Chapter XV: The Cabinet

Formation of Departments.--The Constitution nowhere mentions the President's Cabinet. It was taken for granted, however, that departments similar to those found in the Cabinet would be formed. The Constitution declares that the President "may require the opinions in writing of the heads of the executive departments," and again, that "Congress may vest the appointment of certain inferior officers in the heads of these departments."

In 1789 the first Congress created the Departments of State, War, and Treasury, also the office of Attorney-General. President Washington's Cabinet consisted of the officials whom he appointed to fill these four positions. The Navy Department was added in 1798. While a Post-Office Department was established in 1794, the Postmaster-General was not made a member of the Cabinet until 1829. In 1849, the Interior Department was created by grouping under it certain duties which had belonged to other departments. The Department of Agriculture was made a Cabinet position in 1889. In 1903 the Department of Commerce and Labor was authorized by an Act of Congress, and in 1913 the Department of Labor was created. Members of the Cabinet receive an annual salary of $12,000.

The President and His Cabinet.--One of the first official acts of a President is to send to the Senate, for its approval, the names of the men whom he desires shall constitute his Cabinet. This is now a mere formality. The President is himself the one most interested in the success of his administration and is of right given complete freedom in selecting his immediate advisers. While the views of the members of the Cabinet usually have weight with the President, he is not obliged to take their advice. Indeed, in some instances the President has carried out a line of action which was against the wishes of the secretary of the department affected.

THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.

The Secretary of State.--The Secretary of State is commonly called the head of the Cabinet. He is first in rank at the Cabinet table, and occupies the seat of dignity at the right of the President. Under the direction of the President he conducts all negotiations relating to the foreign affairs of the nation; carries on the correspondence with our representatives in other countries; receives the representatives of foreign powers accredited to the United States, and presents them to the President. Through him the President communicates with the executives of the different States. He has charge of the treaties made with foreign powers, and negotiates new ones. He has also in his keeping the laws of the United States and the great seal which he affixes to all executive proclamations, commissions, and other official papers. During the year 1909 the department was reorganized in such a manner as to create a division of Latin-American affairs and divisions for Far Eastern, Near Eastern, and Western European affairs.

The Diplomatic Bureau.--The United States, in common with other nations, sends representatives to the foreign capitals. They are the agents through whom the Secretary of State communicates and negotiates with other powers. Such affairs are conducted through the Diplomatic Bureau. The United States has now about thirty-five ambassadors and ministers. Our representatives at the courts of England, France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Austria, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, and Turkey are known as ambassadors. The ambassadors to these countries receive a salary of $17,500 each.

The social demands made upon our ambassadors are great, and they
are also obliged to provide for their places of residence. The
salaries paid are not sufficient to meet these necessary expenses,
and are small in comparison with those paid by the European nations
to officers of the same rank. Thus, the English ambassador at
Washington receives a salary of $32,500. Besides the English, the
German, the Japanese, and some other nations have provided houses
for their legations.

The Consular Bureau.--A consul is sent by the United States to each of the chief cities in the consular districts into which foreign countries are divided by our State Department. These consuls, of whom there are three grades, consuls-generals, consuls, and consular agents, look after the commercial interests of the United States in those districts. They make monthly reports on improvements in agricultural and manufacturing processes. These reports also give information regarding good markets for our products and of the best markets in which to purchase foreign products.[50]

[Footnote 50: Among scores of similar subjects, our consuls reported, within recent years, on the following: American goods in Syria; American commerce with Asia Minor and Eastern Europe; German opinion of American locomotives; American coal in Germany; European and American competition.]

Consuls care for destitute American sailors and protect the interests of our citizens in foreign countries. In some of the non-Christian nations, such as China and Turkey, they also have jurisdiction over all criminal cases in which any American citizen may be a party. The importance of such services to our country is self-evident. The appointment of these officials was formerly secured under party pressure. According to the rule adopted in 1906, all vacancies in the consular service are hereafter to be filled by promotion for ability and efficiency in the service or by appointment of those who have passed the civil service examination.

THE DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY.

The Secretary of the Treasury.--The Department of the Treasury is the most extensive and complex of the executive departments. In general, the Secretary of the Treasury has charge of the finances of the nation. He is required to prepare plans for the creation and improvement of the revenues and the public credit and to superintend the collection of the revenue. He gives orders for all moneys drawn from the Treasury in accordance with appropriations made by Congress, and submits an annual report to Congress which contains an estimate of the probable receipts and expenditures of the government.

