The Lehi sun. [volume] (Lehi, Utah) 1913-1949, 1921-12-22
coV5fisSs. wss'sI0 NsSsDsSsS UaisS
III.
MAGNITUDE OF BILLIONS
By howard G.LoWRY

III.
MAGNITUDE OF BILLIONS
have been throwing the incredible
figures at your head. Neither you nor
anybody else has the faintest concep-
tion OF what one billion dollars really
IL. We speak Familiarity OF billions as
commonplace, but most Of US live
our lives I'm terms OF hundreds.
have shown you that every one
OF us, man, woman and child, In this
country, paid last year $53.77 each
toward the support of the government.
OF course, every person does not pay
exactly $53.77. A great many pay
more and some pay less; but those
who pay the m.sst try TO take II out
Of those who pay the least by increas-
ing the prices OF what they have to
sell, or OF services rendered or work
performed. so that II averages out at
$53.77. Some pay more than their
share. others pay less. This is called
an incident of taxation. The whole
point is that we all pay; that we pay
now more than we ever paid before
and there is no present prospect Of our
paying less for some years
In Il is way We have all paid our
share IN the World war. The net cost
Of that enterprise TO date has been
s24,100.O 900. or. including our loans
to foreign governments, which have
not been repaid. 33.4b5. 100000. These
are Official treasury figures. DO not
let your eyes run over them lightly.
Thirty-three billion four hundred and
fifty-fve million dollars IL an almost
lncomprehensible sum. The cost OF
running the national government Is
now around 5000, 000O00 a year. The
experts say that for the next two or
three years the cost OF the government
will not descend below about $4,000
100000 year.
want you clearly TO understand the
lmmensity, the magnitude. the over
whelming size Of such sums. We
chatter about billions nowadays with
out in the least knowing what In q
billion. Let me try TO bring II home
70 you. II Is now, roughly speaking,
1920 years since the birth Of Christ.
We do not know precisely and accu-
rately at what hour and on what day
Christ was born. But under the Gre
gorian calendar, according 10 which
we now reckon time. we have n
record OF the days since january first
Of the year one, Ammo Dorini. From
the beginning OF the year one TO jan
nary I. 1921, there ELAPSED about 7O1,-
261 days or, TO reduce Il further,
l6,S3O,40S hours which be ng reduced
again. means 1908, S24 ,4s0 minutes.
l Will ask you 10 remember that the
whole history OF the modern world
from the first second OF the year one
TO the last second OF the year 1920
has been compressed into ,OO9, s24. $50
minutes.
Now let us suppose that with the
permission OF the Roman authorities
the United States had established n
dlsbuYsing officer at Jerusalem on the
first day OF the year one with lnstruc-
lions TO pay out So a minute day and
night. Sundays and holidays included,
right down through the centuries 10
New Years day, 1921.
Suppose he had been given S5.09e..
OOoiO6 TO start him ON his long spell
OF spending. That Is one estimate OF
the sum that II cost TO run this gov
eminent In 1920. on the morning OF
JaLuary I, 1921. this mythical dlsburs-
Ing officer, giving money away az the
rate OF 81 minute, would have spent
only $5,O49, 1922 400, and would stlll
be one Of the richest men I'm the
world, for he would have left on
hand $500, 1903 Of the original sum
Paying out at the rate OF 50 a minute
for more than 1900 years. he would
not have kept pace with the cost OF
upkeep OF this government for the one
single year 1920
Suppose this imaginary government
spender had been authorized 10 pay
out at the rate OF S23 a minute through
the centuries. He would not have
finished, on January /, 1927, paying
for our share Of the cost OF the World
war by some $7S4,O09,00 lie would
have that much left over after paying
out s23,225, 1858, O40 He would have been
paying out nearly 80 cents every sec.
ond the clock licked for more than 10
centuries without being able 10 DIS
charge our share OF the World war
cost.
DO You ever bother your head about
these bushels and bushels OF dollars
that you contribute TO the support OF
the government You earned them.
You know whether the3 came easily or |
not. DO you know where they go |
after they leave you how they are |
srent, whether wisely or foollshlyf |
It's all your me- ey, contributed for the |
proper and economic conduct of your
business. There is no such thing as
government money The government
never earned cent.
You own the government and You
support II, and It Is merely admins
tered by men OF your selection.
have always been puzzled about why
you do not take an active and eager