Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-06-19
One Cent for
Development
BY Frederic ]. Haskin

Washington, -. C., June 16.--Out of
every dollar you give to the government,
more thnn 90 cents goes to pay for past
and future wars and q scant one cent IS
spent on research, education and develop
mental work, including care Of the public
health
This il the most striking feature Of an
analysis Of the government expenditures
recently made by Edward b. Rosa, chief
physicist OF the Bureau of Standards.
Our budget has queer look when It II
taken TO pieces and examined something
Congress apparently has never thought OF
doing
The United States Government is now
collecting nm average Of 80 dollars from
each inhabitant Of the United States for
its expenses, which amounts, ms shown by
the appropriation bills for the current
fiscal year, to 81, s6s, ,005, ,706.
DIR. Rosa divides this current budget
into several groups and shows just what
percentage of the money goes TO each
group In the first group he places oil ex-
nenees attributable to recent and previous
ware. including interest on the pnbhc
debt. pensions. war risk insurance re-
habiiitation and care of soldiers deficit IN
the operation Of railways expenditures oi
the Shipping Board European food reiiet
and the bonus 10 government employees To
help them meet the increased cost oi nv
ing, due To the world war In second
group he places the appropriations Tor the
War and, Navy departments, winch are
still somewhat above peace-tiine basis
These two groups alone absorb 81 per
cent of the total amount which the gov
ornment is spending this year
uNAvoIDARLE EXPENSES.
Into a third group go the primary gov
eminent functions which must be main
tanned. such as the salaries Of Congress
men the President and his staff aud the
cost of maintaining Federal courts, penal
institutions. and purely administrative
departments and commissions. hese
functions of Government get only 81 per
| cent OF the total
The fourth group includes such public
works rs improving rivers and harbors'
constructing public buildings, the reciama-
tion service. tho national parks, the Alaska
railway. and the Federal roah work Aii 81
| these activities together get olt three
cents ont Of yonr dollar
| Another group includes all research and
all educational and developmental work
| II includes nearlv All Of the work which ! nc
| government does that is designed to make
| the country more productive make Z
unit of man power weld more wealth ~
includes most of the aid which the govern
mcnf gives N farming, mining ana m
dustrv generally It includes all q the
nurelv scientific research which The GOV
/ ernrnent carrles on. al Of the care which I
gives TO public health and All that i docs
/ to promote education The Agricultural
Department Geological survey. l''ireaa q !,
10 raE n
Geodetic Survey, Bureau Of Fisheries
Bureau Of Foreign and Domestic Com
morce. Bureau Of Labor Statistics, No-
rnen's and Children S Bureaus. Vocational
Education. the Library of Congress, the
Smithsonian Institution, and the Pnni'c
Health Service ali get their incomes under
tins group. And the aggregate oi what
thev receive Is just one per cent q the
whole. Only one cent ont Of every dollar
YOU give to the government goes % pay Tor
all OF this constructive work