The Auditors.--It is very important that the accounts of the
government should be carefully scrutinized, and one of the six
auditors connected with the Treasury Department must pass upon the
accounts of every public officer who pays out money. Thus, the
Auditor for the Treasury Department examines all accounts of
salaries and incidental expenses of the office of the Secretary of
the Treasury and all other offices under his immediate direction,
such as the Treasurer and Directors of the Mints.

The Treasurer.--All the money of the United States is under
the care of the Treasurer. He receives and pays it out upon the
warrant of the Secretary of the Treasury or a designated assistant,
redeems the notes of the National banks, and manages the
Independent Treasury System. This system renders the Treasury
Department practically independent of the banks of the country. It
includes the Treasury at Washington and sub-treasuries, each in
charge of an assistant treasurer at Boston, New York, Philadelphia,
Baltimore, Cincinnati, Chicago, St. Louis, New Orleans, and San
Francisco. While the greater part of the money belonging to the
government is found in these places, about two hundred National
banks have also been designated as public depositories.

The Chief of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.--The
Bureau[51] of Engraving and Printing is one of the largest in the
department and employs about 1600 people. It has been said that the
products of this bureau, in the course of a single year, represent
a sum equal in value to all the money in circulation in the United
States; for here the engraving of the plates and the printing of
all the United States circulating notes, bonds, revenue stamps, and
postage stamps are done.

[Footnote 51: The work of each department is usually distributed among the bureaus. Bureaus are again divided into divisions. At the head of each bureau is a commissioner, and of each division a chief.]

Other Officers of the Treasury Department.--Among the other leading officials of the Treasury Department are: Comptroller of the Currency, Commissioner of Internal Revenue, General Superintendent of the Life-saving Service, Solicitor of the Treasury, Supervising Surgeon-General, and Supervising Architect.

The Life-Saving Service.--This is one of the most important
offices in the Treasury Department. More than 2000 men are employed
in the 273 stations, located generally at danger points on the
oceans and the Great Lakes. Out of the 6000 lives imperiled in the
year 1910 in the disasters on water, only 53 were lost. Of the 1463
vessels of all kinds in distress, 1407 were rendered assistance by
life-savers. It has been estimated that over 230,000 lives have
been saved through this service since it was founded in 1848.

The Solicitor of the Treasury.--The Solicitor of the Treasury
is the law officer of the department, and has charge of all
prosecutions by the government arising out of the counterfeiting of
the government securities, or of the infringement of customs
revenue, and of all suits for the collection of moneys due the
United States, except those due under the internal revenue laws.

The Supervising Surgeon-General.--The Supervising
Surgeon-General superintends the twenty-two marine hospitals where
our sick sailors are cared for; conducts the quarantine service of
the United States, and directs the laboratories for the
investigation of the causes of contagious diseases.

THE WAR DEPARTMENT.

The Secretary of War.--The Secretary of War, under the direction of the President, has charge of the military affairs of the government. He supervises all estimates of appropriations for the expenses of the department.[52] He has under his supervision also the military academy at West Point, all National cemeteries, and river and harbor improvement. The chiefs of the eleven bureaus are regular army officers.

[Footnote 52: The annual appropriation by Congress for the army alone in 1912 amounted to $90,483,403.]

The Adjutant-General.--The Adjutant-General issues orders for
the muster of troops and for their movement, conducts the
correspondence of the department, and keeps the records.

The Inspector-General.--The Inspector-General examines and
reports on all places where United States troops are stationed; on
public works carried on by army officers; and on the military
academy and prisons.

The Quartermaster-General.--Under direction of the
Quartermaster-General the army is transported, clothed, and
equipped.

The Chief of Ordnance.--Arms are supplied by the Chief of
Ordnance. The arms used are manufactured chiefly in the United
States arsenals. The arsenals at Springfield, Mass., and Rock
Island, Ill., manufacture rifles and carbines; and that at West
Troy, N.Y., cannon and mortars.

