The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-10-27
COP. CHARGES OF
 EXT TRAvAGANCE ARE
 UNF0UNDED IN FACT
ConceaIment of Real Truth Is Essential to This Repub-
 Ecan Fallacy

fR~ Congressn1an Clyde H.lTavenner.)
 washington, October 27.-ReDub- Hcan charges of Democratic exTaHa- rance in government will not stand If 4T17a figures of the Dem ocratic appro- prIations for this year are honestly analyzed The Republicans are Hak- ing the most of the fact that the ap- propriauons this year show an 1n- crease of nearly $17.00o,ooo oVe5 those of last year But, as Senator Martin of Virginia. showed to the Senate, this increase was due entirely to emergencies entirely beyond the control of the Wilson administrations So far as actually running the gov ernment Is concerned, the ad1ninistra- lion conducted it this year at an ex- pense of forty million dollars less than 1t cost last year
 And with governm ent functions ev- en more broad than they have ever been. the Wilson administration ac- 4ualIy spent $6, ,524, 900 in the ordinary government activities less than the Republicans spent in 1915
 The whole Republican argument of Democratic extravagance exists by virtue of the concealnent or facts.s The Democratic party has always stood for government economy. It stood for economy before it came in to power and it has practiced econ S1ray in power. And the people will zee this clearly when they understand the facts.
 Three or four extraordinary situa- 45nna forced the Democratic appro- DriaA1ons above what they had ever beAn before If Republicans had been in office these same situations qvo41fd have had to be met The chief ssxtra6rdinary expense arose out of 4he Mexican situation The admin astration inaugurated a campaign to eradicate hog cholera It started building a railroad in Alaska It
 
 And it established a bureau of war risk insurance to keep American com xaerce moving on the seas in spite of the European war.
 There were all extraordinary situ- atfons. and the government met them money There Is no Republican crit aciszn or charge of extrava gance in these extraordinary expenditures. Yet, altogether, they amounted to nearly $50, ,O0O,0 900, thus accounting for this years excess of appropriations nearly twice over Subtracting the amount front he total appropriations, and 1t is found that the Democrats did prac- tice economy to the extent of over S12OOO GOO their first year in office. before they were sud1cIently familiar with the government offices to under stand clearly where savings could be made.
 But the saving was even greater. The post ouce appropHa1on Ln1S year was extraordinarily large, due to the enlargement of the parcel post But this appropriation does not constitute a real tax upon the people at all The post office Is self-supporting. It is not run with money gained from taxation. Its own receipts are appropriated by Congress formally for post office ex- penses. And the increased appro- priation this year is an investment which will return an actual profit to the people. This appropriation will enable the department to extend the parcel post to do a great deal of tho work of the express companies Already the limited parcel post has turned the usual post office deficit in to a profit.
 Some of the other emergency ap- prcpriations this year were: Hog cholera investigation, $500. 900: Alas kan railroad, $1.80o,000: Mexican sit nation (re1ief for American, caring fol tnterned Mexican soldiers. and extra ordinary expenses of army and navy) S1S,999, ,999; relief of Americans 1T Europe, $2,75O, 900; war risk insur- ance bureau, $5,10o, 900.