The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1921-01-20

or material value to the Legion, he
shall feel well repaid" Continuing,
Commander Vernon of Minnesota re-
marked, "What National Command
er Galbraith says, goes for me too
will fight the fight of the ex-ser-
vice men of Minnesota with every
ounce of my energy, and at every
opportunity, and l know that back
of me will be the united and loyal
cooperation of the sixty thousand Le-
gionaires of Minnesota-all of us
back of our National Commander,
ready to support him to the last ditch
in his fight for the rights of both
sick and well ex-service men and in
his campaign for anything and every
ching that is for the good OF Amer
lea.
Commander Galbraith statement
bearing upon the estimate of the Se>
cretaIy of the Treasury, as to the
cost to the United States of the
American Legion's Adjusted Com
pensation plan, has been published
to all officials of the various Legion
State Departments, with the request
that they give it wide publicity, in
an effort to present the Legion's side
of the question. This statement fol-
lows:
'In desperate effort to starve off
tardy justice to ex-service men and
women of the world war, the Secre-
tary of Treasury was brought be-
fore Senate Finance Committee waiv-
ing scarecrow of dollar marks run
ming up into more than ten billions
of dollars. The adjusted Compensa-
ton bill passed by the House and
now pending in the Senate provides
optional choice of adjusted service
pay in cash, in insurance certificates,
in vocational training, in farm and
home aid or in land settlement. The
ex-service man may choose one and
only one of these options. Accord
ing to Secretary Houston's own fl
cures all ex-service persons could be
given adjusted compensation in cash
for 1,342, 100000. Since the veteran
in exercising any one Of the other |
options is allowed by the bill an in
cease of only 40 percentum, not one |
of these features could cost the gov
eminent more than $1,S7s, 100000
that figure being Houston's estimate
of what cash compensation would
cost plus forty per cent. Houston's
estimate that it would cost the gov
eminent s4,534, 100000 if all ex-ser-
vice persons took insurance certifi-
Gates is absurd and disingenuous. The
law plainly states that these certif-
Gates are to be of face value to sum
of what adjusted compensation would
be in cash increased by forty percent.
Houston arrived at the gigantic esti-
mate of $4,534, 100000 as the cost
of insurance certificates for all ex-
service persons by computing what
they would get with interest thereon
for 20 years at four and half per-
cent compounded annually. Shining
through the ten billion dollar mirage
remains the clear fact that on basis
Of Mr.. Houston's own figuring ST.
BIS, 100000 is the maximum amount
The adjusted compensation bill could
cost the government under any cir
Secretary Houston's
whole presentation Of matter was
and designed to brighten
he country into repudiating it's obi
CATION to ex-service men. The gen.
,ral impression was conveyed by his
testimony that passage Of adjusted
bill would entail the
immediate appropriation of billions
# dollars by government and seri-
usly crippled financial condition Of
treasury today. The facts are that
appropriations necessary to carry out
I-IEEZ&llI