The United States Military Academy.--The United States
Military Academy at West Point was founded in 1802. The corps of
cadets is made up of one cadet from each of the Congressional
districts, one from each of the Territories and the District of
Columbia, and one hundred from the United States at large. Prior to
the year 1900 there were only ten cadets at large. The act of that
year also provided that thirty cadets were to be named by the
President directly and the remainder apportioned among the States.
They all receive their appointments from the President, but it has
become the custom for the representatives and delegates to select
(usually after a competitive examination) those from the
Congressional districts and the Territories. The cadet must be
between seventeen and twenty-two years of age. Each receives $540 a
year during the four years of his course. Upon graduation, the
cadets are commissioned as second lieutenants in the united States
army. In case there are more graduates than vacancies, those in
excess are honorably discharged with the payment of one year's
salary.

THE NAVY DEPARTMENT.

The Secretary of the Navy--The duties of the Secretary of the Navy pertain to the construction, manning, arming, quipping, and employment of war-vessels.[53]

[Footnote 53: The appropriation for this department in 1913 was $140,000,000.]

The United States Naval Academy.--The naval academy at Annapolis was established in 1846. One cadet is allowed in the naval academy for each member or delegate of the House of Representatives, one for the District of Columbia, and ten at large. Candidates for admission, at the time of their examination, must be between the ages of fifteen and twenty years. The nomination of a candidate to fill a vacancy is made upon recommendation of a representative or delegate if made before July 1; but if no recommendation be made by that time, the Secretary of the Navy fills the vacancy by appointing an actual resident of the district in which the vacancy exists. The President selects the candidates at large and the cadet for the District of Columbia. At the conclusion of the six years' course, two of which are spent at sea, the graduates are assigned in order of merit to the vacancies that may have occurred in the lower grades of the line of the navy and of the marine corps. Cadets who are not assigned to service after graduation are honorably discharged and are given $500, the amount they have received each year of their course at the academy.

THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.

The Attorney-General.--The Attorney-General is the legal adviser of the President and of the heads of the departments. He supervises the work of all the United States district attorneys and marshals, and is assisted by the Solicitor-General. Unless otherwise directed, all cases before the Supreme Court and the Court of Claims in which the United States is a party are argued by the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General.

THE POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT.

The Postmaster-General.--The Postmaster-General is at the head of this department. He appoints all of the officers of the department with the exception of the four assistant postmasters-general and postmasters of the first class, whose appointments are made by the President with the consent of the Senate. The Postmaster-General may, with the consent of the President, let contracts and make postal treaties with foreign governments.

The Postal Union.--Since 1891 the United States has been a
member of the Universal Postal Union. By this union over fifty
distinct powers became parties to an agreement by which uniform
rates of postage were agreed upon and every facility for carrying
mails in each country was extended to all the others.

THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR.

The Secretary of the Interior.--The Interior Department, under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior, is one of the most complex and important of the departments. There are two assistant secretaries in the department, while at the head of the other offices are six commissioners and two directors.

The Commissioner of the General Land Office.--The Commissioner
of the General Land Office has charge of all the public lands of
the government, and supervises the surveys, sales, and issuing of
titles to this property.

The Commissioner of Education.--The Commissioner of Education
is the chief of the Bureau of Education. This bureau has charge of
the collection of facts and statistics relating to the educational
systems and to progress along educational lines in the several
States and Territories, and also in foreign countries. The reports
issued by the bureau are of great value to those interested in
education. The commissioner has advisory power only, except in
Alaska. Here he directs the management of the schools.

The Commissioner of Pensions.--The Commissioner of Pensions
supervises the examination and adjustment of all claims arising
under the laws of Congress granting bounty land or pensions on
account of services in the army or navy during the time of war.
That our government has not been ungrateful may be gathered from
the report of the commissioner for 1913. There were in that year
921,000 pensioners, to whom were paid approximately $180,000,000,
or an amount equal to about one-fifth of the total revenues of the
country.

The Commissioner of Indian Affairs.--Prior to 1871 the Indian
tribes were treated as independent nations by the United States,
but by a law of that year the general government was made the
guardian of their interests. The Commissioner of Indian Affairs
exercises a protecting care over these "wards" by directing the
work of the Indian agents and of the superintendents of Indian
schools.

