DIVISION OF ACCOUNTS AND DISBURSEMENTS. 259 



RENT OF ADDITIONAL BUILDINGS. 



Two thousaud dollars is i^rovided for the payment of rent for the 

 ensuing year for the Bureau of Forestry, the accommodations in the 

 main building being wholly inadequate to the needs of the Bureau. 

 In this connection all of the seventh floor and part of the eighth floor 

 of the Atlantic Building, 908 F street NW., was leased on July 1, 

 1901, at an annual rental of $2,000, and the Bureau force has been 

 installed therein, together with all office fixtures and furniture. 



The appropriation for the Division of Publications carries 12,500 

 "for tlie rent of a building and for such alterations as may be needed, 

 for the storage of publications." The Department has arranged with 

 the owner of ground on B street, T)etween Thirteenth and Thirteen- 

 and-a-half streets SW., who is now erecting a large, double brick 

 building, which is to be completed at an early date, and will be leased 

 by the Department for a period of years, subject to an annual appro- 

 priation by Congress for rental. The building will be arranged 

 expressly to accommodate the work of the Division of Publications 

 in the storing and handling of publications. 



These sums added to the amounts paid for other private projierty 

 already under lease will make for rental in the District of. Columbia, 

 for the year ending June 30, 1902, over $10,000. 



LAW^ CLERK. 



In the estimates for this Dei^artment for the fiscal year ended June 

 30, 1897, one "law clerk" was provided for at an annual salary of 

 $2,200. The recommendation failed to receive the approval of Con- 

 gress, and no further effort has been made in that direction. Since 

 then, however, on account of the urgent necessity for legal advice, a 

 third-class clerk on the roll of the Secretary has been detailed to act 

 as law clerk, and assigned to duty in the Division of Accounts and 

 Disbursements. Although not a regular graduate, this clerk has a 

 fair knowledge of law, especially departmental, and has performed 

 the duties of the trying j)osition very acceptabl}^ 



The legal work of the Department has increased enormously during 

 the i)ast two or three years, while the importance and serious charac- 

 ter of the questions involved require the most careful and expert con- 

 sideration. Tlio amount and importance of the work will continue to 

 increase with the growth and development of the Department; in fact 

 the work has already grown to such proportions that the services of 

 an assistant law clerk could be utilized not only to advantage, but 

 will shortly become an actual necessity. This is the only Department 

 of the Government without a statutory roll for legal exi:>erts, and it is 

 earnestly recommended that a law clerk l)e included in the estimates 

 of this Department for the next fiscal year. 



REVISED EDITION OF THE FISCAL REGULATIONS. 



A revised edition of the "Fiscal regulations of the Department" 

 was issued on July 1, 1901. This edition includes all amendments 

 made necessary b}" recent rulings of the Comptroller of the Treasury; 

 it also includes certain modifications of the rules of the Department 

 governing field expenses, etc. Among other changes $5 is allowed for 

 daily subsistence instead of $4, as foi-merly. Laundry expenses are 

 also allowed when the travel extends beyond one week. 



