Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1922-02-25
WASHINGTON LETTER
BY Wallace Bassford
Especial News Correspondent

litically expedient, if not necessary,
to provide bonus for the soldiers. A
week ago he was hot-foot for it. I'M
mediately there appeared on the bull
letin boards in the stockholders
board rooms in all the cities brief
wires from the Wall Street section
telling how the great money inter-
ests were getting together to prevent
it, on the ground that it would neces-
state laying an additional burden of
taxation or the issuing of more
bonds. Then paid advertisements ap-
peared in the Washington papers ar
guing against the bonus proposition.
Immediately thereafter the President
came forth with a statement that he
would not favor either additional tax
es or bond issue for the purpose,
whereupon the metropolitan press ex-
pressed the view that this meant an
end to the bonus, as there was no
other way left to raise the money.
But at this juncture Mr.. Byrnes of
South Carolina comes forward with a
proposition that should appeal to the
President and everyone else. 1t is
simply this: The Republican leaders
figure that it will take $350,000,00
per year to pay the proposed bonus.
Chairman Madden of the Appropria-
tions Committee says the Administra
ton, through the new budget system,
has saved 1857 100000 by cutting ap-
preparations. If this is true, the
problem is solved and everyone
should be happy. Now it remains to
be seen if the Administration can To-
cate that 1857 100000 with sufficient
defniteness to lay hold of it and use
it for the bonus. But right there is
where the difficulty will begin. Of
course there are at least one hundred
Republicans who would have thought
OIL using this money if they really be-
lieved it had been saved, but it is like
trying to pay the grocery bill with
money you found in a dream. These
great savings are fictitious; they re-
suit from a Juggling of figures and
remind one of the prestidigator who
takes rabbit after rabbit from a hal
which never contained one. The
Pre- sident makes savings of millions
upon millions in the columns of the
newspapers while quietly sending up
to the Appropriations Committee re-
quests for the passage of more def
cheney bills for thrice as many mill
ions as those Saved" Another year
Of such economy will force new
bond issue.
Senator Lodge, a close friend to the
President, went before the Massachu-
sets Legislature the other night and
made a statement which proves him
to be ignorant of operations of the
Government or else guilty of falsify-
ing facts. There is no escape from
this. Mr.. Byrnes of South Carolina
rose in the House and showed this to
be- true and no Republican challeng-
Gu his statements. Lodge said: "Since
the present Congress has been in they
have reduced the appropriations ask
cd for by the Departments from S.
337, 100000 to $1,428, 100000" Now
the average citizen, paying high taxes
and thinking the condition of the
Treasury deplorable, would think the
had arrived and that the
Republicans are wizards of finance.
That statement would be accepted
from Lodge on the ground that he
could easily get the correct informa-
ton, and that a United States Sena
tor could not afford to falsify the
facts. But what are the facts? Mr..
Byrnes held in his hand the official
estimates of the Budget Bureau to-
falling $3,801 100000 and then called
attention to the fact that while only
six had already reached figure of
So, 1908, 100000. He showed that last
year the Republican Congress appro-
priated $3,771 ,9OO,514.01, being g.
bout $38,OOO,0OO less than was asked
for this year, so that in reality the
Administration was seeking more
money to run the Government instead
of less. In the last year before the
war (1916) a Democratic Congress
appropriated only $1,114,000,000, to
run the Government. Appropriations
for the present fiscal year are more
than three times as great.
Washington is agitated today over
the question of what has happened
tc that great warrior Senator Borah.
1t is recorded that Saul of TarsuS
was journeying down the dusty road
from Damascus to Jerusalem when a
great light struck him. Here is Be-
rah's message to the head of the Will
scy, Fn,Inatior. "Diffarance of view