The Rice belt journal., 1920-07-10
achieved under the broad -visloned lead
ership Of the president.
Financial Achievements.

flnancIaI Achievements.
By the enactment Of the federal re-
serve act the old system, which bred
panics, was replaced by a new SYSTEM
indispensable factor in winning the
war and today it is the hope and
inspiration of business Indeed, one
vital danger against which the Ameri-
can people should keep constantly on
guard Is the commitment Of this sys-
tenn its partisan enemies who struggled
against its adoption and Vainly at.
tempted to retain in the hands OF
speculative bankers monopoly of the
currency and credits of the nation.
Under Democratic leadership the
American people successfully financed
their stupendOus part in the greatest
| war Of all time. The treasury wisely
insisted during the war upon meeting
an adequate por1iOn Of the war ex-
penditure from current taxes and the
bulk Of the balance from popular
loans, and. during the first full fiscal
year after fighting stopped. upon meet
| ing current expenditures from current
receipts Notwithstanding the new and
| unnecessary burdens thrown upon the
| treasury by the delay, obstruction and
extravaganza of Republican con-
gress
The nonpartisan federal reserve au-
thorities have been wholly free Of po-
| utlcal interference or motive; and in
| tHCAl OWh lllHG anu luelT OWN way,
| nave used cOurageously, though eau
tiously. the instruments at their dis
posal to prevent undue expansion of
credit in the country.
AS result of these sound treasury
and federal reserve policies. the inevi-
table war imitation has been held down
to minimum. and the cost of living
has been prevented from increasing
| here in proportion to the increase in
| other belligerent countries and in neu-
tral countries which are in close con-
tact with the worlds commerce and
exchanges.
After a year and half of fighting
| In Europe and despite another year
and half of Republican obstruction
at home, the credit of the government
OF the United States stands unim-
paired, the federal reserve note is the
unit of value throughout the. world
| and the United States is the one great
| country in the world which maintains
free gold market
We condemn the attempt Of the Re-
! publican party to deprive the Ameri-
can people Of their legitimate pride in
| the financing of the war-an achieve
ment without parallel in the financial
| history of this or any other country.
in this or any other war. And. in par
! ticular, we condemn the pernicious at
tempt of the Republican party to Gre
! ate discomfort among the holders OF
| the bonds of the government of the
| United States and to drag our public
| finance and our banking and currency
system back into the arena Of party
politics.
Tax Revision.
The Republican congress persistently
failed, through sheer political coward
ice, to make single move toward a
readjuStment of tax laws which 1t
denounced before the last election and
was afraid to revise before the next
election.
We advocate tax reform and a
searching revision Of the war revenue
acts to At peace conditions so that the
wealth Of the nation may not be with
drawn from productive enterprise and
diverted to waSteful or nonproductive
enterprise.
Wo demand prompt action by the
next congress for a complete survey
of existing taxes and their modifica-
tions and simpliflcation with view to
secure greater equity and justice in
tax burden and improvement in ad-
ministration.
Public Economy.
Claiming to have effected great econ
omies in government expenditures, the
Republican party cannot show the re-
duction of one dollar in taxation as q
corollary Of this false pretense. In
enacted legislation reducing taxes from
$4,000, 600, 900, designed to be raised. to
sc, ,0ee, 600 600 for the first year after
the armistice and to $4,000, 900 600
thereafter; and there the total is left
undiminished by our political adver-
saries. Two years after armistice day
Republican congress provides for ex-
pending the stupendous sum Of $S.4o3.-
390,327.30.
Affecting great paper economies by
reducing departmental estimates Of
sums which would not have been spent
in aVanf and hv rnHnnincr o1
appropriations, the Republican state
ment Of expenditures omits the prog
nant fact that congress authorized the
use OF $1.500,000,00o In the hands OF
which otherwise would have been COW
cred into the treasury, and which
should be added to the Republican to-
tai of expenditures.
High Cost Of Living.
The high cost Of living and the de-
probation of bond values in this coun-
try are primarily due to war itself. to
the necessary governmental expendi-
tures for the destructive purposes OF
war, to private extravagance, to the
world shortage Of capital, to the in
flation Of foreign currencies and cred
its and, in large degree, to conscience
less prohteering.
The Republican party is responsible
peace conditions in Europe, which is
principal cause of post-armistice
imitation the world over. It has de-
MED the demand OF the president for
necessary legislation to deal with Sec
pelicies pursued by the treasury and
the federal reserve system have linn
tied in this country, though they could |
not prevent, the imitation which was
worldwide. Elected upon specific
sSd to cSTa Sria tbs pu6lS exDendi
to a status of effective economy, the
Republican party in congress wasted |
time and energy for more than a year
In vain and extravagant investiga-
ttons, costing the taxpayers great |
sums of money while revealing moth
ing beyond the incapacity Of RepubIi. |
can politicians to cope with the prob |
lens.
Demanding that the president from
his place at the peace table, call the
for imperative purposes of readjust- |
ment, the congress when convened |
spent thirteen months In partisan pur. |
suits, falling to repeal a single war |
statute which harassed business or to |
initiate late single constructive measure
It busted itself making a pre-elec-
ton record Of pretended thrift, having |
not one particle Of substantial exist |
once in fact II ragged against profit |
eers and the high cost Of living without |
enacting q single statute to make the |
former afraid or doing single act to |
bring the latter within limitations
The simple truth is that the high cost |
Of living can only be remedied by In. |
creased production, strict governmental |
economy and relentless pursuit of those |
taking advantage of postwar Conditions |
and are demanding and receiving outra- |
geous profits.
We pledge the Democratic party to a |
policy of strict economy in governmentai |
expenditures and to the enactment and |
enforcement Of such legislation as NAV !
be required to bring proflteers before Tho |
bar Of criminal justice.
The Tariff.
We affirm the traditional policy of the
Democratic party In favor of a tariff for |
revenue only and confirm the policy of /
basing tariff revisions upon the infaIII- |
gent research of a nonpartisan commits.
sion, rather than upon the demands ~ |