There are some 300,000 Indians on the 150 reservations which are in
the various States and Territories.[54] The lands of these
reservations are held in common; that is, the ownership is tribal
rather than individual. It is the policy of the government,
however, to bring about the allotment of lands "in severally," and
thus to encourage the Indians to adopt an agricultural life. The
Indians are only partially self-supporting. Some tribes derive an
income from funds which are the proceeds derived from the sales and
cessions of their lands. The National government holds this money
in trust for them, and, by direct appropriation, supplies the
money, food, and clothing necessary to complete their support. The
appropriation for the Indians in 1912 was $9,854,000. Over
one-fourth of this sum was spent for their education in Indian
schools, numbering about 300, which are under the direct control of
the department.

[Footnote 54: Report of the Secretary of the Interior, 1910. Within
twelve years 89,000 Indians were granted full rights as citizens.]

The Director of the Geological Survey.--The Director of the
Geological Survey collects much valuable information through the
examination of the geological structure, mineral resources, and
mineral products of the United States. He has charge, also, of the
survey of the forest reserves.

THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

The Secretary of Agriculture.--The duties of the Secretary of Agriculture are, "To acquire and diffuse among the people of the United States useful information on subjects connected with agriculture in the most comprehensive sense of that word." The activities of the department are along many lines, as indicated by the names of the bureaus and divisions.

Bureau of Animal Industry.--Continuous advancement is being
made by the government toward placing the agricultural pursuits
upon a more scientific basis. One of its most important services is
performed in the Bureau of Animal Industry, which inspects the
greater part of the meat products exported to European countries.
The law providing for this inspection was necessary because of the
claim in European markets that diseased meats were shipped from the
United States. An inspection is also provided for live animals
intended for exportation and for animals imported. Much scientific
work is also devoted to a study of the various diseases of animals.

The Division of Seeds.--Over $100,000 are expended each year
by the Division of Seeds in the purchase of "rare and valuable"
seeds, bulbs, and plants. These are distributed free throughout the
country for the purpose of fostering the introduction of new and
more valuable crops.

Public Road Inquiries.--Another important interest is carried
on by the Office of Public Road Inquiries. Here experiments are
made with regard to the best system of road-making and the best
materials to be used for that purpose.

Weather Bureau.--Through the Weather Bureau daily forecasts
and warning of storms are sent to over 50,000 different points,
and storm signals are displayed at 300 places on our coasts. By its
operation, millions of dollars are saved each year to the
agricultural and maritime interests of the country. A recent decree
of the Post-office Department renders the reports of the bureau of
still greater service. Slips of paper having the storm, frost, or
other warnings printed on them are distributed by the rural mail
carriers at the various houses in the districts affected.

THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.

Nature of the Department.--Because of the nature of the subjects assigned to this new department, it has rapidly become one of the most important of the departments. Among the duties of the Secretary of Commerce are these: to promote the commerce and the mining, manufacturing, shipping, fishery, and transportation interests of the United States. The President is given the power to transfer to the department those bureaus in other departments which are engaged in scientific or statistical work, the Interstate Commerce Commission and the scientific divisions of the Agricultural Department being excepted. The offices which have been transferred are as follows: the Bureau of Statistics; Census Bureau; Bureau of Standards of Weights and Measures; Bureau of Navigation; the Steamboat Inspection Service; Bureau of Fisheries; Coast and Geodetic Survey and Light-house Board. The Bureau of Corporations was created for the department. The Commissioner of Corporations is expected to investigate the organization, conduct, and management of the business of corporations and other combinations engaged in interstate or foreign commerce, except such carriers as may be subject to the interstate commerce act.

The Chief of the Bureau of Statistics.--The Chief of the
Bureau of Statistics collects and publishes the annual statistics
on commerce. These reports are of such a character that they are
invaluable to the President in the preparation of his messages; and
they are used extensively by the heads of departments, members of
Congress, and the public. Tariff laws, special legislation for
particular industries, and all international trade treaties are
also based on these compilations. The greatest demand is for the
Annual Statistical Abstract, which presents in a condensed form the
history of the commerce of the United States for a number of
preceding years.

The Superintendent of the Coast and Geodetic Survey.--This
officer superintends the survey of the coasts and rivers of the
United States. He has charge of the publication of charts and
sailing directions which are of inestimable value to mariners.

The Light-House Board.--The Light-house Board has charge of
the light-houses, of which 1199 had been established previous to
the year 1899, besides the light vessels and beacons used for the
protection of navigation.

THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR.

