Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1920-04-09
FOREIGN TRADE IS
To GET ATTENTION
BUREAU OF EFFICIENCY RECON-
MENDs REORGANIZATION
OF ACTIVITIES.
DRAFT BOARD DATA is FILED
Records Contain 100000 Cubic Feet Of
Paper, Requiring Ten Acres of Space
for Their Accommodation-To Amer
icanize Virgin Islands.
BY JAMES P. HoRNApAY.

WashingtOn-Th federal bureau of
efficiency has recommended to con-
gress that the governments activities
IN the promotion of foreign trade be
reorganized on the following basis:
|. That all resident foreign trade
agents of the United States govern
ment stationed abroad shall be as
signed to the department Of state.
z. That all departments contemplate
ing sending trade investigators or 9th
er trade agents abroad shall first con-
fer with the secretary of commerce,
who should be given full power to de-
termine the lines of all trade investi-
cations to be conducted in foreign
countries.
3. That all government agents
abroad whose work regularly or Incl
,dentally results In the collection of
foreign trade information Of any de-
scription,- be required to send the data
thus collected to the departments of
commerce, through the department of
state, for publication and dissemina-
ton by the department Of commerce
or for transmission to other branches
of the government service for such use
as they may deem proper.
Large Saving Assured.
While it is impossible to estimate in
dollars and cents just what savings
would accrue to the government if the
recommendations made by the bureau
If efficiency are put into effect. it is
safe to assume that they will amount
TO many thousands of dollars annual
". These savings would result from
lesser office expenses and overhead
charges by having all foreign resident
trade agents under the control of one
department of the government rather
than being attached to several depart
ments with no centralized control as
at present, and by having the field and
scope Of all foreign trade investiga-
tions determined by one responsible
government official rather than by sew
eral without regard to what is being
done by other branches of the service.
Under the existing arrangement the
department Of state controls the con-
sular service and the foreign trade adj
viser's Office. The commercial attaches
are accredited to the embassies and le-
stationed, but are entirely under the
control of the department of COM
merce as are also the trade commits
siOners The department of state con-
trolls the information which is sent
from the consular officers to the de-
partment of commerce for publication.
There is accordingly some measure OF
co-ordinated control between the de-
partment of state and commerce, but
it still leaves the supervision of these
two agencies virtually separate. The
control of the other government de-
partments and establishments that
have to do with foreign trade is en-
tirely separate with the exception of
certain general supervisory functions
of the treasury department in connec-
ton with the activities of the interna-
tional high commission. 1t would APP
pear that the various organizations
have separately obtained authority to
proceed with their own programs and
that this policy, or lack of co-ordinat-
ed policy, has resulted in the present
many headed control of foreign trade:
Guard Against Complications.
Has Record OF 24,O0O, 600 Men.
The records of the 4,640 local
boards that served under the selec-
tive draft law during the world war,
as well as the records of the 155
district boards, 1910 medical boards,
and 48 state headquarters have finally
been assembled here. These records
relate to 100000 men. Enoch H.
Crowder, who served as provost mar
shall general during the war, and adj
ministered the selective draft act, said
in commenting on these records !:
3Never in the history Of this or any
other nation has more valuable and
comprehensive accumulation of data
been assembled upon the physical, eco
nomic. industrial and racial condition
of people. 1t contains the. first and
only record of the man power of this
nation. It will be of untold value to
the physician, the economist, the So
biologist and the historian for many
decades. It is not only worthy of
preservation, but this generation owes
1t to posterity that it be preserved"
1t was necessary, before assembling
all these records, to bring about uni
form system Of filing them in order to
avert certain confusion when they
were finally gathered en- masse. When
it is considered that these records, as
assembled, made up file of cases
which, If placed end to end, would
make a line so miles long, and con-
tanned volume of 100000 cubic feet
Of paper, requiring approximately ten
acres Of floor space for their accom-
mediation, the magnitude of the task
that confronted the department when
it began their assembling can well be
envisioned.
The records as finally corrected and
filed contain many facts that will, OF
course, become a part of the perma-
nent history Of the country's partici-
patton in the war. Final and COM