The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-05-09
GOVERNMENT
OR EXIRAYAGANCE
COMPARISONS THAT FAIL TO
COMPARE.

European Countries Use Sovereignty
Instead Of Appropriating Money for
Expenses Socialism, Spells System
and Colonialism Responsible for
Increase in National Expenditures.
ing, Washington.
Washington, May EVERY session
Of congress ends with debate in each
house between the chairman Of the
appropriations committee and the
ranking minority member on the SUBJ
ject of extravaganza"
The party in; power always says,
thru Its chosen representative at each
end of the capitol, that 1t has been
extremely frugal; the other side re-
plies that it has not.
The Congressional Record the day
after adjournment, illustrates this di-
vergence of opinion. Chairman Hem
enway Of the house committee heads
his speech:
Good Government Housekeeping
Gratifying exhibit Of appropriations
by the fifty-eighth congress; expendi-
lures authorized are forty millions
less than the governments income;
all legitimate objects under the public
service are provided for amply, eff
GENTLY and economically; interesting
facts and figures"
Leonidas F. Livingston, the rank
ing democratic member, summarizes
| his speech in the single caption, "a
Congress That Has Done Nothing but
| Spend Money"
In the senate the remarks Of Allison
| and Aldrich on one side and German
and Culberson on the other, might
| have been similarly summarized.
Practically there is no way Of tell
ing from the tables whether party
| has been extravagant or not. A sin
gle line authorizing something, which
| does not carry a cents worth Of ap-
preparation, may be a great deal more
extravagant than $100,000,00O pro-
contract upon which the government
had in years past solemnly entered.
Subject Is Muddled. ]-
The whole subject is further mud
died in the debate by a lot of COM
PARSONS which do not compare. The
per capita expenditure Of our govern
ment, by comparison with that Of New
Zealand, Great Britain and France,
Is such a worthless comparison.
| An important respect in which COM
parsons between this and foreign
countries are misleading is in the use
Of national sovereignty In lieu of
| money to accomplish certain results.
The nations Of the continent get vastly
more out Of sovereignty than do the
English-speaking peoples.
/ Germany, France, Russia and Italy
compel their subjects to serve GER
tain number of years in the army or
navy at a mere nominal wage, which
| in Russia amounts to only about a
dollar a. month. This reduces the
apparent cost Of the military estab-
| lishment enormously.
Similarly, in the higher grades of
life, the continental nations virtually
make a draft on the rich by having
the salaries of the officers of the
army and the navy SO small that only
the sons Of the rich can afford to
take them. And they feel honored to
avail themselves Of the opportunity.
AS whole the United States gets
it's servants of all grades In compe-
tition' with the outside market, and
not thru the operation Of it's SOW
ereignty. This upsets all compari-
sons, such as those which Mr.. Culber.
son submitted of our war expenses
,, with those Of European countries.
t The extra cost of this system for the
r English speaking countries is more
), apparent than real. It is about like
q the contrast between road building b.
forced levy on the time Of the in
habitants Of the countryside, which
o o prevailed a generation ago, and ;
n regular system of taxation.
e The young Germans who give thre'
years Of their lives to the army ar
distracted from the regular occupa
;, tons of life. It is probable that tn
r young Englishman who has thes
three years at his regular work cal
produce more than enough to pay tn
r. extra taxation which falls on him 70
!" England's more expensive system o
manning her ships. ,r