Daily Kennebec journal., 1919-09-11
Editorial Comment
Tho High Cost Of Official Extrava
0anee
(National Republican,


The biggest single cause Of the
high cost Of living at this time is the
excessively high cost Of government.
The chief Of sinners in this respect
has been the national government
under Wilsonian direction. The ma
tional administration has set the
pace In extravagance and wasteful
expenditures. This has resulted not
only in higher taxes. in heavier bur-
dens upon trade and industry. which
have been passed on to the consu- :
mer to a considerable extent, but the
government, as buyer of supplies.
has been the biggest booster OF
prices. Purchases have been made
without regard to cost and the re-
suit has been that every consumer
has felt the effect. Other prices have
risen sympathetically. Moreover
vast stores Of food and clothing and
other materials have been drawn
from the usual channels, and until
recently have been stored, thus de-
pleting the market to that extent
The people generally have caught the
drunken sailor" attitude toward
expenditures adopted by govern
ment functionaries. The result has
been a riot Of wasteful spending.
More spending has called for more
income. more income has imposed
more production and distribution,
this has increased costs to the con-
sumer. So the endless cycle of in
creased costs has been started and
kept going.
Why does not the administration
make some start in curtailing gov
ernment expenditures? There are
more federal Office holders in Wash
ington today than there were at the
time Of the signing Of the armistice.
When a demand is made for some
remedy for the high cost Of living.
the response Is a demand from every
department for more money to hire
more employees. This, of course.
means. not relief from high govern
mental costs. but an increase in
those costs.
An effort is being made by the ad-
turer and the merchant the goat" Of
the existing situation. The people
are being taught that the producers
and distributors Of the country are
the robbers Of the people. This is
all a part Of that geneHal socialistic
agitation intended to Impress upon
people the thought that the way to
eliminate all the evils Of the eco
nomic order Ia to let the government
be the universal employer, provider
and proprietor. But everything the
government has touched under this
administration has been disorgan-
lied and demoralized. Every service
II has performed has been at increas-
ed cost to the people, and on a low-
cred standard of efficiency. Take
the railways for instance. For many
years these same state socialists
have been telling us that If only the
government could take over the rail-
ways, the employees would be given
more pay and the people would get
lower transportation rates. The
scheme has been tried The en-
ployes Of the roads are thoroughly
dissatisfied with their compensation
and rates have been increased one
half.
The average business man IL just
about al honest and as efhcient and
about as anxious to treat the people
right as the average politician. 1t
is therefore true that the people will
get about as square deal, to say
the least. under private as under
public ownership. The administra-
ton now has a chance to show good
faith in the outcry against high !
living costs by reducing those costs
In 20 far a. they are increased by
the extravagance Of the administra-