South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1916-08-23
SENATE BEGINS
BATTLE ROYAL
ON REVENUE BILL
General Debate Opens With
indications of Continuing
for Several days Dur
ing Week.

WASHINGTON. Aug. 2S.-with
Sen Simmons, chairman of the
finance committee, submitting fig
Ures designed to dsprove the repub-
ucan charges % democratic extrav-
agance, and Sen Smoot, republican
finance expert, asserting that the
democratic party should be cOnvicte6
of attempting To procure votes I'M
der false pretenses, general debate
on the S205,OOO,0 emergency rev.
enue bill began Tuesday in the SEN
ate There were indications on every
hand of a partisan battle royal 10 be
waged for several days.
Insisting that national defense,
preparedness and the Mexican situa-
ton were altogether responsible for
the necessity of special revenue leg
islation and a proposed bond issue,
Sen. Simmons declared republicans
in congress had clamored for even
greater expenditures for defense, and
having done this, were seeking parti-
san advantage by making false
charges of democratic extravaganza
10 the public.
Smoot Opens Attack.
Sen. Smoot, opening the republic
an assault on the revenue bill. said if
the democratic party we're 10 be re-
tanned in control Of the government,
the country would suffer an era Of
unequalled extravaganza combined
with inefficiency unsurpassed" His
| attack was supported by Sen. Curtis,
who asserted that the burden of tax
alton should not be placed on the
American people and that revenues
should be raised by a protective tar
| if.
TIC prove his contention that nor
NAL appropriations of this session are
not excessive, Sen. Simmons submit
ted treasury department estimates of
the year 1917, showing that exclud-
ng postal appropriations, bond issues
already authorized and amounts that
will not be expended, revenues must
\ be provided for disbursements of
| S1,126,244,O00. OF this amount the
total appropriated for national de-
Tense would Aggregate $654,O0O. 900,
and the senator submitted other fig
ures to prove that this extraordinary
amount due to preparedness and the
Mexican emergency, exceeded normal
defense appropriations by about
! 1912, 100000.
Defense Bill Big Item.
This amount said Sen. Simmons
deducted from the total estimated
disbursements for the fiscal year
| 1917, would leave 1888. 963, 900 as the
amount required TO meet the total
J normal disbursements OF the gov
ernment for that year. Now the to-
! tai receipts for the year 1917, under
/ existing laws is 1852, geo or s.
037, 600 more than the estimated nor
NAL disbursements. making il clear
| that but for the extraordinary in
crease in the appropriation for the
naval and military establishments,
which have been thought expedient
and necessary. the normal receipts
would be sufficient to pay the ex-
| penses of the government for the
year. and leave a surplus Of over
IS, 600, 900 in the treasury, just as the
receipts for the year 1916 (before We
entered upon this preparedness pro-
gram and before the Mexican situa-
don developed) actually yielded a
sufficient revenue to pay expenses
of the government and left a surplus
in the treasury of $55,27O.OO0."
What Is Needed.
Subtracting from the estimated
disbursements the estimated receipts
for 1917, the senator showed that
| the balance TO be provided for is
S364.243, 600. To meet this amount
he submitted that the pending bill
would raise S2O5, 600. 900; the bond
issue $3.50, 900, 600, leaving a balance
of S29,243.OOO to be taken care of by
the general fund Of the treasury,
which he said amounted to $134.-
| 337, 1875 on August IS last.
Referring to the proposed S13.-
OOO.O 900 bond issue for Mexican ex-
penditures. Sen. Simmons said Pan
anna bonds could be used To reim-
burse the treasury. and added that
up TO this time the democratic party
had issued no Panama canal bonds,
whereas the republicans during the
Roosevelt and Taft administration,
sold $134,OOO.O 200 worth.
Sen. SmoOt asserted that the dem
ocratic party had not kept the
/ pledges Of retrenchment and econ
omy. and charged il with "wasteful
| and useless expenditures too long for
I