El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-05-11

chimes which print on sheets Of pa
per about half the size OF the page
on which this letter is printed the
exact record of the operations and
make all the calculations and addi-
tons required in connection with the
accounts. The machines are 50 con-
structed that they cannot make a
mistake and if there is an error all
that is necessary is to go back 70 the
man who first punched the card and
see Il his work was done correctly.
After the papers leave the machines
they are bound into books. which
contain the full reports of the busi-
ness and that without the scratch Of
a pen. Moreover, the work is 50 con-
deuSed that it requires only SIX or
seven volumes Of this kind to record
in detail all the expenditures Of the
navy for one year The same work
formerly took an enormous number
Of books which were kept in pen and
ink. every calculation being subject
10 the mathematical skill OF the clerk
and having to be checked again and
again to know that they were cor
rect
Must Keep Up With 100000.
And then the addresses graphs and
the machines for making the stencils
for the thousands Of addresses and
accounts TO be kept There are 300,-
600 men in the service of the navy,
and by the present system of allot-
ments and war risk insurance the
hundreds Of thousands of the fami-
lies of the men on the seas have to
be cOrresp0nded with. and, in some
cases. checks sent every month. Each
OF these with whom the navy does
business is represented by a stencil
made OF aluminium. in which is
stamped. by a machine like 4 linotype.
his name and address This is put
with many others in its proper order
/ in the machine. which prints the
names upon checks or cards or upon
the envelope in which they go out
through the mails
Checks Signed by Machinery.
There are also machines Tor sign
ing the checks. 90. 900 Of which go out
every month. One Of these machines
consists of a table with a framework
above it holding ten fountain pens
The framework is so adjusted that
each pen rests on q different check.
so that the cashier can sign ten
checks at one time by moving the
penholder connected with the frame
work. The work is done 50 fast that
1000 checks are signed in ten min
utes, and each bears the actual auto
graph OF the man who does the sign
ing Even the cutting apart Of the
checks is done by machinery. The
ma chinery viii cut eight or ten at
time. running off thousands a day
As I went through the various
the purchases for the navy are made.
The articles bought include almost
everything under the sun-there are
10000 different items and they come
from all parts Of the world. The navy
has men who keep track Of the
ness. It deals direct with the manu-
facturers. and, in many cases II goes
10 foreign markets for certain sup
plies Much OF this work is done un-
der contract and there is a chain Of
cost inspection officers which covers
all the purchases Of the Il shipyards
which are building new vessels and
with the SO yards doing repair work.
as well as the manufacturing plants
making the ordnance. The contracts
are so worded that no decrease is
made for war profits and income
taxes. and on certain fixed contracts
reductions amounting TO millions OF
dollars have been made after going
over the manufacturers cost items
How the Navy Saves.
For instance. take some or the saw
ings. ] have a list OF certain items
bought in 1916 which show a saving
OF more than $4,000. 600. OF this S2O.-
600 came from buying tin at SinEa-
pore, near where the tin mines are
located Sixty thousand dollars was
saved by going to Chile for nitrates.
and 100000 was saved in the New
York navy yard on the scrap Of brass
and some other metals. The scrap
heap had just LOCO. 900 pounds OF this
stuff and Il was worth just 10 cents
per pound
During the same year almost a mil
lion pounds Of material was saved in
making castings from scrap. and
something like $780, coo was saved
upon coal The navy has been max
ing money by buying its hemp for its
rope IN the Philippines and using the
naval Golfers to carry II home II
buys its shellac from Calcutta and
makes thousands OF dollars a year
over what the same would cost IN
this country
The navy saves a good deal on do
ing its own business in feeding and
clothing the soldiers It has its own
clothing factories, and II is through
them that IL has been able to keep its
men supplied. Notwithstanding the
enormous demands Of the war The
prewar plans called for clothing for
Copyright 1915 by
Mcclure Nevreuarf-r Cr7H