The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1920-06-17
War Expenditures--Startling Facts That
Show How Millions Collected From
the People Were Wasted

mOnd Koeln, collector of the city OF
st. Louis for facts in connection with
expenditures by the war department
Congressman Cleveland A Newton
of Missouri, complied in the following
letter, which was subsequently pub
ished in the Congressional Record:
l have your letter of the 4th in
slant requesting near view informa-
ton regarding a subject in which
every patriotic American ought to be
interested. More than a year has
passed since we emerged from a
world war, war in which 1890, 900 Of
our boys saw active service upon the
battle line in Europe. OF this number
$4,000 were killed in action and 2S6.-
500 wounded. In the conduct of that
war our government expended S27,-
5O0.000,0O0. In addition to which the
government loaned $4,000 100000 to
the allies. During the war the people
of this country, regardless of politics
or creed, made every sacrifice of blood
and treasure to support the admins
tratiOn in power in order to insure
the winning of the war, and now that
the party responsible for that admin
istration is preparing to ask to again
be intrusted with the reins of gov
eminent, it is well to scrutinize the
administrations war record and as
certain whether or not it has merited
the continued confidence of the Amer
lean people.
People Gave to the Utmost.
The phase of the administration
war record in which the public is es-
pecially interested is it's unparalleled
expenditure of public money. The
people bought Liberty bonds and
thrift stamps to the limit of their ca
pacity. They have paid taxes in
every conceivable form, and now that
they have paid billions into the ma
tons treasury they are interested to !
know how that money was expended !
by the party in power in order to de- |
termine whether that party is en-
titled to their continued confidence
Congress Checks Up Expenditures.
The sixty sixth congress, soon after
it convened in May of last year. ap- I
pointed a committee of its members
to investigate the expenditures of the
war department That committee has
labored long and earnestly. It has
examined the records of the war de-
partment. It has Intercepted many
witnesses under oath. 1t has collect
ed much evidence, and it is from this
testimony that have gathered the
facts which I shall present in re-
Spouse to your letter
Millions Expended With Little ArtiI-
ery Provided.
The records of the war department /,
show that the administration expend-
ed for artillery during the world war
a sum total of s1,191,1S2,S5O, and yet
General John J. Pershing, in his final
report as commander in chief of the !
American expeditionary forces, states
that the only guns of large type pro-
iuced at home which reached France !
before the cessation of hostilities were ,
100 75-millimeter guns and "a 8-inch
lowitzers, making a total of 1873 Am I
srican- made guns which reached our !
ront and were in use when the arm ,
stice was signed. {
Our democratic friends contend that 7
bese limited results from such an {
enormous expenditure of money were T
lue to our state of unpreparedness {
when war was declared. Yet we re- 7
that Belgium was invaded in s
ga. three years before the declara-
ion of war; the Lustania was sunk
n 1915, two years before the declara- n
ion of war; and the administration n
low in power won the election five s
months before the declaration of war n
var" For three years the admins "
ration had abundant warning that C
var was imminent and if we were not C
prepared. then who was to blame? D
The records of the war department o
how that the administration ex-
ended $1,O51, 100000 on aircraft, and il
ct General Pershing in his final re- c.
ort, says: s.
In aviation we were entirely de- 81
endent upon our allies. From time b
o time we obtained from the French 81
UGH planes for training personnel as
hey could provide. Without going ii
nto a complete description of avia- c,
ion material. it will be sufficient to W
tate that it was with great difficulty 81
hat we obtained equipment even for 81
n
Why Shoes Are High. Il
Our people are complaining about s.
he high cost of shoes, yet when we Il
xamine the testimony taken by the s
ommittee on expenditures in the war Il
apartment we wonder that shoes are
OF today infinitely more expensive. n
{ the date of the armistice we had b.
100000 men under arms, while we pl
ad more than 1OO,OOOOOO people en- b.
aged in civil life. The testimony &c
lken by the committee shows that to CO
ave filled the orders made by the al
rdnance branch of the war depart g
tent for leather goods for use in the W
rmy would have required 100000 m