The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-07-11
Bureau Official at Capt.
tai Says Consolidation
Is Only Cure
TOO MANY BUREAUS
For Three Years Uncle Sam
Has Been Trying to Work
Hard Machine
BY II. l.. NARNEY
o ... sH...a vi. NH...sH.N

JOS on their bodies. Ana OF TINS
~, army 2tN,Su2 have, in fact, al
ready become the nations wards.
Tho. swarm in thousands In the
eruy huspitalo-tuborculd men
tails afflicted or r!pplcd--whtl" tens
uf thousands moro. patched hv sur
car, Or preserved by medication.
crawl mutua'ed through the streets
and uy, out q bare sustenauce by the
bounty Of the state.
tn, mounting Job Of relief for
'fa-. unfortunate ones is already
,,uk.ng the machinery Of govern
service mems ,obbios are hcsicging
,9r..,~S and demanding that the
r..,. administration be rcorgauIlcd
and strengthened. Crying wrongs
have. been exposed. President Hard
.nr himself has pledged the heart
OF the executive to the disabled
AZ both ends OF the capitol legis-
'9ful is being pushed to meet the
,m,f.eucy only the other day the
luu-. passed The Sweet bill, which
voud end the ClOggcd deadlock in
the three war relief departments by
consolidating them The senate, on
the other hand is planning now
cabinet departmental welfare de
par,mcut-in which these relief
,gy.,I,s would be absorbed and re-
orcan2cd All branches of the gov
eylmeut seem united In tn" dCtcrm-
nation To- do something adequate for
'Hp disabled at this session OF con
rrn4s. hut there Is still the confusion
og rival ideas. what will come OF
IL?
went with my question to board
member Harry l.. FidIer. member Of
the federal board of vocational cd
ucatou, for he is regarded in wash
lrgtpn as one of tho most intimate
wa relief matters, and in the event
uf the consolidation Of the three
agencies. FIdlcr is likcly TO be called
ON 20 head the combined bureau.
What We Are Tn Against
Before | answer your question, l"t
me give YOU the background Of the
situation" he began. "To under
stand what we are up against, you
must know what has preceded.
1t will he recalled that In the con-
fusion of the war. congress divided
the lob OF vetcras relief between
three bureaus. The capitalization
Of the disah hled veteran was intrusted
10 the public health service. For
oompcnsation, ne was placed under
the bureau Of war risk insurance.
And the Job Of his chabiutation was
assigned to the federal board of vo-
caupnal education. or course such
"a division of authority was absurd
hu, in the confusion of the period II
remained unremedied and these
agencies grew up into full stature.
Then came Armlstice day. Like
a sudden flood the wounded began
70 pour back from the overseas hos
pitfalls The threc-hcaded paper ma
chlncry which congress had set UP
" these relief agencies strained 10 tHe
<broaking point. Gnprcparodncss re-
vealed itself. But the especially
vicious feature was the diVIsloh OF
authority.
Take. for instance, tn" case or
man seeking capitalization. Techhi-
cal y he was a patient of the war RISK
Insurance bureau. But in reality all
tn hospitals were controlled by the
public health service, An Impossible
situation developed. The untortun-
ate veteran would be examined ny
The physicians Of the w. K. B. ana
ho aftostcd n hospital case. Whcn ne
reached the hospital ne would t'hu
himself required To submit to re-
examination and the i.ndIrgs Wod
Of be reversed. Wnllc luUCNuh-
aries thus sluahhlcd over jurlsdit-
lion. the veteran himself would De
denied the R.d granted nm ny con-
Er'Sf.
Ucndlockcd for Months;
"a similar regulation handcuIteu
for long time the board anu the
Ir.lu Fo" under the original leslE-
laton an impossible provision re
CURED every applicant TO hc declared
comrousable 10y the bureau pei0r'
h. would Doe eligible for training ny
Nh" board. This simply meant that
the unfortunate veteran must qua"iI
for t"p departments before ne coulu
to relieved by either. for nom nv
'a" board was d'aalocKed ny lh,a
PROVISION, and the most valua a''e
I'..d of i;s opp 'rtu"'tF Vas ~,
Fortunately congress remoulod INV
situation the summer OF - - ,
"Thcu there was the mistake "'
L Capitalization. From tho hrsi, ih'
, new agencies persisted in c'n'ra'lZ-
ing 1i' authority and decisions IN
Washington, Instead Of golnE onI
into rho field ana bringing r'liet o'-
rect 20 ~, men, they set them Sc IFgH .,.
up 10 Washington and bureaucral'G-,
~ required the veterans 10 sec X
'aum. \ veteran seeking aid w%pi1u
undergo long and cruel delays, "nu'
inIs rcd tape was unwiuding Say
moro II he sought COMPENSATE"
"n the war risk bureau, lhe nnI