Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1920-04-15
GOVERNMENT NOT
FOR ECONOMY
UTTER WASTE OF FUNDS CON-
TINUING NEEDLESS CLERKS
AT NATIONS CAPITAL

- ~
What are you going TO tell us
about tonight, Uncle Ted?" asked
Jack after he had been teasing his
uncle for good half hour for
story. as
well, jack" answered Uncle Ted
II don't believe ! could tell you
better story than to tell you some
thing about how the Wilson admin
istration at Washington has thrown
the money of the country, which
really means the peoples money,
around like so much water. First
Of all, so that you will better under
stand what / am going to tell you,
you must realize that the only way
a country can succeed is by having
its people contented. That is, you
and / and every one of the more
than 100,000,000 people in the
United States must be satisfied with
at least the most of the things that
are being done by the men who run
the government as our representa-
tives. Unless most of the people Of
any country are happy and satisfied
something happens to the country.
Revolutions start; war start and ev-
erything that goes with them, when
things are run in such way as to
make most of the people unhappy
and dissatisfied You can't force
or make people content.
But to get to the real story. Peo-
pie are just beginning to realize
what taxes mean in this country.
The income tax has made everyone
stop and realize that each and every
one of us owes something to our
country"
What is the income taxi" asked
Ruth.
ASK your dad" answered Uncle
Ted, ':He paid one this year all
right. It means paying certain
amount of money to the United
States according to the amount of
money you make. Our taxes are
now very, very high. We pay taxes
on nearly everything. OF course,
the heavy expense of the war ac-
count for a lot of it but there would
not be near so much to pay il there
had not been so much money wasted
by the Wilson administration in
Washington. The way the public
money is spent at Washington is ter
rible, Not long ago Senator James
w. Wadsworth, Jr., from the state
of New York made speech in New
York City in which he showed how
much more money the democrats
with President Wilson at the head of
the government have spent than was
spent before by the Republicans. In
order to understand what he said
you must know this: the various
branches of the government in Wash
ington, like the war department, the
navy department, etc., tell congress
how much money they want. These
amounts are called appropriations.
Since the republicans got control of
congress, they, of course, have cut
down these appropriations so that
the democrats can't spend as much
as much as they could when they
and the departments but congress
too. But Senator Wadsworth
showed that during the first three
years Of the. Wilson administration,
in 1914, 1915 and 1916, the appro-
priationG amounted to more than
81, 000,00O,000 each year. And
that amount is 500, 900, 900 more
than the highest appropriation made
when William Howard Taft was
president. After that we entered
the war and in 1867 $4,000, 0O0,-
900 was authorized to be spent. In
1917-1S nearly $22, 100000 and
in 191S-19, $4,000, 100000. Sen
ator Wardsworth says AT the close
of the war the congress directed the
turning back into the treasury of
portion of these vast sums remaining
unspent BY the time the last con-
tract is settled and the last bill paid
we will find the war has cost us at
least $4,000, 100000 sand / would
not be surprised if it Appropriated
1000, 100000
Aren't there lot more clerks in
Washington than are needed" asked
Jack.
well, / won't say that, but I will
show you by real figures ! have here
the truth about it. In 1915 there
were $4,000 government employees
in the District of>Columbia. Now,
seventeen months after the armistice
there are a little more than 100000
Of them on the government pay roll.
In 1916, in Washington and other
places there were 100000 people
working and being paid by the gov
eminent. Right now there are
about 100000. People will say,
But it was necessary to have many
more to do the work piled up by the
war; That lis very. true, kiddies.,
but remember the war is over. We
are really at peace and yet the Will
son people who are running the gov
eminent keep on pouring out the
peoples money and so far as I can
see, they don't care how 1t is to be
paid Nor when"
do these people who work for
the government all do different
things" asked Ruth.
mo, they do not. There is much
duplication Of work. The admins
tration hangs on to the powers given
II during the war and IL it were not
for the fact that this duplication of