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Problem of Indian Administration

This plan was abandoned in favor of the more informal and more practicable one of having each staff member consult experts in the different fields as he felt that he needed expert aid. The Institute for Government Research wishes to express its indebtedness to the large number of persons who have in this way generously given of their time in aiding different members of its staff.

How the Report was Prepared. In the preparation of the report, the survey staff resorted to the committee system. Each specialist was the chairman of a committee upon which were placed all other members of the staff whose fields overlapped that of the special committee. The specialist on existing data, the Indian adviser, and the technical director were members of all or practically all committees. The chairman of each committee, in informal conference with the members of his committee, then outlined his section of the report. When the outline was completed in first draft it was gone over in detail in committee meetings and was revised on the basis of discussion. The chairman of the committee then wrote the text on the basis of the outline. The report in its entirety, after necessary editorial revision, was submitted to each member of the staff for further suggestions regarding revision. The various sections of the report represent, therefore, insofar as possible the work of the staff as a whole rather than of individual members.

It will be found fairly frequently that the same general subject will be considered in the different sections of the report. For example, native arts and handicrafts are mentioned in the chapter dealing with education, activities of women, and general economic conditions, because they are directly related to each of these three subjects. The treatment of these major subjects would be incomplete without reference to native arts and handicrafts. Although the point of view from which they are approached is always different, there is inevitably some duplication. No special effort has been made to eliminate it and to substitute cross references, because it seemed preferable to make each section reasonably complete in itself. It may be found, too, that there are some slight variations in the wording or form of the detailed constructive recommendations in the several chapters, but if one will look not at the precise wording but at the underlying principle, it is believed that what may seem to be slight inconsistencies are chiefly differences in