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For salaries of all necessary employees, other than plate printers and plate printers' assistants, including increases of grade rate of operators to $1.75 per day, $1.237,780, to be expended under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury:

* **

“For wages of plate printers, at piece rates to be fixed by the Secretary of the Treasury, not to exceed the rates usually paid for such work, including the wages of printers' assistants, when employed, including increase of grade rate of printers' assistants to $1.75 per day, $1,437,475, to be expended under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury:

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It is understood that the grade rate of operators and printers' assistants has remained at $1.75 per day since July 1, 1913, although the reference to such rate in the provisions just quoted does not establish such rate as the permanent rate fixed by law to be paid to such employees thereafter, nor was such a reference necessary to authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to increase the rate of compensation to such amounts,

There is no specific provision of law fixing the hours of labor or rates of pay for overtime work of per diem employees of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing as such, but section 1 of the act of August 1, 1892, as amended by the act of March 3, 1913 (37 Stat., 726), provides:

*

*

"That the service and employment of all laborers and mechanics who are now, or may hereafter, be employed by the Government of the United States or the District of Columbia, or by any contractor or subcontractor, upon a public work of the United States or of the District of Columbia, * is hereby limited and restricted to eight hours in any one calendar day; and it shall be unlawful for any officer of the United States Government or of the District of Columbia, or any such contractor or subcontractor whose duty it shall be to employ, direct, or control the services of such laborers or mechanics * to require or permit any such laborer or mechanic to work more than eight hours in any calendar day, except in case of extraordinary emergency:

*

*

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It has been held that the provisions of this law are applicable to certain employees of the bureau and that the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to fix the rates to be paid to such employees for overtime when the same may be required in accordance with the provisions of said act (15 Comp. Dec., 703).

There are no statutes expressly authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to have work of the character performed at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing executed by private concerns, and while there may be no law specifically requiring that such work be performed at the bureau, the appropriations made for such work-being for salaries, wages, materials, etc.-clearly indicate that the work is to be performed at the bureau, and I am of opinion that such appropriations are not available to pay for the execution of such work by private concerns.

Respectfully,

W. W. WARWICK, Comptroller.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 25, 1916.

NAVY DEPARTMENT.

STATEMENTS OF MR. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY, REAR ADMIRAL FREDERIC R. HARRIS, CHIEF, BUREAU OF YARDS AND DOCKS, AND COL. WILLIAM W. HARTS, OFFICER IN CHARGE OF PUBLIC BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS.

RENTAL OF ADDITIONAL QUARTERS FOR NAVY DEPARTMENT (ARLINGTON BUILDING).

The CHAIRMAN. The next item is:

For rental of additional quarters for the Navy Department, fiscal year nineteen hundred and eighteen. $105,000. The Secretary of the Navy is authorized to enter into a contract for the rental of a suitable fireproof building for the

use of the Navy Department for a period of not exceeding five years from July first, nineteen hundred and eighteen, at an annual rental of not exceeding $210,000.

Will you explain this item, Mr. Secretary?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. The matter is fairly well covered in the Secretary's letter transmitting the estimate. The situation is an extremely serious one from the point of view of efficiency, of health, and of proper administration in carrying on the war. We are scattered all over town, and something has got to be done about it. This seemed to be the most practical suggestion. This will eliminate all of the outside buildings which are now rented and will put all of the offices under one roof except the Secretary's own office and the division of operations.

The CHAIRMAN. Why does the Secretary not go out, too?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. He wants to stay where he is.

The CHAIRMAN. Why? If you want efficient administration, why should he not go also?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Then we would have to have a bigger building. The CHAIRMAN. How much larger?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It would have to be bigger by the amount they now occupy, which is 67,000 square feet, or, in other words, about two and one-half stories more on that Arlington Building. They can not build any more under the District building laws. They are up as high now as they are allowed to go.

The CHAIRMAN. How much space do you occupy altogether now? Mr. ROOSEVELT. At the present time 200,000 square feet.

