Beverly banner. [volume] (Beverly, N.J.) 1877-1964, 1925-07-24

1t is not necessary that each of these groups
should become a whole executive department each
under a cabinet officer; but it is entirely feasible to
place each of them under the supervision of
special assistant secretary, and IL we were truly
intelligent would class him expert and
outside selection political grounds 1t is entirely
secondary what department these groups are in.
The big thing is to bring these kindred agencies
together under one leadership SO that their over
tapping edges be clipped and their fights
stopped No familiar with the internal work
ings of the departments will deny the direct
the result of the present lack of coordination of
activities. Coordination is feasible when
one person is responsible; with divided authority
among the different branches of government it
is a hypothesis that evaporated soon after the
ject. 1t all costs somebody money. One of the
favorte indoor sports t our newspaper corre-
spondents is to ventilate these conflicts.
The divided responsibility with absence of
tralized authority prevents the constructive and
consistent development of broad national policies
in these special branches of governmental activity.
there is by necessity of this division constant
conflict of view within the government itself.
Under the present system we have different bureau
policies, department policies, board policies and
divergent Ideas without focus; lumber piled to-
gether does not make house. The treatment of
If anything is certain 1t Is that the government
should have a continuous, definite, and consistent
policy directed to intelligent conservation and
of national resources. But II can nave no such
policy so long responsibility is split up among
half dozen different departments The
occurrences in oil leases are a fair example of
what may happen by the lack of singleheaded
responsibility in such matters. No policy of real
guardianship of our reserve resources will exist
until we put all conservation business in the hands
of an undersecretary for conservation, with the
spotlight of public opinion continuously upon him.
AS to the forty independent establishments Sec.
rotary Hoover has this to say:
The forty governmental agencies which are now
sunposed to function directly under the President
present another problem. Here have four breeds
which might be classified according to the functions
they perform. The semJudicial the semiegislative,
the service bureaus to all departments and the
straight administrative. Often enough they
mixed. They supposed to act under the direct
supervision of the President. But 1t is preposterous
to EXPECT with his multitude of higher obliga-
lions the President give them anything like
adequate supervision. AS matter of fact, these
establishments conduct their activities
last group the straight administrative, expend
nearly half billion year-as much the total
Ave of the departments under cabinet officers If
for other reason, this group should be placed
directly the departments in order that Pres-
dent may exercise through his cabinet the guidance
and control of the administrative arm of the gov
eminent. And the President, already overworked
in major policies, must be relieved of detail
"What we need" concludes Secretary Hoover.
sis three primary reforms: First to group to-
gether all agencies having the same predominant
major purpose under the same administrative
supervision; second, to separate the semijudiciaI
and semIegislative and advisory functions from
the administrative functions, placing the former
under the joint minds. the latter under single
responsibility, and third, we should relieve the
President of a vast amount of direct admlnlstra.
tive labor.
II do not expect that the federal government
will ever be a model of organization, bul have
aspirations to see It improve"