On March 4, 1913, the bill was signed by the President which created the Department of Labor. It is evidence of the spirit manifested by the Americans to make their government serve the cause of human conservation. Besides the Bureau of Information, which was created for the department, there were transferred from other departments the Bureau of Immigration[55] and the Children's Bureau. The Division of Naturalization was made a bureau, and the Bureau of Labor was constituted the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

[Footnote 55: In 1912 there were 838,172 immigrants to the United States, and 2853 were refused admission. Of these there were 767 paupers, 31 contract laborers, 749 diseased persons.]

SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTIONS AND REFERENCES.

1. Does the President select the members of his Cabinet from among former members of Congress? Would this be desirable?

2. Have the members of the Cabinet ever been allowed to appear before Congress in the interests of their own departments? Would this be desirable? Walker, The Making of the Nation, 92; Bryce, American Commonwealth, I, Chapter 9; Atl. Mo., 65:771-772.

3. Who are now the heads of the executive departments? Were they prominent in National affairs before they were selected for these positions?

4. In 1901 a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives which provided for an increase of the annual salary of the Vice-President to $25,000, and that of each member of the Cabinet to $15,000. What reasons can you give for or against such a change?

5. What was the history of the State Department prior to 1789? Harrison, This Country of Ours, 182-187.

6. Give a list of the Presidents who have been Secretaries of State. How do you account for this policy in the first years of our government, and not at a later time? Name some of the other prominent Secretaries of State.

7. Who are our ambassadors? Can you give the name of any foreign ambassadors in Washington? See Congressional Directory.

8. The methods by which our ministers are selected, take possession of their offices, and are presented at foreign courts, are described in Curtis, The United States and Foreign Powers, 15-21.

9. The duties of ministers. Curtis, The United States and Foreign Powers, 22-26.

10. Are our ambassadors given adequate salaries? Curtis, The United States and Foreign Powers, 13, 14.

11. From a consular report learn what the duties of a consul are? Curtis, The United States and Foreign Powers, 30-33.

12. For an account of our consular service, a comparison with that of other nations, and a consideration of some of the weaknesses in our system, see Curtis, The United States and Foreign Powers, 28-30.

13. A business man and the consular service. Century Mag., 60: 268-271.

14. Abuses in our consular system arising through appointment. Atl Mo., 85:455-466, and 669-683.

15. A plea for consular inspection. Forum, 30:28-34.

16. What is the great seal of the United States, and what is its use? Harrison, This Country of Ours, 199-200.

17. What is the particular work of the Marine Department? of the Steamboat Inspection Service? of the Marine Hospital? Lyman J. Gage, Organization of the Treasury Department, Cosmopolitan, 25:355-365.

18. What is the work of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing? Spofford, The Government as a Great Publisher, Forum, 19:338-349.

19. What is the extent of our merchant marine? Should it be increased? Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1900, 437-450.

20. From the appendix to the last Finance Report get the chief points connected with the work of the following officials: Treasurer, Chief of the Secret Service Division. A good description of the Treasury Department is given in Scribner's Mag., 33:400-411.

21. From the last report of the Bureau of Statistics find answers for the following: The expenditures of the government in the different departments; value of merchandise imported and exported; amounts of corn, wheat, cotton, wool, and iron produced, imported, and exported; the chief nationalities of immigrants, and comparison of the total number with previous years.

22. Are our coasts well defended? Harrison, This Country of Ours, 225.

23. Describe the work of the President, Secretary of War, Secretary of the Navy, and of the other Cabinet officers at the outbreak of war. Cosmop., 25:255-264.

24. For illustrated articles on education at West Point and Annapolis, see Outlook, 59:825-837, 839-849.

25. Comparison of our pension system with that of other nations. Forum, 33:346-348.

26. Defects in our pension system. Forum, 31:670-680.

27. Changing character of the immigration to the United States. Rev. of R's, 24:723, 724.

28. Why the Chinese should be excluded. Forum, 33:53-59.

29. Why the Chinese should be admitted. Forum, 33:50-68.

30. Influence of the allotment of land on the Indian. Forum, 34:466-480.

31. Results of the work of experiment stations. Scribner's Mag., 31:643-660.

32. For accounts of the new Congressional Library, see Century Mag., 53:682-694; 694-711; Atl. Mo., 85:145-158; Cosmop., 23:10-20.

33. What is the special value of the work of the Bureau of American Republics? Forum, 30:21-27.

For other questions and references on the topics in this chapter, consult Government in State and Nation, 259, 260.