The CHAIRMAN. And this is to give you

Mr. ROOSEVELT (interposing). To that must be added another building whch we have just taken, containing 30,000 feet, making 230.000 feet now occupied, or to be occupied within the next week. The CHAIRMAN. Is that to be given up?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Everything we have is to be given up except the 67,000 square feet in the State, War, and Navy Building.

The CHAIRMAN. That would give you 267,000 square feet additional. You now occupy 230,000 square feet?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. And this building would give you 257,000 square feet additional?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. No, sir; the total in this new building is 387,000 square feet.

The CHAIRMAN. It is 420,000 square feet, is it not?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. That is gross; it is 320,000 square feet net, and that plus the 67,000 square feet in the State, War, and Navy Building gives a total of 387,000 square feet.

The CHAIRMAN. At what rate?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. At 50 cents per square foot.

The CHAIRMAN. Is that net?

Admiral HARRIS. It is about 60 cents per square foot net.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. We will have an increase over what we have now of 157,000 square feet. We will have 157,000 square feet more than we have now.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you need it?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Positively.

4400-17-15

The CHAIRMAN. Why?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Because the conditions are such now that proper administration is impossible.

The CHAIRMAN. That makes over 65 cents per square foot. The rate is 65 cents per square foot.

Mr. CANNON. Do they propose to operate this building?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; and the total cost of operation would be very nearly $100,000.

Mr. CANNON. The lessor does that?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. The Navy Department does that; but that relieves us of the operation of certain other buildings that we are now operating.

Mr. CANNON. Then the rent is net?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir.

Mr. CANNON. What is the amount?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. $210,000 a year.

Mr. CANNON. And the heating, lighting, operation, and maintenance of the building will be at your own expense?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. In addition to the 320,000 square feet, we would get between 50,000 and 60,000 square feet of usable storage space in the first and second subbasements, and if you count that in the rental. it will bring it down to about 60 cents a square foot. Leaving that out, the rental is 65 cents per square foot net.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you expect to retain all the space you now have in the State, War, and Navy Building?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; we expect to retain that in order to house the Secretary's office and the Division of Operations. We will use every room we now have.

The CHAIRMAN. How many persons are in those two offices-that is, in the Bureau of Operations and the Secretary's office?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It would be hard to say. I can find out for you. The CHAIRMAN. There are 67,000 square feet of space in use there. Mr. CANNON. What is to be the character of the finishings of this building?

Admiral HARRIS. The plans have not been completed, but it is to be a very good, substantial building.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It is to be of concrete construction.

Admiral HARRIS. It will have concrete floors, and it will be fireproof. It will be something on the order of the Munsey Building. Mr. CANNON. What is to be the character of the inside finishingswood finishings?

Admiral HARRIS. There will be very little wood finishings.
Mr. CANNON. The doors would be wooden?

Admiral HARRIS. No, sir.

Mr. CANNON. What about the doors?

Admiral HARRIS. I think they would be metal.

The CHAIRMAN. You had prior to the outbreak of the war about 88 persons in the Secretary's office and in the Division of Operations. Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; and we have added probably 100 more since the outbreak of the war.

The CHAIRMAN. You do not need 67,000 square feet of space for 188 persons.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. We have the chief clerk's office there.

The CHAIRMAN. I have included that.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. We have my office, the Judge Advocate General, Naval Intelligence, and the General Board.

The CHAIRMAN. Give us a statement of the number of persons who will remain in there.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. I will do so.

The offices remaining in the State, War, and Navy Building will be: Secretary's office; Assistant Secretary's office; chief clerk; operations, including communications; General Board; Intelligence; gunnery exercises; naval records and library; Judge Advocate General; Inspection Board; miscellaneous offices. The total number of persons employed in these offices is 452 at the present time. Estimated number within six months, 574.

The CHAIRMAN. You are going to move out of the Navy Annex Building?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; we will turn that over to the War Department?

