The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-05-22
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORM ALTON
Blu RE- U
FREDERIC J. HAsKIN. Director.
washingt0n. d. C.
GOVERNMENT INSURANCE, THE
BIGGEST WAR BABY.
Washingt0n. d. c


Washington. d. c., May 19.-While
other bureaus created for war pur-
poses are dwindling or being abol-
ished. the bureau of war risk insur-
ance has grown to be the largest of all
government departments and the larg-
est enterprise of it's kind in the world.
1t has recently moved into new and
permanent quarters in a big building
which was originally intended for
Wasnington's most gorgeous hotel.
The government war baby is with
US to stay for a long time. In fact,
it is a permanent part of the govern
ment; for its obligations will not be
discharged until the last dependent OF
an American soldier killed in the war
has died. and some of those depend
ents have just been born. They will
give the war risk bureau mission in
life for seventy-five or eighty years
If we do not have another war during
that time, the bureau will possibly go
out of existence.
The big business of the bureau for
a generation is going to be handling
the permanent insurance policies for
men who have been in the service
which have now been authorized by
congress. This means simply that any
man who took out insurance as a SOL
der or sailor may continue that insur-
ance with the government as civilian
by converting his policy into one OF a
different type. The insurance Will be
less expensive than that issued by pri-
vate firms because the government
will bear the administrative expense
There is every indication that a
large proportion of the men who were
in the service will take this oppor-
| tuEity to obtain cheap life and en-
! dowment INSURANCE.. Some observers
believe that this will lead to the ex-
tension of government insurance to
civilians generally. With possibly sew
eral million Americans enjoying gov
| eminent insurance at low rates, they
| say, a demand will spring up among
American citizens generally for the
same benefits Old age insurance for
government employees is being urged
| in connection with the proposed re-
/ form of the civil service. Government
| health insurance is also being widely
discussed, and several state legiSla-
| lures are considering such measures.
| State or government health insurance
| means that by paying certain
amount a year to the government, you
would be assured of medical attention,
hospital service, and support while
| Inca pacitated. The advocates of such
a measure. point out that medical and
| hospital service would then be stand
| ardized by the government, and that
proper medical attention would be
within the reach of many who are too
poor to afford it now. Such measures
are opposed by many persons, who
| argue that our great insurance COM
panies are all discharging such func-
tions with great efficiency, and that
| it would take the government a long
| time to learn how to do as we'll
This is probably true, but the gov
! eminent is now getting some fine
practice in running an insurance bust
| ness. The amount of insurance which
the war risk bureau has issued is
! greater than the total amount of in
surance in force for all American in
| surance companies. The statistics
about their business which they quote
you at the war risk bureau are i'm
| pressive. They are now doing busi-
ness with thirty million Americans.
including over four million fighting
men and over twenty-five million de-
pendents.l To these dependents has
| been paid more than four hundred
million dollars. In order to make all
this real to you some genius has fig
uTed out that if the amount of in
| surance issued by the bureau was
to end, the strip of greeRbacks would
| extend to the moon and back seven
| times. This little computation shows
you what wonderful mathematician
they have down there. The same
lightning calculator has doped it out
that if the women employees of the
bureau alone were stood in a row, the
row would be thirteen miles long. And
he claims that the war risk bureau
has the prettiest women employed in
Washington. The job supports thir-
teen thousand employees in all.
This is probably the greatest check
writing institution in the world. 1t
writes more than a million checks a
month. If all this had to be done by
hand, the entire army could be given
jobs looking after its own dependents;
but all of this work is done by ma
chinery. Every person who deals with
the bureau is represented by an indi-
vidual file. and an address plate is
printed for each one. 1t keeps a hun
dred operators busy making plates.
One machine and two girls can now
turn out about twenty thousand
checks a day. This used to require
about four hundred employees. All
checks are signed by deputy dis
bursting clerk with a mechanical de-
vice which signs twenty checks at one
time, all signatures being actual pen
signatures.
Checks from the bureau of war risk
insurance go to every corner of the
world. More than 10000 checks are
mailed monthly to foreign countries
Checks are sent to Africa. Australia
Belgium. China. Haiti, India. Japan,
Gibraltar, Spain, Syria. Korea, New
Zealand, Portugal, Sweden. Switzer-
land and other foreign lands. each
NhSCh IndH lIOIl Olle VI
these foreign countries serving in the
military or naval forces of the United
, States. More than $500 foreign
checks are being held by the bureau
because of suspended mail service
Among the checks held are three
which are destined for Germany. Over
, 1.009 checks are being held for per-
sons in Russia and 272 are held fol-
| persons in Poland.
More than a ton of mail comes in
each day. and the organization built
up to distribute mail within the
bureau is larger than any private
? tpostal or mail system in the United
. States. Eighty thousand pieces of in
coming mail each day are the average
: and more than so. 600 of these are let.
tors There hon. 0N0 O1,tDOine