Sioux County pioneer., 1922-03-02
NEWS ] | ' REVIEW ! | J | OF
CURRENT ! R EVENTS
Republicans Struggling With
Problem Of Financing the
Soldiers Bonus.
.DENBY TRIES TO SAVE navy
Asks Personnel Of 10000 and Appro.
eapriation Of $3.50, ,ooo, !, 600 General
Strike Of Coal Miners lmpends
Collins and Craig Com.
- Ing to Agreement. s IS
BY EDWARD w. PickARD

ing to Agreement. .s
BY EDWARD w. PicKARD
mi EARLY, everyone Is in favor Of
~ giving the ex-service man q
bonus, but no one Is willing to help
pay for it. Every plan SO far pro.
posed for raising the. necessary rev.
enue--estimated at $3.50, GOO, 500 fannu.
ally for the next three years. years, has hRs
aroused determined opposition. Mem.
bers Of, the. house ways and means
committee thought eight specim taxes
would turn the trick. but every element
Of the population that would be di-
rectlyi affected by them raised an Inn
mediate wall. ".
Republican leaders appealed to Pres
5ident Harding to suggest .something
feasible, and he undertook to do SO on
Thursday. But what should his plan
be but the same old general sales tax
proposition which 1t has been admitted
by nearly everyone cannot possibly get
through congress! Because this was
his only plan, and because he also
criticized thesplan Of providing for the
payments Of cash bonuses In install.
ments over o period Of two and d half
years, 1t was assumed by many In
Washington that the President really
wished the bonus legislation again
postponed, though she hesitated to say
80 fatty. The situation was plainly
uncomfortable for the Republicans,
and the Democrats were joyously tax
Ing every advantage of the discomfl-
ture of their adversaries. The leaders
Of the agricultural bloc In both the
house and the senate reiterated their
unqualified opposition to any kind Of
q general sales tax.
Some of the Republican leaders
strongly favored the passage Of, a
house bill without any plan Of financing.
They thought the necessary money
might be made available by further re-
duction Of appropriations for certain
departments, especially the army and
navy. Mr.. Mondell prepared state
ment to show how nearly $500, ,OOO,-
eco could be saved this way. But
even that would net be snfheient, and
many congressman urged again the IS:
sua,tce of bonds. OF course the def
cit, after the problematical saving Of
$500, 100000 in appropriations, could
he made, up by issuing short term GER
.tiddates Of Indebtedness, which It was
,asserted the market would readily alb
ssor3 sRoth thR President and seIre-
-tary Mellon declare that a big Ibond
issqe would seriously embarass the
extensive refunding operations that
must be undertaken during tlie coming
year, causing an increase In interest
rates and disturbing the Liberty bond
market. Some other government Off
cials do not, agree with them.
GENAToR BQRAH Is consistently
- opposing the bonus because, he
says, It will Interfere with the care
Of the soldiers now undertaken by the
government through the veteFnns'
bureau He predicts that within ten
wears the annual expenditure for dis
abfed. soldiers will have reached ST.
10000, 900, of which Ia oRe. will com.
plain $50 long as the appropria tions
are based on the necessities and re-.
quirements of the disabled soldiers"
Director Forbes Of the veterans'
bureau calls attention to the fact that
the total government expenditure re-
quired for disabled soldiers for 1922
IS SRl0D 1000 900, and thus sets forth the
ways IA which the bureau is using the
money: .s' 4
Paying out $1,000, 600 cash eRssg
day, including Sunday, directly into
the hands Of the ex-seryice man or his
dependents In compensation allot- t
ments. 4, IF ,: ~ rs 4
Pfovlding, without cost, hospital care
aud reatment s. 10000 veterans
This care Includes board ana lodging
and Representa- fan expenditure by the
.goYernInents sof AGO OD0, 900 a year, Il
Giving vocational training. without
costFto over 100, 900 disabled ex-seryice
men at AN annual expenditure for tu.f
ltiop and supervision. Of $50, ,OOOO 600. 5s
Mailing out $50, 1000 checks every
month, representing $42 ,OO0, 900.
Conducting an Insurance business
for over a0O, 900 ex-service men, with.
olt4cost of administration to them, at.
premium rates below that Of private
companies for like policies. Insurance.