Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-03-21
Why he Favors Bonus

To the Editor Of the FL -rino Public Ledger:
Sir-In answer to Martha bunting.
with your kind permission and all re.
spect to the lady. submit the follow
Ing criticisms of her article In recent
.lition Of the EVENING PrRLIC Ledger.
Som" one has been inisinformed. Miss
Bunting OF myself.
She speaks Of the purchase Of bonds
for tho purpose of making the boys
comfortable and happy. I take II for
granted that the bonds referred to are
the Liberty Bonds. I believe the reason
for the Liberty Loan was to furnish
equipment. etc. for our Army and Navy
and loans to our Allies. Comforts AMI
happiness were provided for by the
money subscribed to the various war
chests. such as the Y. NJ. G. A.. Red
Cross. Salvation Army. X. of c.. and
Jewish Welfare Board. They all helped.
And when it came to buying Liberty
Bonds they used to tell us fellows IN
the service that In proportion {" mir
incomes We were doing better than the
folks on the outside. That may have
been just to make uS feel good. but !
personally know Of two or three sol.
hirrs with \ few bonds they acquired
while in the scrvirc.
Thousands of men may have worked
without increased salaries during III"
War. but hundreds Of thousands Of
others were boosted way out Of their
class. Not only TINT. hut they did Il
pile of stnlling on the job which. II the
boys in France had done likewise. would
have meant the loss Of lives of your boys.
What would n strike have meant up In
tht front lines! Still the stay-at-
homes struck behind our backs. They
H. ho ,sy,1s mi tu thn hnv
In France pn,l them for It or they
would have fclt very cheap.
I quite agree that the wounded men
should be taken care Of first. and better
than they are ut present. but don't
forget thnt America owes q debt to the
rest Of MS that she can never repay.
bonus or no bonus.
Personally, II doesn't make n bit Of
difference to me now whether l get tho
bonus or not. but there was n tim"
when I could have used it to advantage.
There are thousands Of others. though.
who could use II to advantage right
now and I don't blame them for askinL
for it. And as to the money needed to
pay for 1t. what would be done II the
war was still going on? Unless things
money. How many months Of war
would equal the cost Of this bonus?
During the war the bonus was quite
the rage In all war work. Bonuses for
attendance, other bonuses for prOduc-
/ ton. not to mention night work. Also
time and a half for overtime and double
time for Sundays and holidays. The
old bucks can tell you about the double
time they got.
OF course I was in the service and
probably had "A wrong view on some
things. enlisted n week or two after
We entered the war. leaving good
position to ,lo so. After twenty. seven
months of 1t I came home and found
men who formerly worked under Inc up
on the top with good position, auto.
to be happy too. What die I have!
; Ny uniform. n months psy. u sixty
dollar bonus and an honorable dis.
charge. OF course ! must admit I had
all the glory too. But strange to say
glory will neither cl0the you nor feed
you. When II came time to look for
work l had to start right Mt the bottom
again. This. in spite OF the fact that
all the newspapers that reached us In
France carried the slogan. Give the
boys their old jobs or better one. y
They told us they were going to do won /.
dcrs for us. but 1t Was the same old
story In every war. No one has any use
for the soldier unless there is trouble
so aptly tells Of 1t In one OF his poems.
"t's Tommy this and Tommy that,
ETC."
For my part feel this way. bonus
or no bonus. IL Uncle sam should need
the old 4. l.. +. again ]. for one. would
be one Of the first to enlist and l think
the majority Of the A. T.. +. feels the