The Washington herald., 1913-02-02

thing. swallowing up State influence.
| and overturning all the glories OF our
| State institutions. / see nothing of all
! this; ! see nothing but a plain, prac-
! ucal question. There is not a par
/ ticIe of this bill. not sentence. for
| extending the powers of the govern
ment. 1t is a bill for appointing a
| new agent for the exercise of already
| existing powers-nothing else under
| heaven.
| The bill was speedily passed. 1t group
| ed in the new department the existing
| bureaus above mentioned. and also GER
tain interests not otherwise assigned. as
the census and several institutions and
officials in the District of Columbia and
Territories. In the process of adjustment
through succeeding years. various inter-
| ests have grown in magnitude and i'm
pOrtanCe. others have waned and deter
mined. and numerous others have come
into existence.
The Secretary Persona OmciaIis.
The Secretary of the Interior Is n great
magistrate. vested with extensive lcgisla-
tive and judicial. as we'll as executive
| powers. Possessing the authority con-
| ferred by organic statute upon heads OF
| departments, to prescribe regulations
not inconsistent with law, for their gov
1
| clerks. the distribution of their business,
and the custody and use OF their prop
| erty. he has seen added thereto with ev-
| cry succeeding volume of the Statutes
| at Large powers, duties, liabilities, till
ne now stands forth the personal opera
| tive force OF a bcwilderinS multiplicity
| Of functions, which affect more constant
| ly and positively the interests of 4 larger
| number of persons than do those of any
| n of nf En prr,rn
broad nature Of his powers the Supreme
| Court has adopted this language:
II is obvious that in the administra-
| tion Of such large and varied interests
| matters not forescen, equities not an
tiCipated, and which are not provided
| for ny express statute. may some
| times arise, and therefore the SeCre-
tary of the Interior is given that sup
| erintending and supervisory power
: which will enable him in the face Of
these unexpected contingencies, to do
justice. G3S L. s. 52D.
The statutes in placing the whole
| business of the department under the
! supervision of the Secretary, invest
him with authority to review, reverse.
/ amend, annul or affirm all proceed
| ings in the department. Such super
! vision may be exercised by direct
: orders or by review on appeal. The
! mode, in the absence OF statutory
! provision, may be prescribed by such
! rules and regulations as the secretary
/
The extent to which such broad powers
are explicitly intrusted by statute TO an
appointive official will depend upon the
doctrine and disposition OF the Congress
sional Committee which shapes the par
tiCular legislation. II they be in ~ :Jry
strict constructionists. and in disposition
| jealous of the Executive, they viii strive
to extend the law TO cover all suP.rs-
able contingencies. If on the Othe- hand
h.,
levers in a strong and responsible EXrcu-
tive land this attitude may depend much
on party sympathies at the time), They
will frame a statute in general terms,
| leaving to the head Of the department
large discretion TO provide for details and
| unforeseen conditions. by regulations or
Interpretation. But whether expressed or
not, such power must inhere in every
statute to the extent to render it eXeCut-
able. All who appreciate the great VOL
ume and CompleXity of the governments
business, realize also the necessity Of
| STRENGTHENING the hands of the Executive
and enlarging his discretion within his
| proper sphere. The age demands results.
AS in physics motion is only produced
by the application OF force. so in admin
| istration results are only obtained by
| the exercise or authority. NO eHect
| without a cause.
1
| responding difference of attitude to-
| ward the law may be observed.
One executive officer will be bold. another
timid; one may hold that to accomplish
the purpose of the law, i. e, TO execute
the will of Congress in cnacting it, he
can and ought to do any and everything
not specifically prohibited by law; an
other that he can do nothing unless eN-
pressly authorized by law. Doubtless
here, as everywhere. the via media is the
| right way: every officer, while guiding
his course with a clear comprehension
of the law. should have courage to take
responsibility in its effective interpreta-
ton.
| The amount of the Secretary's legisla-
| tive work is shown by countless circulars
and pamphlets of carefully drawn regula-
tons for carrying out the law, conduct
ling business and determining interests,
| in the many fields of his jurisdiction:
his judicial activity by forty printed
volumes of department decisions, averag-
| ing about so pages each, not TO mention
ten times as many unpublished decisions.
These are often brought in questions in
the courts, and unless found in con-
| fict with some statute, are upheld as
having the force of law. To accomplish
his work the Secretary is aided by two
| Assistant Secretaries, twenty-siN Assist
ant Attorneys, eight Inspectors, medical
expert, and as legal adviser an Assistant
Attorney General detailed from the De-
partment of Justice. The Assistant Sec
retaries perform such duties as may be
prescribed by the Secretary" In the work
assigned to them by written orders each
acts in his own official capacity, signing
his own name and title, and his acts
have the same validity as the Secre-
tarys-in the language of the street,
| "Ul1at he says goes"
To this force. with clerks and division
chiefs known as the Secretary's Office
comes a perpetual stream of typed and
written matter called mail" which may
safely be measured by tons per week.
being that part of the business of the
several bureaus, including their several
armies in the field, which requires ap-
prcval OF or action by the Secretary. In
these matters the cases. proposals, ap-
pIications. appeals, or what not. are con-
sidered by the Assistant Attorneys and
chiefs of divisions and the appropriate
J action formElstsd Tor sianatius VI the