The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-03-02
C. O.P. CHIEFS
SPLIT ABOUT
BONUS PLAN
Fordney and McCumber Dis
agree with Each Other and
President = MacNider Will
Stay in Washington.
SOLUTION IS DOUBTFUL
BY MARK SULLIVAN

WASHINGTON. d. c., Mar. 2-The
interesting aspect of coming develop
ments in the bonus situation concerns
not the bonus itself. but the leader
ship OF the Republican party. The bo-
nus itself Is gone.
There won't be any bonus this year.
Harding has said 1t is bonus plus sales
TAX or nothing. and SO many members
OF congress are opposed to the sales
tax that the first Harding alternative
can hardly happen.
The only way the bonus leaders can
possibly get anything now, Is to turn
in and work for the sales tax. So
far they have refused to do that. The
young leader of the American legion
is said to have declared he will camp
in Washington and fight on the Hin
denberg line until he wins. II that Is
his determination we are likely to have
him with us considerable time.
Its Real Purpose
This sales tax angle to the bonus
bill is curious example of things
that are not wholly what they seem
The primary motive of at least some
of the Republican leaders in the house
and senate-not including the presi-
dent-is to use the bonus situation
merely as device for getting the
sales tax into our tax-collecting ma
chinery.
They don't favor the bonus as such
but are willing to pay that price in
order to get the sales tax on the
books.
They believe in the sales tax sin
cerely and are confident that if they
can once get it into operation it will
work so WELL and the country will
like it SO much that 1t will be kept
and ultimately will take the place of
a part of the present income tax,
which can then be modified.
Another Group Waiting.
There is another little group that is
waiting for an opportunity to use
similar strategy about wine and beer.
Being eager to authorize the sale of
wine and beer, they are waiting FOR
the right time to propose that the re-
sumption of the sales of these drinks.
with an adequate tax attached, would
pay the bonus readily.
The hopes of these strategists are
vain, however, the opposition to wine
and beer is even stronger than the
wish for the bonus. Altogether, there
lS 0dTQiy the IdlntoSI llhcliuOOu vi dll-
bonus, even on it's own merits, or rs
the tail to some other kite, becoming
q law during this session.
But if the bonus is off the scene, the
chaos in Republican leadership is just
on il. with increasing prospect OF
striking effect. Here is the chairman
of the ways and means committee,
Mr.. Fordney. violently pushing the
al ~
in obvious lack of team work with the
president and with a good many o.
the party leaders.
McCunber Busy.
In the correspondingly important
committee of the senate the finance
COMMITTEES, McCumber of North Da-
kota. who has succeeded Penrose, is
the very man who last July pushed the
bonus bill in the senate to the point
where Harding had to come to the
senate personally and knock it out.
In a session of congress where the
tariff is the next important legisla
ton. here is the spectacle OF the ivy"
chairmen of the two committees which
will write the tariff. in lack OF unity
of policy with the president. Further-
more, as regards some aspects OF the
tariff. Fordney and McCumber are in
obvious disagreement with each other
As between the two men who are
the heads of the most important com
mittees in their respective chambers
McCumber seems to be getting along
in his senate committee with rather
Iess commotion than Fordney in his
bouse committee. Within Fordney
ways and means committee there is an
amount of insurgency against LIS
leadership such as may readily. soonei
or later. give rise to sensational news
some of the insurgents are men who
as party leaders are not less lmpoi
tant or less powerful than Fordney
himself.
Copyright, 1922, by the New York
Evening Post, Inc.