The Daily Alaska empire., 1942-12-08

Byrd declares that of August 31 there were 2606000 civilian Federal employees, with new ones being added at the rate of 100000 a month.
 McNutt admits that our civilian jobholder army will be 100000 by Christmas
 This 3OOO000 compares with only 917760 Federal employees at the end of the last war The War De- partment alone has 100000 civilian employees the Navy half million Where there were 30 Federal agencies in 1918, there are 81 now Figures show 100 civilian employees for every ITS men in the armed services
 We need a mighty force of civilian help in time. Nobody denies that Many wartime bu- reaus performing important and vital services
 But that much of this vast manpower is wasted lis not merely the charge of Senator Byrd, but something everybody knows
 Every businessman understands how such waste accumulates. In private concern, situation will arise calling, say, for special report and checkup. Somebody is hired to make the report and long after the original emergency has passed that man is still making reports still has them typed filed away all ot which costs money
 Finally, payroll pressure brings this waste to light-in private business
 In Washington there is such pressure. Any extra cost is just added to the budget
 We're reminded of the job which the Empress Catherine of Russia created Caretaker of her special rosebush
 That job still remained the Russian payroll for hundred years after the Empress dead.
 Another factor is the new agency" Even though new Federal agency may duplicate the work of one or more other Federal agences-once it is start ed, it runs on, like the babbling brook forever And every new agency has the same proliferatng pro- clivties a rabbit
 We are willing to bet any official in Washington that committee of half a dozen good office mana gers could wade through the Federal setup and clean out 20 to 35 percent
 And not only save labor and money-but vastly increase governmental efficiency
 Congress can do the job-f it will.
 So cumbersome is the present of hoarded Federal labor it is notorious that agencies spend more time fighting jurisdiction than they do in helping win the Visitors to such agencies have noted that many employees seem to spend much of their time inquiring where the others are
 The situation is such that people see nothing unusual in the story told by Time Magazine
 Vice president of Manhattan bank heard about a vacancy in the Board of Economic Warfare He applied for the job. While he was waiting to hear from his application
 An official of the Board of Econonlic Warfare visited the president of the New York bank asked fl he could recommend good for the vacant job The president of the bank, knowing his vice president had applied recommended him So the vice president was hired the spot
 Days later. when the banker was working at the Board of Economic Warfare in Washington he re- ceived letter BEW stationery It had been mailed to New York, forwarded to his new office
 The letter informed the banker that he could not have the BEW job for which he had applied tand which he was holding because he lacked the qualifications.
 Looking closer the banker found that he had signed the letter himself