Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-08-06
THE WAY TO LOWER TAXES.

"us q JGACS lTSS LIIDA$I TIC CUT T21f-
nent of expenditures. If taxation is excessive, ami
We want the burden ltgthsened-and most OF ms fee!
3that was-We must spend less money. ABANDONING
ioid schemes OF taxation and adopting new ones will
mot do the business We can save money BY tax.
iing the tax of automobiles and putting 1t ON gasp-
line, OR vice versa. Aeithe, can we save by neglect
,ng to levy taxes and going right ahead with ruur
spending. III we spend N excess Of our revcnues
and thereby create q deficit, we shall have 10 m
crease our taxation later on IN order TO CATCH I'M
Secretary Mellon has made all tins psain IN ms
recent statement to congress lie warned that bcdy
that III taxes are to be reduced, the FIRST thing On
the program must be the thinning Of apprppr:a-
tons. Expenditures for Iuis, he pointed ont, werr
greater than for July OF last wear II this IS 10 he
continued it would be Jolly 10 provide ir smaller
tax collections. We should merely be piiins ND
trouble for another year.
There ere Just two WAYS IN winch the cost OF
government can be lesserei The first IS Through
the elimination OF waste IN the of The
departments and in the handling %; pToiec1s preper-
~ authorized The government gefs less wcra 1acne
Tor ITS money than the private concern does ibecanse
Ipoliacal pressure places and maintains on the cav
IRON too many unnecessary and unfit employees, and
,becayse there is too much duplicstsen aad lost sree-
!taon IN ITS work. In part this IS DUE TO iaufrs IA
administration, but more largely II Is due 10 the re
i~iuctanee OF congressman TO disturb the -exssf:zse
status which supplies their friends with Jobs
The other method OF reduction IS fiat OF ustzg
greater caution IN authorizing nea expenditures If
NN~S - /" " iS~a IS0AOaGs IL SHs &SESI1iSANl ELiESG
who make its appropriations must learn 30 thank
jin terms of the nation instead OF In terms OF The DO
Icalty. The project which calls ior the expenditure
Iot federal money in a given iocaiit. Is apr to be
in that locality, and the congsessnzn WHO
can point to the fact that he has got souaetinnas srr
his district" has established himself in q posltlcn
from which he can make a strong appeal fr re-
election. Other congressman are similarly acta-
Iated. and a mutual exchange of support fo- projects
which are quite unnecessary results
This whole program must be abandoned Il we
are to make any progress, and the country is in the
mood to demand its abandonment now. Efficiency IN
administration and economy in appropriations has
been discussed in an academic way Tor years. But
the people have not been in earnest about it As a
matter OF fact, until recently the American people
have not known what taxation was. They have
Egrunbled from habit Today they know something
about taxes. The subject comes before them in SO
many ways that they cannot ignore it, and there is
II rather definite understanding that it is taxation
more than anything else that is impeding the busi-
ness revival for which the country is suffering.
The president yields great power in this mat
ter, and the country looks to him for bold and zg-
Igressiye leadership in it, The heads of Departments
San DO something in rendering their work more eff
Ificient and less costly. But the greatest share Of re-
sponslbility rests on congress, and it is to congress
that the country looks for reform.