The Red Cloud chief., 1910-03-10
NOTHING NEW IN
IDEA OF ALDR|CH
inquiries Similar to One He Asks
Have Been Made Before.
BROUGHT FORTH NO RESULTS
Reports Concerning Economy General.
iy onholed---President Taft Not
Worrying over Roosevelts Re.
turn-lnterest over investi.
cations.

NdNIOHSs
Washington. Senator Aldrich'S bill
10 create government business
method commission" Is a measure
somewhat similar to others that have
been introduced in the past In con.
gress There have been inquiries
aforctime into the business methods
of the departments with view to dis.
covering ways and means to save
money, but the reports which werc
| turned i'm were pigConhOlCd as rule
or, If action was taken, II had no ade.
quatc result in reducing expenses
Years ago the term, "billiOn dollar
! congress" was used merely for the
| purpose of getting the effect which
| sometimes comes from picturesque
exaggeration No one dreamed 20
| years ago that AT any one session Of
congress there would be appropriated
| for the expenses of the government
a sum of money reaching anywhere
near the billion mark Last year.
however. congress appropriated ST..
| 0i0,000.000. and this year 1t will ap.
propriate in all human probability
about the same amount.
The government work constantly is
expanding. As the people grow, their
expenses grow. and therefore II
in 1910. the appropriation bills
are just the same as they wer"
in 1909. 1t of necessity marks
saving after all The fact
that there is not likely to be any
growth in the appropriations this
year over that OF last year is due
largely to the pruning methods which
have been adopted In the committees
of congress which scrutnize the sup
ply bills
Clever Political Work.
II is regarded in Washington as q
bold, and II may be successful party
stroke for the leader of the Repub
licans in the senate to come out as he
has for reduction of the eXpendi
lures of the government. The Repub
lcan party has been charged with ex
travagance The Democrats say that
even If Mr.. AldriCh's bill becomes 6
law. the business mems commission
find out real money can be saved
and money finally is saved. this vii
not clear the Republicans OF thu
charge Of extravaganza I'm the past
The Democrats also say that II The
commission shall find that 1t has beer
costing sliO,O00,O0O to run the navy
department. for instance, and 1t car
be shown that the same results coul,
have been reached with an eXpendI
ture OF one hundred millions. the ma
jority party is bound to suffer.
Employees In Protest.
Any scheme for the investigation
Of the departments with a view to cut
ting down expenditures is bound Il
be met with opposition from tn
great force of government employees
some 10000 In number. who are o.
the labor rolls in Washington. A grea
many of these small officials. clerks
messengers. stenographers, doorkeeI
ers and iaborers have families depenC
ont upon them and with thei
families they make up larg
percentage OF the population {
the capital city II economy mean
cutting down of salaries or
dismissal Of a part of the worl
ing force employed. the reason for til
opposition of the clerks and other
readily can be seen
Desire for True Economy.
II is possible and perhaps entirel
probable that economy in governmeu
work can be secured without any wa
affecting the pay Of the governmer
employees The government spends s
[ much money In building battleship
| In putting up public buildings and
; contract work generally that II wi
be found that the three hundred m
lions which Mr. Aldrich thinks can /
> saved every year under the apple
, ton Of business methods. may
, saved without the necessity of goir
. outside of the greater bills whiC
- Uncle Sam has put up to him evel
n year
- Il always has been said that the
could be a great saving in governmc
expenditures if absolute businc
methods were applied. and it is We
> probable that this Is true. If the
is a chance to save three hundred m
,e hon dollars, perhaps the eXpenditu
OF the few thousands that a comm
sion Of inquiry will cost will not
n unwise
President Not Worrying.
II There is no evidence that Pr,
i1cnt Taft is worrying in the lea
about what Col Theodore Roo!
80 vel, may say concerning the progre
10 or the lack Of progress OF the poiici
OF the present administration II
II apparent that the president holds
- the belief that Mr Roosevelt will
lieye In his absolute sincerity of p
pose and that even though congrG
- does not put through all the advanc
y legislation which the president b
recommended Mr. Roosevelt will re
Il ize that the fault II that OF congr,
:" and not the administration
a. II Is curious from how many vic
points the return OF the strenuous c
n to this country is looked AT Th'
~" are those advanced Republicans. "