Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-12-09

peoples of more than one part
of the world. The United States
Is of necessity the sample de-
mocracy of the world, and the
triumph of democracy depends
upon it's success.
Recovery from the disturbing
and sometimes disastrous eff
fects of the late war has been
exceedingly slow on the other
side of the water and has given
promise, venture to say, of ear
ly completion only in our own
fortunate country; but even with
us the recovery halts and is i'm
peded at times and there are
Immediately serviceable acts of
legislation which it seems to me
we ought to attempt, to assist
that recovery and prove the indie
structible recuperaive force of
great government of the peo-
pie.
One of these is to prove that
a great democracy can keep
house as successfully and in as
businesS-like a fashion as any
other government. 1t GEMS to
me that the first step towards
proving this is to supply our
selves with a systematic method
of handling our estimates and
expenditures and bringing them
to the point where they will not
be an unnecessary strain upon
our income or necessitate I'M
reasonable taxation, in other
words, workable budget system,
and / respectfully suggest that
two elements are essential to
such a system; namely, not only
that the proposal of appropria-
tions should be in the hands of a
single body, such as single APP
preparations committee in each
house of the congress, but also
that this body should be brought
into such cooperation with the
departments of the government
and with the treasury Of the
to act upon complete conspec-
tus of the needs of the govern
ment and the resources from
which it must draw it's income.
I reluctantly vetoed the budget
bill passed by the last session of
the congress because of a con-
stitutional objection. The house
of representatives subsequently
modified the bill in order to meet
this objection. In the revised
form I believed that the bill, cou-
pied with action already taken
by the congress to revise it's
rules and procedure, furnishes
the foundations for an effective
national budget system. 1 ear
nestly hope, therefore, that one
of the. first steps taken by the
present session Of the congress
will be to pass the budget bill.
Improved Finances
The nations finances have
shown marked improvement dur
ing the past year. The total ordie.
nary receipts of s6,694,0OO,OOO for
those for 1919 by $1,542, 100000,
while the total net ordinary eX-
penditures decreased from $1S,-
514,000,000 to s6,403,OOO, 900. The
gross public debt, which reached
it's highest point on August 81,
1919, when it was $26,596,00O 900,
had dropped on November 80,
1920, to $24,175, 100000. There
has also been a marked decrease
in holdings of government war
securities by the banking institu-
t1ons of the country, as well as
in the amount of bills held by
the federal reserve banks Sc
cured by government war obliga-
This fortunate result has re-
1ieved the banks and left them
freer to finance the needs of
agriculture, industry and COM
merce. 1t has been due in large
part to the reduction of the pub
lie debt, especially of the float
ing debt, but more particularly
to the improved distribution of
government securities among
permanent investors. The cessa-
ton of the governments borrow
ings, except through short-term
certificates Of Indebtedness, has
been a matter of great conse-
quence to the people of the coun-
try at large as we'll as to the
holders of Liberty bonds and
Victory notes, and has had an
important bearing on the mater
of effective credit control.
The year has been character
lied by the progressive with
drawal of the treasury from the
domestic credit market and from
a position of dominant influence
in that market. The future
upon the extent to which econo-
mics are practiced and upon the
burdens placed upon the treas
ury, as we'll as upon industrial
developments and the mainten- I
ance of tax receipts at suf-
ficiently high level.
The fundamental fact which
at present dominates the govern
ment's financial situation is that
seven and half billions of its
war Indebtedness mature within
the next two and a half years.
Of this amount, two and a half
billions are floating debt and five
billions Victory notes and War
Savings certificates. The fiscal
program of the government must
be determined with reference to
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