Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-07-07
WOULD DEFEAT
ECONOMY PLAN,
TELLS SENATE
Secretary Of Treasury
Urges That Action on
Bill Be Deferred.
War Veterans in House
Start Drive for Early
Vote Upon Question.

Washington, July 6.-Enactment o.
i the McCumber soldier bonus bill woult
virtually defeat the administration
program of economy" Secretary Mel
| Ion declared in letter to Senator
| Frelinghuysen. Republican, New Jer.
sey, read Wednesday in the senate.
Secretary Mellon urged that actor
on bonus legislation be deferred and
declared the bill pending before the
| senate would commit the country ''tl
| an undeterminate liability" the direct
| sequences of which, he added, would
be unreasonable
The cost of the compensation pro-
vided for the McCumber bill was esti.
| mated by Secretary Mellon at between
one and a half billion and five and a
half billion dollars, which he said, was
a burden unfair to place on the
country at time when efforts were
being made to reduce expenditures.
Not the Time, He Says
'This is not the time to impose sew
eral billion dollars of new liabilities
On an already overburdened treasury,
the treasury secretary said. The bill
has already passed the house and the
letter was in response to a request
from Senator Frelinghuysen for a
statement of the financial obligations
which the bill would place upon the
government.
"The letter was characterized by
Senator Underwood Democratic lead
er, who, after its reading made an at
tack on the bill. as ''strong, forceful
and to the point In passing the bill,
the Alabama senator said. the Repub-
lican majority would write in the
country's history that men no longer
sacrifice but measure their service in
dollars
Replying briefly. Senator McCum-
Der, Republican. North Dakota, in
charge of the bill, denied that amy
attempt was being made to measure
the services of soldiers of the world
war in dollars.
Block Refunding Plans
Mr.. Mellon estimated that the bill
would "swell the cost of government"
and that it would block "all refunding
operations on the national debt and
depress further the prices ON Liberty
bonds"
All of his estimates. the secretary
explained. were devoted merely to the
cash payment sections of the bill, and
took mo account of, expenses of ad-
ministration, or possible cost of afford
ing vocational training, farm home aid
or land settlement aid to veterans who
elect such benefits
Not the least disturbing feature. he
continued, was the bills plan to post
pone actual distribution Of funds until
next year, which. he said, "tends to
mislead the people into the belief that
IN some way the proposed program can
be accomplished without imposing a
serious burden on the country"
1t must inevitably increase the war
burden which the people have to bear"
he contended "It could be financed
only by addition to the burden of debt
and taxes under which the country is
now staggering
Wounded First Concern
1T seems particularly inappropri-
ate" he said, - to give present con-
to the measure when we still
have before us the pressing problem |
of revising the internal tax laws, and /
finding sufficient revenues to meet the
existing requirements of government"
Continuing, the secretary said that !
''our first concern, of course, should |
be to make full provision for the needs !
Of disabled veterans"
Senator Underwood described the |
bill as political camouflage" The
plan of "peddling out" cash payments
n $50 quarterly, he said, would not
aid the soldiers. He challenged the |
to propose a lump sum
payment, which he said he would sup
port, and which he declared would
provide stake which might enable
soldiers to get into business, or buy
home.
Substitutes for the land settlement
,lan OF the bill were offered by SEM
ltors Pittman, Democrat, Nevada, and
3orah. Republican, Idaho.
A bill to promote reclamation OF
rid lands of the west was presented
n the senate Wednesday by Senator
IcNary, Republican, Oregon, as m
mendment to the pending soldier boz
us bill. Under the measure the treas
~, upon request Of the secretary Of
be interior, would be authorized to
ransfer to the reclamation fund dur
1g the next five years, total Of
$3.50. 600; 600 to be used in reclaiming
rid lands. Former service men would
e given preference n settlement Of
Ae reclaimed areas j.