The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1921-06-17
COAST GUARD MAY GO
: TO LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERS
Shake-Up In Maritime Department of Govern.
ment May Play Havoc With u. S. Coast Guard
Putting Life Savers. Under Lighthouse
Bureau

If the government re-organiz-
alton plans developed by the In
stitute for Government Research
and recommended to the joint
congressional committee on re-
organization are followed the
United States Coast Guard will
be abolished and the life saving
men will return to their old sta
tus, except that they will be di-
rected by the Lighthouse Bu-
reau. The specific recommends
ton concerning the Coast Guard
is as follows:
I. That the coast guard service
of the Treasury Department be
abolished and that its revenue cut
ter service be transferred to. the
Navy Department, and its life saw
ing station service be transferred to
the proposed department of mari
time affairs, where it shall be con-
soIidated with the bureau of light
houses.
A Great Economy Scheme.
There are at the present time no less
than eleven services whose primary, and
in most cases exclusive function is to
minister to the needs of marine trans
portation. These are:
The coast and geodetic survey in the
Department of Commerce; the lakes
survey in the War Department; the hy-
geographic Office in the Navy Depart
ment-aIl of which make marine sur
veys, prepare sailing charts, pilot in
structions, ETC., for navigators; the bu-
reau of lighthouses in the Department
of Commerce, which maintains light
houses, buoys and other aids to naTiga-
ton; the coast guard service in the
Treasury Department, which embraces
in fact two distinct services, one for
patro1ling the coast and going to the aid
of vessels in distress and the. other for
maintaining a chain of ife-saving sta
tions for the purpose of assisting
wrecked vessels; the bureau of naviga-
ton and the steamboat inspection ser
vice in the Department of Commerce for
the administration of the laws in re-
spect to the licensing of officers, ship
meQC OF S6dm6u, 1uSpcCIIOh VI
boilers, ETC.; the United States Shipping
Board an Independent establishment
and its subordinate agency, the Elmer
gency Fleet Corporation, the first for
the purpose of regulating rates and con-
ditions of service of vessels engaged IN
interstate and foreign commerce, and the
latter for the construction and operation
of vessels, and the radio service of the
Navy Department for the purpose pri-
marily of maintaining communication
with vesses at sea, though use is made
of it's facilities to a certain extent for
direct communication with foreign lands
Services Scattered.
Notwithstanding that all of these
eleven services have the same primary
function-that of the promotion OF the
marine transportation interests of the
country-they are scattered among the
several departments and are consequent
ly operated as independent or detached
units This condition is unfortunate
from every point 0f view. 1t means
diffusion instead of concentration OF re-
sponsibility in respect to one of the I'M
portant tasks of government, duplicating
of organization and plant, the burden
ing of departments with duties not prop
erlv pertaining to them, difficulty in de
termining and making provision for the
financial needs of work in this HELD 'ant
confusion generally in performing Dotl
the legislative and administrative Worl
of the government.
To correct these evils the recommen
dation is made that all of these services
with the exception of the United States
Shipping Board proper, which shoult
continue to be an Independent estaDlsh
ment, be brought together under a slngl'
donartment. to be known as the depart
ment of maritime affairs, which will hav'
the single function of caring for th
maritime interests of the country.
connection with this recommendation
the further proposal is made that
number of th"se services be either aOol
ished or consolidated, due to the 1ac
that their duties are so nearly 1dentlca
with those of other services that IL
uneconomical and inefficient to malntan
sonarate services for their performance
Power to Departments.
To get this scheme into law withou
1ong-winded committee hearing an
nressure from disgruntled Job-holdefs
Congress is to pass the buck by giVln
the departments power to do the re
organizing, as the following quotatlo
from the bill introduced in the oot
Congress by Senator Philander c. kno1
close friend of President Harding, WI
show: -1e
Page 81, Sec. 4, Senate Bill No. 4o4z
That the head of each executive
deuartment is hereby given power
and authority to make, subject 10
the approval of the President suen
chanoes in the organization of the
bureaus, offices and other branches
of the public service as he may deem
essential to economical and eneetVe
administration. FTOVIueu'
that no action shall be taken unoer
the provision of this section except
such as will result in reduction OF
the number of persons employed un-
der the Jurisdiction of the depart
no,4 oonnarnad and of the eXpendl.