The CHAIRMAN. Will you move the hydrographic office out?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; we will put them in the basement and on the first floor of the new building.

The CHAIRMAN. The last time they moved we had to spend money to strengthen the building for the presses.

Admiral HARRIS. This building is being designed for the purpose. I did not have anything to do with that.

The CHAIRMAN. I do not care who had anything to do with it, I know what happened. We had to strengthen the building because the presses could not go in there.

Will it not create a great deal of confusion to move that whole outfit from the Navy Annex Building?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. No, sir; it will be a great deal easier to move them out than for them to stay where they are at the present time, scattered all over the place.

The CHAIRMAN. How does it happen that the rent has jumped $10,000? Why did this proposed rental jump $10,000 a year? Mr. ROOSEVELT. I did not know that it did.

The CHAIRMAN. You first asked for $200,000, and now it is $210,000.

Admiral HARRIS. The first figure asked for was $200,000, but it was based on a price of 50 cents per square foot gross area. They had not designed the building at that time, but since then they have laid out the building and designed it, and it works out $210,000. They wanted 50 cents per square foot gross, but it has been found that the building will now cost something like $600,000 over what it would have cost a year or so ago.

The CHAIRMAN. This was not a year or so ago, but a month or two ago.

Admiral HARRIS. This was about four or five months ago.
The CHAIRMAN. It was not that long.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. As I understand it, when they came to the actual plans they found that they could get 20,000 square feet more within the building laws.

Admiral HARRIS. Yes; they found that they could get 20,000 square feet more than was originally contemplated. This was what was originally contemplated, but when they worked up the plans the space amounted to 420,000 square feet.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you know how much the building will cost? Admiral HARRIS. I have some general statements on it, but I have not got them here. I think the cost will be in the neighborhood of $2,000,000 for the building. I have the figures in my office, and can insert them.

The CHAIRMAN. Have you had under consideration any other proposals for buildings?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. We have had a great many other proposals under consideration for temporary buildings.

The CHAIRMAN. How many people do you want to house?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. I can not tell you offhand.

Admiral HARRIS. We can insert that in the hearings. I think probably it will be in excess of 2,000 people-probably 2,500 by the time the building is ready for occupancy.

The CHAIRMAN. In this new building?

Admiral HARRIS. Yes, sir.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. I can add that the bureau estimates of the people whom it is proposed to put in this new building run considerably above the total floor space that this building will contain.

The CHAIRMAN. I do not see why. You say there will be about 2.000 people, and that would mean 160 square feet for each individual.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. A large part of this building will be occupied by the technical bureaus. Yards and Docks, Construction and Repair, and Steam Engineering have large drafting forces. About half of the bulk space used by those bureaus will be taken up by the drafting forces, and the clerical forces of the bureaus will occupy considerably less than 50 per cent of the area.

Admiral HARRIS. Yes, sir; the technical bureaus will occupy half of it.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. You can not figure it on the per capita basis, because the drafting rooms necessarily contain fewer men than the rooms occupied by the clerical forces.

The CHAIRMAN. Have you considered the possibility of utilizing the Census Building?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. Yes, sir; but that simply brings up the same difficulty we are in now.

The CHAIRMAN. What is that?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It is too far away. We want to be in touch with the offices.

The CHAIRMAN. You can not slap them right up against each other. That is as close as the President is to Congress. Was that the only objection?

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It would take a great deal of remodeling and doing over.

The CHAIRMAN. Only about a third of it is occupied, and it could be obtained, I suppose, for about $15,000.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. It would be unsuitable in a dozen different ways.
The CHAIRMAN. In what ways would it be unsuitable?
Mr. ROOSEVELT. How much space is there in it?

The CHAIRMAN. They have had 3,000 employees in it.

Mr. ROOSEVELT. That does not prove anything in our case, because our work is entirely different. If it has as much floor space as this building it would be large enough, but if it did not have the