The position of file clerk is a sure stepping stone to something better--a more responsible and better paid position. No clerk in the office has a better opportunity to obtain a general knowledge of the business. From the stenographer who files the manager's personal correspondence, to the clerk in charge of an extensive filing division, each is intrusted with important papers revealing the very secrets of the business. The position is a confidential one, and the clerk who can absorb the information that must inevitably come to his notice, and _keep the information to himself_, is surely preparing to fill a higher position; he has a golden opportunity to demonstrate his absolute trustworthiness.
[Illustration: Fig. 9. Flat Letter File. _Browne-Morse Co._]
The evolution of methods of filing is itself an interesting study. From the days when the merchant preserved his bills and important letters by hanging them on a sharp-pointed hook, to the present with filing cabinets of pleasing design and careful construction, in sizes to hold papers of all shapes and kinds, there has been constant progress. The advance of business methods, bringing with it an ever-increasing volume of papers to be preserved, has resulted in a demand for more simple methods--more scientific systems of filing. Those confronted with a practical solution of the problem, and those attempting to supply the demand, have devoted much time to a study of the subject. This has brought into being the filing expert who makes a study of the filing problems of concerns in all lines of business. The manufacturer has kept pace with the development, and now is prepared to furnish the right device for filing any document from a small card to the largest drawing or map.
In this discussion of filing systems, it is not necessary to consider the obsolete methods, even though they have at some time been considered standard. The purpose of this discussion will be better served by a study of the more modern systems.
=Flat Files.= One of the filing systems still found in some offices is the flat, or box file. This file is made in the form of a box, with a hinged cover, as shown in Fig. 9. This box is of the right size to hold letters without folding, and is equipped with an _A_ to _Z_ index. Letters and other papers are filed between the index sheets in the order of their receipt. Sometimes an attempt is made to keep all of the correspondence of one person together but, since the letters are simply laid in the file, with no means of separating those of the several correspondents filed in one subdivision, it is very difficult to maintain this arrangement.