
rooms and offices where the light is not
of the best and where the government
employe can not pursue his tasks to the
highest advantage. If there be columns
in front, these obscure the windows.
On the other hand, the modern office
building type meets the demands of
business with facilities for the highest
efficiency.
Some ten years ago a government
printing office building of monument
tai type was erected in Washington. 1t
was supposed to be at the time almost
the very last word for a mechanical
plant and was marvel to sightseers
who came to Washington. But it can
be improved upon materially now and
is being improved upon in a new build
ing for the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing that the government is erect
ing down near the Potomac river. The
Geological Survey building, however,
as now proposed, will be an improve
ment over the Bureau of Engraving
and Printing The survey has a great
i map printing plant, but much of the
! large space it requires is for the cleri
cal and supervisory force, which COM
: prise altogether the greatest geologi-
i cal survey concern in the world.
No Hall of Records.
a Years ago the idea of q hall of rec
o ords, for the great volume of surplus
y papers that should not be destroyed,
:, siezed congress and it was voted to
e purchase square of ground near the
Y Corcoran Art Gallery, which is almost
J. on the edge of the city, although but
n a short way from the White House.
The square was acquired after long
litigation, but the money was never
E provided for the building. The site is
now to be used for the Geological Sur
: vey.
- Just now, when the cutlery against
~ government extravagances is rising in
y, congress, comment is revived about the
= carelessness of the legislators who
- draw the appropriation bills. The sys-
70 tenn of doing the work is open to
40 criticism. Elders say much could be
~ saved if there were concentration in
~ the making of those bills and if each
n. house had one large committee which
= did all the work. That was the way
N formerly, but the clamor for division
,b of the tasks so that more committees
or could have something to do became
I'D irresistible. 1t won first in the house
Ia and some years afterward in the sen
N. ate. There have been natural increases
an thirty years but figures show these in
Il. creases have been much less in thu
tn case of supply bills framed by the reg
90 ular appropriation committee. The in
hv crease in totals there, has been 10
per cent since 1876 as against an in
ID crease of 343 per cent during the sam
tie period in appropriation bills, frame
by "outside' committees.
System Requires Change.
About half the work of preparing
,u supply bills is done outside. The nava
jim appropriation bill has been going 70
of years to the naval affair committee
m of senate and house; likewise the arm
ay bill to the military affairs committees
tor the consular and diplomatic bill
err the foreign affairs committees; the agr
Ian cultural bill to the agricultural con
IN mittees; the Indian bill to the India
committees; and the postotice bill
the postroads committees. Having bI
one bill to prepare, each of these con
ma. mittees obtains narrow official vie
ect of the demands upon the government
gle, funds and for other reasons, as wei
les. there is not the same energy at kee
tat. ing expenses down as applies in Il
regular appropriations committee, whol
an. members become experts at the bus
ness.
There is naturally considerable je
leet lousy of the appropriations COMM
tee because II exercises great inf
enee, alike in the house aud in the SO
ate. The "outsiden committees th
/. prepare appropriation bills rush 90 hg
~ the regular committee az the elighte
Ia alarm and even take some pride
.aid piling up appropriation totals th
~. wrench the economy advocates (Wl
80. arc almost always members OF the 70
~ ulaf appropriation eommiitees) al
"a. provoke shrieks about extravaganza.
-, The condition h really a leHflnti
tse evil and some of the sisest heads
sf congress have sought b remedy Pre-
.sfs denl TAFT ls proposing one iu tue hu
~ got system Niiel haH henn worked .
4 81 fnf him ~ rkparia 1hefs has D.
Tfaefh lndlHsgfnfe 81 AnY reform
- Trefni yNHTa hafanfa ~ 3 loaH pafl
fhpfH see ~ abundance ~ uaaf
\ ihf iffaaHff aHd consequently ~ lft
Tag HtEH ~ ffHHumF
he $50