Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1922-08-26
SENATE TAKES
UP BONUS BILL
Many Former Service Men in the
Galleries to Watch Pro-
CeedingS.
PRESIDENT HARDING MAY 0. K.
Senator McCumber, Chairman of RI
nance Committee, Makes Analysis
of Measure - Robinson De-
mands Immedi ate Action.

Washington, Aug 24.-CrOwded gal
leries looked down upon the senate
when debate on the soldier bonus bill
was begun. \ large representation OF
former service men watched the pro
ceedings with intense interest.
Senator McCumber, chairman of the
finance committee made a careful
analysis of the measure, urging its
speedy passage in order to adjust the
compensation of those who went TO
war with the profits gathered by
those who stayed at home.
Senator McCumber refuted allega-
tons brought against the bill to the
effect that its cost to the American
taxpayers will amount to four or five
billion dollars. He showed the final
cost cannot exceed So, 600 and
that this will be scattered along the
pathway of forty years." so that its
burden will not be felt. Even if every
veteran should be given a cash pay
ment under the terms of the bill, which
is not possible, the final cost could not
be greater than $500, 900, 900, Nc
Cumber said.
Many Want Insurance.
McCumber asserted that the commit
tees estimates show that 70 per cent
of the eX-Service men will choose the
paid-up insurance plan, leaving a very
small number to select cash payments.
Cash payments are restricted to vet
Grams whose adjusted service does not
exceed $50.
Discussing the ability of the treas
ury to stand the strain of the bonus
payments, McCumber declared it was
fully able to make all the payments
without imposing any additional taxa
ton.
He said that if a choice has to be
made, it would be better to abandon
the national good roads project, entail
ing an expenditure of S125,000, 900,
than to fail to grant the service men
a bonus.
The question of whether or not
President Harding might veto the bill
came up during the debate, Robinson
Of Arkansas inQuiring whether senate
leaders have any accurate information
as to how the President regards the
bill. Robinson added that McCumber
had shown the conditions which
caused the President to have the bill
sent back to the committee a year ago
no longer exist, and for that reason,
he said, he could not understand why
the President might refuse to give the
bill his approval.
Thinks Harding Will o. K.
McCumber, in reply, said:
Il have no information whatever as
to what the President will do. All
can say is that the conditions which
actuated the President and the secre-
tary of the treasury in 1921 no longer
exist, and the changes in the bill,
whereby only a small sum is to be
paid each year, would seem to remove
whatever objection the President
might have against it, and = see no
reason why he should not approve it."
Upon hearing this statement Robin
son demanded immediate action on the
bill, asserting that there was no rea-
son why passage of the bill should be
delayed. He chidded senators for not
remaining in the senate to hear Nc
Cumber's analysis of the bill, and said
this demonstrated that very little
would be gained by prolonged discus
sion, declaring that never in the his
tory of congress had a bill been sub
jected to such opposition and propa-
ganda as the McCumber bill. Robin
son asserted tho ti1Op had CANA for
final disposition of it.