ton: Thirty Years' View; Blaine: Twenty Years of Congress; Bryce: The American Commonwealth (student's edition); Curtis: History of the Constitution; Davis, Jefferson: The Rise of the Confederate Government; Ely: The Labor Movement; Fiske: American Political Ideas; Foster: A Century of American Diplomacy; Hart: Foundations of American Foreign Policy; Jameson: The Constitutional Convention; Johnston (A.): American Politics; Kent: Commentaries; Lamphere: American Government; Macy: Civil Government, Institutional Beginnings, Our Government and Political Parties; Morse: Citizenship; Richardson: Messages and Papers of the Presidents; Roosevelt: Naval History and The Winning of the West; Stephens, A. C.: The War Between the States; Taussig: Protection; The Century Co.: Battles and Leaders of the Civil War; and Wilson, H. H.: The Rise and Fall of the Slave-Power. The American Statesmen Series also should be consulted; the writings of public men, as Grant or Washington; and public or official documents as well as such statistical works of private individuals as The Statesman's Year-Book.
Uni′ted States, Depart′ments of. There are ten departments of the executive branch of the government of the United States, of which the president is the head. The heads of the departments, known as secretaries, are appointed by the president, subject to confirmation by the senate. The continental congress had established a post-office department before July 4, 1776, and afterwards established departments of foreign affairs, of the treasury and of war. The secretaries have a salary of $12,000 a year each, but no seats in Congress, and form the president's cabinet or board of advisers. The heads of the departments are the secretary of state, secretary of the treasury, secretary of war, secretary of the navy, secretary of the interior, secretary of agriculture, secretary of commerce and labor, postmaster-general and attorney-general.
Department of State. The department of state, first called the department of foreign affairs, has charge of all the relations and business of the United States with foreign nations. The divisions or bureaus as they are called are the diplomatic bureau, consular bureau, bureaus of statistics, accounts, archives, library, trade, appointments and passports. There are four classes of ministers sent to foreign countries to represent the United States: ambassadors extraordinary, ministers plenipotentiary, ministers resident and chargés d'affaires (persons in charge of affairs). In the principal foreign cities are stationed consuls (q. v.) or governmental agents, who look after the interests of Americans, residents or travelers, and specially American seamen. The principal officers of the department of state, besides the secretary, are three assistant-secretaries, eight heads of bureaus, one solicitor, two assistant-solicitors and one chief clerk. (See Naturalization.)
Treasury Department. The largest and most important department is that of the treasury, which was formed in 1789. The secretary of the treasury has to superintend the collection of revenue, to grant warrants for money used in carrying out the appropriations of Congress, to oversee the public debt, national banks, coinage, internal revenue etc. There are three assistant-secretaries; eight division-chiefs; two comptrollers; a chief clerk; and six auditors. There also are a treasurer of the United States, who has charge of all public money and pays it out only on orders from the secretary of the treasury; an assistant-treasurer; a register of the treasury, who keeps the accounts; a deputy-register; a commissioner of internal revenue; a director of the mint, assisted by two deputies; a chief of the bureau of engraving; an actuary and a surgeon-general; the supervising architect; two solicitors; and a chief of secret service. The director of the mint holds his place for five years, and has charge of the mints and assay-offices. The chief of the bureau of engraving and printing has the oversight of the printing and engraving of all United States bonds, bank-notes etc. and the printing of all public documents, reports etc. The internal-revenue bureau has charge of the collecting of government taxes; the life-saving service has charge of the appliances for the saving of life and property on all our coasts; and the architect has charge of all building, repairs, construction etc. The bureaus of statistics and navigation, the coast-survey, steamboat-inspection etc, formerly belonging to the treasury department, were transferred to the department of commerce and labor when that department was established in 1903. Full reports are required of all the officers of the treasury. (See Life-Saving Service.)
The Department of War. The president is commander-in-chief of the army, but never acts in that capacity, and makes all communications to it through the secretary of war. The army is directly under the control of the secretary of war, with the aid of an assistant secretary and the chief-of-staff of the army. (See Army.) The war department, through its secretary, reports on the state of the army, the necessary expenses etc., and also has charge of the improvements of rivers and harbors. The military secretary has charge of the recruiting and mustering of soldiers and records of the army; the inspector-general examines arms and the drill and discipline of the army, the judge-advocate-general is in charge of the bureau of military justice;
