The new era., 1912-03-28
PRESIDENT TAF7'S
ECONOMY RECORD
Insists That Government Be Run
on Sound Business Basis.
STRONG PROGRESSIVE POLICY
His Personal Efforts to Reduce Cost
Of Efficient Service Bring Results
Work Done by the Economy
and Efficiency Com
mission.

President Taft. more than any OF
his predecessors In the White House.
has given strict attention to placing
the govc vcrnment upon business basis
as regards its receipts and expendi-
lures. Economy ard efficiency became
one of the cardinal policies OF his ad-
ministration as soon AS he entered
upon the presidency and 1t was well
for the country that this was so. for
his administration inherited n deficit
In the treasury of S5S.00O.000. which
has now been transformed to n sur.
plus OF s3O.00O.000 The average citi.
zen and taxpayer will be interested In
this fact because the problem which
confronted the president ut the outset,
although upon n gigantic scale. was
similar to that OF the ordinary shop
keeper or business man, farmer or
wage-earEer or even housewife, who
Is called upon to make both ends
meet" either in business or in the
home.
BY law the secretary OF the trcasuTy
Is called upon every year to submit to
congress In December the "estimates"
of governmental expenditures for Tie
next fiscal year beginning the follow
ing July l. As congress has to pro-
vide the money to run the government
the money has to be appropriated for
specific purposes before II can be eX-
pended and II this were not done be-
fore the beginning of the fiscal year
the machinery of government would
stop unless emergency provision
could be made.
How Estimates Arc Made.
The estimates" are prepared by
the executive departments Of which
each member of the cabinet is head.
The cabinet officers get the 'esti-
mates" in their respective depart
mcnts from their chiefs OF bureaus
ana then combine thCm rs the "osti.
mates" for the department. The "es-
Inmates" from all departments are
then sent to the secretary of the
treasury to be submitted to congress.
and they then become thc estimates"
for the cost OF running the entire gov.
ernment during the neat fiscal year.
Upon these figures congress makes
the greater part of its annual apgro-
priations amounting to more than one
billion dollars annually.
Until 1908 Il more or less lax meth
DDS of making estimates for the an.
nual appropriations obtained through
out the government. The figures sent
TO congress each year. instead Of show
ing indications of a careful pruning"
all along the line. showed there was n
disposition cm0nE tho departments to
vie with each other in getting as
large appropriations as possible
without considering whether or not
the money demanded could he advan-
tagccusly ,~rSndpd during the coming
year There was no standardization
of supplies and the various depart
monts wtrC paying varying prices for
the same article. In other words,
business methods did not obtain in
the government activities and there
was no conservation of the resources
of the treasury department.
What President TAFT Did.
AS soon as President Taft took Office
this system ceased. At the outset
President Taft impressed upon his
cabinet officials the absolute necessity
of economy and efficiency in their de.
partments. He admonishcd them that
not a dollar beyond what was neces-
sary to run the government efficiently
in the departments, including a fair
margin for progress which Is a part Of