CO885-(26N14) — Page 94

Printed for the use of the Colonial Office.

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

TIT

separate Minute paper would still be necessary for all the more important or com- plex communications, to avoid confusion as well as to facilitate executive action. It is difficult to say what proportion of the office papers would be susceptible of treatment in jackets, but there must be a pretty considerable number, the bulk of which are not worth the elaborate dockets at present given them, where the jacket with a well chosen subject matter would be ample. Should the correspondence under either a Minute paper or a jacket tend to become so lengthy, and/or, bulky as to be unwieldy, it would be quite simple, as with the Tropical African Service files, to break it off at suitable periods of its life, say after 3 or 6 months, or as required. Where important correspondence was protracted the sets would be limited to the calendar year, but this need not be done in the case of jacketed correspondence.

26. As has already been explained these proposals involve no alteration of the Record books. Docketed units will continue to be recorded as now; the units com- posing a jacket would be merely "noted " under the appropriate "cutting" or sub- division according to origin or destination, instead of the full entry as at present. The origin, or destination, date, approved subject matter would suffice, while in the column" How disposed of " in the case of the Register, and in the number column in the case of the Index, would be noted the number by which the series is known. Communications could thus be traced with facility.

27. If the proposals meet with approval it would not be difficult to formulate working details and safeguards to make the system as far as possible fool-proof.

28. The adoption of the proposal would have the added advantage of tending to minimize the shortcomings of the Central Registry. It is not uncommon to find the geographical heading, which governs the destination of a paper, to be incorrect. the stamped number and date imperfectly legible-the written number on the Minute paper not corresponding to the stamped number, or so badly written as to mislead. enclosures missing and letters unsigned. Making every allowance for human fallibilty these errors and omissions seem to get through with annoying frequency. As to wrong numbers it may be mentioned that years ago a suggestion was made for the adoption of such a stamp as would obviate the necessity for writing the number at all on the minute paper, but nothing came of it. There can be no practical diffi- culty, if the number only is stamped, which would be sufficient were every docu- ment stamped on receipt, as it should be, with the correct date, and perhaps time. With the new proposals a simpler stamp should be obtained, as the present one is too large and is applied not infrequently so as to obliterate particulars on letters which are essential for reference.

29. To continue the present system will be to invite serious trouble sooner or later, and it may be doubted whether such continuance could be justified in the event of any enquiry from outside into the work of the office.

M. J. D.

Colonial Office,

26th August, 1919.

Miscellaneous

No. 344.

CONFIDENTIAL.

PAPERS

RELATING TO THE

DEPARTMENTAL

IN THE

COLONIAL

COUNCIL

OFFICE.

COLONIAL OFFICE,

January, 1922.

a

Reference :-

885/26

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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CONTENTS.