ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION.

The administrative division has charge of the routine work of the Signal Office; the receipt and distribution of the mail; general office correspondence; the care and preservation of the office files, and al' matters affecting the commissioned, enlisted, and civilian force of th Signal Corps.

To this division is assigned the principal assistant of the Chief Signal Officer. This position was filled by Maj. Richard E. Thompson, Signal Corps, until April 1, 1902, when, on his transfer to the command of the Signal Corps post, Fort Myer, Va., he was relieved by Maj. George P. Scriven, Signal Corps. The long and distinguished service abroad of these officers, where both had practical experience in the field in the Philippines, and the latter in China, has made their services most valuable.

DISBURSING DIVISION.

This division is charged with the preparation of estimates for appropriations by Congress; the keeping of accounts of, making requisitions upon, and arranging for transfers to officers from such appropriations; the procuring of quotations, samples, issuing of adver tisements; abstracting bids; making awards; placing orders; arranging for inspection and shipment of supplies; the giving of notice to consignees; the invoicing and proper accounting of such supplies; the payment of accounts; the collecting of bills, and all other duties pertaining to disbursements.

The duties of disbursing officer were performed by Capt. Eugene O. Fechet, Signal Corps, from July 1 to August 9, 1901; Maj. George P. Scriven, Signal Corps, from August 10 to March 31, 1902, and by Capt. D. J. Carr, Signal Corps, from April 1, 1902, to the end of the fiscal year. The duties of disbursing officer have been performed most efficiently and promptly.

Captain Carr's report shows that in the regular inspection of his accounts no errors have been found during the year and no disallowances have been made by the Auditor for the War Department. These facts show the high character of the work done in this division and the care and intelligence displayed by Captain Carr and his predecessor, Major Scriven.

In urging a much-needed increase in clerical force Captain Carr says: Attention is invited to the fact that the appropriation for the installation and maintenance of electrical communication at coast artillery defenses for the ensuing fiscal year is increased seven-fold over that of the year just closed, i. e., from $35,000 to $259,200. By reason of the technical character of all of this equipment and the fact that the greater part of it will be new, additional correspondence and other increased clerical work will devolve upon this division. On account of the accuracy required in the performance of all clerical duties in this division, skilled clerks of considerable experience are absolutely essential. I therefore recommend that one additional competent stenographer and typewriter be assigned to the office of the disbursing officer.

Steps are being taken to devise a plan by which the property accountability of the disbursing officer may be simplified and thus obviate the duplication of invoic ing and making returns for property purchased and placed in the possession of an issuing officer. If this can be accomplished under the present regulations it is believed the one additional clerk recommended above will enable the disbursing officer to handle the duties of his office promptly; but if no change is made from the present method two additional stenographers and typewriters will be required.

The financial statement of Captain Carr for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1902, is as follows:

Financial statement of the disbursing officer, Signal Corps, United States Army, Washington, D. C., July 1, 1901, to June 30, 1902.

The tremendous development of electricity has materially modified many military methods of long standing. Two years since the Signal Corps had not a dollar for the purchase of an electrical equipment absolutely necessary for coast fortifications. The coming year it has an appropriation of $259,000. This has necessitated the organization of a new division, for which there are neither officers nor clerks to spare. This division is charged with the electrical work of the Signal Corps; the selection of special and general apparatus and devices; of executive functions relative to electrical matters and fire control, and requisitions for electrical material and supplies, except such as pertain to the telegraph division.

This division since its organization has been in charge of Capt. Edgar Russel, Signal Corps, an officer of extensive field service and of brilliant attainments, from which the Signal Corps has profited.

The evolution of electricity as applied to military operations, particularly as a means of communication, is of very recent growth, and without doubt owes its most important advances to the officers of the Army of the United States. In addition to electrical appliances for use of the troops in the field, there devolves on the Signal Corps the charge of fire-control communications, a field of constantly widening extent of the greatest importance to the country in general and to the Corps of Artillery in particular.

Without the electrical appliances lately devised and applied to the system of fire control on the north Atlantic coast, the efficiency of the coast fortifications, constructed and installed at a cost of many tens of millions of dollars, would be very materially curtailed. Indeed, a prominent officer of the Artillery Corps, fully familiar with coast

defenses, has stated that the elimination of electrical appliances would impair the efficiency of the defenses 75 per cent. While this may seem to unduly enlarge the importance of electricity in warfare, yet there is no doubt in the mind of the Chief Signal Officer of the Army that the value of the guns of large caliber, on which the safety of the coasts of the United States depends in case of warfare, is fully doubled by the application of electricity to range finders, telautographs, and other apparatus now utilized in fire control work.

Attention is invited to the fact that this new phase of Signal Corps work demands increased clerical and technical force for its proper execution. While the Chief Signal Officer of the Army has felt authorized to employ expert engineers, draftsmen, and electricians by the appropriation for this work, yet he has not thought it within the scope of the law to defray therefrom the expenses of clerical force.

In addition to his routine work, Captain Russel has devoted much time and energy in devising new electrical instruments and modifying old ones to the advantage of the service.

The entire instrumental equipment of the Signal Corps has been taken up anew, and an almost complete equipment of new instruments has been designed.

Purchase has been made of many types of the best instruments for test under the auspices of the board of electrical devices, which was appointed by the Chief Signal Officer of the Army to act in an advisory way upon many questions coming up for consideration on Signal Corps equipment. Incidentally all questions of award on bids have been referred to this board, and recommendations on all kinds of apparatus, electrical and otherwise, have been made by it.

This board has consisted of the various Signal Corps officers available at Fort Myer, Va., and Washington, D. C., associate with Captain Russel. The professional attainments of Lieut. Col. Samuel Reber, military secretary, have been utilized a number of times in regard to special questions, such as telephones, cables, wireless telegraphy, etc., he being invited to sit with the board.

In all this work Captain Russel has necessarily played the most important part. The following new instruments have been devised during the year: Service telephone, field telephone, service buzzer, Russel cut-in telephone, combination telegraph and buzzer table set, and cavalry buzzer. This last-mentioned instrument promises to be especially valuable during rapid field operations. The voltaplex and Ghegan repeater have been thoroughly tested. In fire-control apparatus the artillery type of telautograph, the time-interval clock, and the anemometer have been perfected and tested. The ohmmeter, Fisher cable testing set No. 2, and Pignolet's voltammeter, and the Edison Leland cell have been modified to meet special needs of the Signal Corps work. A Signal Corps type of armored cable has been devised for installation where multiple cables are required.

Of special devices for the fire-control service of the Corps of Artillery Captain Russel says:

The design of the artillery type of telautograph has been about completed by the Gray National Telautograph Company, and several of these instruments were used in the recent Army and Navy maneuvers, where they worked very well.

This instrument was originally selected by the Chief Signal Officer as being a very promising one for fire-control work, and it has been greatly improved, due to the suggestions of artillery officers, especially Maj. G. N. Whistler, at Fort Wadsworth, N. Y. The time-interval clock, which has been selected by the Chief Signal Officer of the