The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-06-08
SENATE GETS BILL
McCumber Scores Colleagues
for InactiOn on the Bonus.
Lengthy Statement FavOring Its
Passage Is Given Senators.
LONG FIGHT AGAINST REPORT
Democrats Want 1t to Go Over
Until After Elections.
Tariff Measure May Be Side
tracked Soon for Vote.

tracked Soon for Vote.
Washington. June S.-A parliament
tary fight developed in the senate to-
day from the moment Senator Nc
Cumber. Republican. of North Dakota.
brought in the soldier bonus bill with
a report recommending its passage
Senators Underwood, Democrat,
Alabama, and Williams. of Mississippi,
Democrat, both objected to the SEN
ate's receiving the report and this led
to a wordy wrangle in which McCum-
ber gave notice he would not take up
the bill for the present if the senate
accepted the report.
Announcing his opposition to the
measure, Senator Underwood of Ala,
Democratic leader said he would be
very glad if the bill went over until
after the November elections so the
American people could voice their SEN
timent with regard to the mcasur.
Senator Underwood asserted that
the bill would not take effect until
next year in any event and that If 1t
were passed at this time, he only ef-
feet would be political
Scoring alike the suggestions from
opponents that the treasury cannot
stand a bonus drain, and hints from
administration spokesmen that Presl-
Senator Porter ]. McCumber, Repub-
lican. North Dakota, reported the long
delayed and much discussed bonus bill
to the senate today with a lengthy re-
port favoring its passage
War Debts Would Pay.
The bill puts squarely up TO the ad-
ministration the payment or sol
diers' bonus from interest TO De col
lected from the British and other war
debts.
McCunber cited funding operations
of the treasury to show the govern
ment's financial condition is steadily
improving.
The keynote of the senate finance
committees report was one of opti-
nnistic belief in the ultimate availabil-
ity of foreign debt payments and in
the ultimate ability of the government
to meet the bonus drain without re-
course to further taxation
The bill is xpected to s1umber on
the senate calendar for a few days
and then an effort will be made to
dispIace the tariff and rush it to pas
sage.
McCumber explained that the bill,
a modification of that passed by the
house, was intended to correct the in
eoualities suffered by those who per-
formed actual soldiers duties and re-
ceived meager soldiers wages" and
excluded from its benefits "all those
who were given commissions while
performing merely clerical work in
the departments"
Benefits were also limited to those
below the grade of captain in the
army or marine corps and lieutenant
in the navy, he stated.
In discussing the application of the
foreign debt to the bonus, McCumber
expressed the hope that the world war
debt commission would make such
progress toward refunding the demand
III f-afa
long term obligations as 10 secure the
latter 'in the very near future" and
render it possible for the foreign gov
ernments ito provide for the imme-
diate payment of interest thereon" so
that such interest can be used to-
ward defraying the expenses" of the
bonus.
The budget recently presented to
the house provides for the installment
of interest due to the United States on
the Indebtedness of Great Britain pay
able November, 1922. McCumber
pointed out. In view of this fact, it is
believed that the United States can
count on receiving interest payments
from England from now on, such pay
ments aggregating about s200,000,0O0
per annum.
Could Meet Finances.
THE March, 1922, revised estimates
of receipts for the fiscal year ending
June 80, 1928, contained an estimate
OF SZEOsUUUsUub AOA VA AO~
eign obligations.
This would be nearly three times
the amount necessary to meet the OBJ
legations created by this bill for the
first two years"
The highest cost the bill would i'm
pose would be SASS, ,545.975. Nc
Cumber estimated, but only in the
event if all of the veterans should
avail themselves of the twenty year
endowment insurance certificate plan
borrowing provision.
But even if this were possible,
McCumber added, "the payments
would be scattered over forty or more
years. his judgment being that many
ex-service men would not actually ap-
ply for compensation until they re-
Quired it. or for at least a number of
years after the bill became law
No Taxation Needed.
THE purpose of this bill" McCum-
ber- emphasized, "is to give the soldier
who offered his service a compensa-
ton that will more nearly approach
that of the laborer who remained at
home, secure from danger and whose
compensation increased from zoo to
900 per cent, and. measured by the
amount of labor actually performed,
percentage far beyond those figures
During the war we paid our SOL
diers $50 per month or 81 per day A
fair estimate of the cost to the gov
ernment for his maintenance and
clothing would be about 81 per day.
We might, therefore, say that the prl-
vate soldier received a compensation
for his services equivalent to about IS
per day which was very much less
than that received by the lowest class
of labor at home"
Resolution Against Angora RuIe.