Evening star., 1920-07-02

tions and Simpliflcation with view
to secure greater equity and justice
in tax burden and improvement in
administration.
Public Economy.
Claiming to have effected great
lures. the republican party cannot show
the reduction of one dollar in taxation
as a corollary of this false pretense.
In contrast, the last democratic Con-
gress enacted legislation reducing
taxes from SIS 1000. 100000 designed to
be raised, to Sc, 900, ,000, 900 for the first
year after the armistice. and to ST.
O00, ,000, 900 thereafter. and there the
total is left undiminished by our po-
litical adversaries. Two years a1ter
armistice day republican congress
provides for expending the stupen-
dous sum of $5.403. 800. .327.30.
Affecting great paper economies by
reducing departmental estimates OF
sums which would not nave oeen
spent in any event, and by reducing
formal appropriations, the repupilcan
statement of expenditures. omlts the
pregnant fact that Congress autnor-
lied the use of one and half billion
dollars in the hands of various de-
partments and bureaus, Whlch otner-
wise would have been covered lhto
added to the republican total OF e1-
penditures.
High Cost OF Living.
The high cost of living and the
depreciation of bond values in this
country are primarily due to war
itself, to the necessary governmental
expenditures for the destructive pur-
poses of war, to private eXtraVagance
TO the world shortage of capital, TO
the imitation of foreign currencies and
credits and in large degree to con-
sciencelesS profiteering.
The republican party is responsible
for the failure to restore peace ana
peace conditions in Europe. whlcn Is
a principal cause of post-armistIce
imitation the world over. 1t has de-
MED the demand of the President for
necessary legislation to deal with
secondary and local causes The
sound policies pursued by the treas
ury and the federal reserve system
have limited in this country, though
they could not prevent the inf1atoln
which was worldwide. Elected upon
specific promises to curtail pubic ex-
penditures and to bring the country
back to a status of effective economy,
the republican party in Congress
wasted time and energy for more than
a year in vain and extravagant in
vestigations costing the taxpayers
great sums Of money. while revealing
nothing beyond the incapacity of re-
publican politicians to cope with the
problems. Demanding that the Presi-
dent, from his place at the peace
table, call the Congress into extra
ordinary session for imperative pur-
poses of readjuStment, the Congress
when convened spent thirteen months
in partisan pursuits, failing to repeal
a single war statute which harassed
business or to initiate single con-
structive measure to help business.
1t busted itself making a prediction
record of pretended thrift having not
one particle of substantial existence
in fact. 1t ragged against profiteers
and the high cost of living without
the former afraid or doing a single
act to bring the latter within limita-
tions.
The simple truth is that the high
cost of living can only be remedied
by increased production, strict gov
pursuit of those who take advantage
of postwar conditions and are de-
manding and receiving outrageous
profits.
We pledge the democratic party to
a policy of strict economy in gov
eminent expenditures and to the
enactment and enforcement of such
bring profiteers before the bar of
criminal justice.
The Tariff.
We reamrm the traditional policy
of the democratic party in favor of a
tariff for revenue only and to con-
firm the policy of basing tariff revi-
sions upon the intelligent research of
non-partisan commission, rather
than upon the demands of selfish in
terests, temporarily held In abey
ance.
Budget.
In the interest of economy and good
administration, we favor the creation
of an effective budget system that
will function in accord with the prin-
ciples of the Constitution. The reform
should reach both the executive and
legislative aspects of the question.
The supervision and preparation of
the budget should be vested in the
Secretary of the Treasury as the rep
resentative of the President. The
budget, as such. should not be in
creased by the Congress except by a
two thirds vote. each house. however,
being free to exercise it's constitu-
tional privilege of making appropria-
tions through Independent bills. The