Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-07-31

Washington, July 3t.--The United
states Government In the biggest bis'-
ne.ss institntIon In the world. IL was
I'm tho days when Speaker Thomas B
Read replied To criticism OF a bill
lion-doilar Congress" by stating that
"this IL a bllliou-dollar country" IT
Ia much larger now.
II has not grown as ordinary busi-
ness establishments grow by the ap-
plIcation of strictly business methods
and principles, however. IL rs not /
monument TO efficiency rules ana
practices A commercial. industrial or
financial institution that had attained
such proportions would owe its sue
cesa 10 astute and careful manage
ment and would be 80 organized that
II would function like Swiss watch.
Not 40 with the United States gov
ernment. II has grown to its present
aize simply because nothing could
atop or retard It's growth and in spite
Of iinfuslnessllke methods that would
have wrecked private enterprise be
fore Il got fairly started.
But now all this is being changed.
At laet Government has come to he
regarded az n business and an earnest
effort ie being made 20 put the con
duct Of public affairs on basis com
parable 60 that which earns dividends
in the every day commercial world.
| Moreover. tho effort is getting results
! that can be msaeured in dollars and
cents
| Heorga nization Of the administrative
branch Of the Government wac promis-
cd and undertaken months ago, but
II has been delayed by controversies
between department and bureau heads.
This would not seem 10 argue wen
for the new order Of things and has
discouraged some Of the ardent adVo-
Gates of up-to-date buslnese methods
I'm government. However, real progress
has been made in the desired direction
through series OF executive orders re-
uuiring coordination and 60 operation
among officials and between agencies
that heretofore have acted independ-
emily
Just az previous TO the installation
OF the budget system there was no
co ordination IN estimating and very
little in aprpopriating, there was little
or no coordination in eEpeuding public
funds. As an illustration the dlsposl-
! ton made ~ surplus property may be
cited Each bureau or holding agency
T wae carrying on this work I'm its owr
way and amazing as It may seem j.
, is actually true that at one place TIT
government was ceiling at sacrihc'
. supples that Il was buying az curren
market prices at another.
{ Chance for sharp Practices.
Thus il was possible for those VIII
engage in sharp practices 70 buy some
thing from one governmental sgeDc
7 at a price below production cost an
turn around and sell # TO another gov
. ernmental agency at a s'ibstantia
= profit. Again. instances have bee
known IN which one department
would purchase desks and other OfIic
r furniture while another depsrtmen
- had surplus supply Of the identice
equipment that VIA going 20 wrec
= and ruin In storage.
= This sort NJ thing was stopped ,
the creation OF a liquidation board {
s. coordinate the sale Of all surplU
O property. TO provide for ira nsfers be
= tween various governmental agencies
10 weld the sales activities OF tho sew
eral departments into a Federal buei
ne~s association and 20 install prar
= tical business methods. \ total OF $40
600, 900 was turned into the treasur
during the fiscal year just closed frol
the sale Of supplies and It is estimate
that a sum almost as large will
] realized during the current year.
But this is only part ~ the stor.
The lighthouse service Of the Depar
ment of Commerce was about 20 spen
. 81 SOC, 900 for lighthouse tenders Mil
- planters purchased during the ~
which were idle and practically valu'
less were made over into tenders ar
the million and half was save
Dredgee that would have cost s349
500 were required by the engine'
branch Of the Army. Surplus vesee
were transferred from the Quarterma
ter Corps. There are numerous 9th
examples Of similar economies m
40 come under the head Of commOnsen
business and the aggregate saving
Uncle Sam runs into large figure
Even more important. perhaps. Is d
moral effect on officials and employe
av who are seeing that slIpshod. hit
miss metROGS are 10 longer N VOC
in the Federal service.
In the matter OF government pu
chasing the work of coordination n
been likewise effective. Twenty-s
ed separate and distinct purchasil
agencies in the Treasury Departme
ID are being consolidated and organic
on an efficiency basis and the saT
thing has already been done with
- such agencies in the Department
Agriculture. In fact. there was ne
for reform In this line IN all the d
partments except the Navy whe
the buying has been done in
thoroughly coordinated way for SCI
years.
Real Estate Listed.
- Still another field for the apple
80, ton Of business methods has be
found in dealing with the real ests
and rental problem. Necessarily I
government owns a vast amount
realty, wharves. warehouses, stora
buildings, etc, but up 10 the prest
,ao time there has never been a consC
ID dated list of such property. One
the results of this deficiency, VIII
: is now being remedied. has been that
H. the same cities one government ager
:, III had prOpertv that was not bel