The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-02-08
Copyright, Western Newspaper Union
XXI.
OUR COSTLY NEGLIGENCE


Coordination is a tired, haggard,
nervous wreck of a word that was
nearly worked to death at Washington
during the early days Of the war. 1t
was the first of the dollar-a7year words
to come forward to do war work, and
1t was worn to q FRAGILE. / hate to
drag the poor wan thing out from the
quiet retreat in my dictionary where
1t has been resting and recuperatlng,
but | must say that this lack Of CO
ordination, lack of organization, du-
plication, inefilciency, waste, andi hap
hazard hodge-podge. structure Of the
national governmental machine is no
secret to those at Washington, who
run and manage 1t for us, and who are
even more directly responsible than
we are for the condition into which
it has fallen.
/ submit pleas of avoidance and
confession from both Democrats and
Republicans, 1t is not matter Of
politics. II Is matter Of proved and
confessed negligence on the part Of
the men we have hired to run the ma
chine, and have kept year after year
In places Of trust and power and re-
sponsibillty. They haven't kept up
the plant. The form of organization
is grotesquely inadequate. The NOR
ale Of the working force is badly i'm
paired, as / have set forth at length
in previous articles. We have paid
the price for this, grossly and hugely,
in money and in poor service. This
has been costly negligence on our part.
/ said l had confessions, Here they
are, Reed Smoot, Republican and
senator from Utah, speaking:
The administrative branches OF the
government have undergone no funda-
mental change since the organization was
devised by Alexander Hamilton.
No other government In the world
could have gone on as ours has done. and
paid the bills involved In our wasteful
methods Of administration. We have been
able to do Il because this country has
had resources and wealth unparalleled.
But the war has brought us at last TO
realize that these will not last always.
We need complete survey OF the whole
situation de noyo by committee OF men
willing TO recognize that II IS a task Of
day and night FOR year, and very likely.
two years.
There is endless duplication OF work
among different departments, and even
IN the same department II Is
the same through all the government
funcuos, and now, when the burden OF
carrying our enormous debt is weighing
on the people. we can no longer neglect
to give il consideration.
When he said these things, Mr.
Smoot was urging concrete proposal
to bring about the reformation so bad
ly needed.
And now Franklin d. Roosevelt for
seven years assistant secretary Of the
navy and recently the Democratic can
dldate for vice president
The entire system OF relationship which
exists between congress and the eXecu-
tive departments Is fundamentally wrong
Let me Illustrate: l made an offer one
spring 10 the appropriations committees
OF both house and senate, telling them
that / would tomorrow discharge Is per
cent Of the employees Of tho Navy de-
partment II they, the committees, would
give me complete authority to take one
half OF the salaries OF the employees so
discharged and add II to the salaries OF
the other IS per cent OF the employees
stln left in the department OF
course. however. under the present sys-
TEN congress would not think Of giving
executive discretion Of this kind.
Congress, for various reasons. has so
tied the hands Of the executive officers
OF the government that they have no dis
erection in the fundamental questions OF
employment My own wonder Is
that. considering the existing clrcum-
| stances, the employees OF the govern
ment are as efficient az they actually are.
| Congress legislates for every minute item
| OF employment. There Is q lot
| OF work being done in other departments
| which ought rrupcely 10 be under the
| Navy department. aud IN the same way
| there is lot OF work done by the Navy
/ department Nhich could perfectly prop
! erly he transferred TO other departments.
! After seven years down here In an eN-
| ecutlve position . l cannot hep the
! DDS are cumbersome and wasteful The
/ first improvement must come IN what Is,
! after all the source Of governmental ac-
| Uvltes-that IS the legislative branch,
| This must come from congress. We need
! also Redistribution and redistribution
! OF the work Of the executive depart
ments. This can only come IL congress
working in accord with itself and with
| the executives. will discuss the whole
! question simultaneously and not merely
! piecemeal.
Well, there you are A Republican
who has been in the legislative branch
of the government for seventeen years
and a Democrat who has been in the
executive bpanch for seven years, both
telling the same story Of how badly
the national business is managed.
The odd thing about 1t is that ouI
agents and representatives at Wash
lngton who let this waste and !nef
hclency run on, year after year, pay
no penalty. We pay the piper to the
tune of millions and Enthusiastically
that much. And the condition will en-
dure until we make real roar about
it. Congress increasingly shakes It,
head over the situation and brings II
various proposals of reform, and say,
how wrong It all is; but lacking Q
lively, inaamed public pressure, moth