Evening star., 1924-04-08
LORD TO SHOW u. S.
WAY BUDGET SAVES
Speaking Trip Will Give Cities
Proof of EconomieS-ldea
Now "Catching."
BY FREDERICK WILLIAM VILE

Gen. Herbert NJ. Lord director of
months speaking tour, in the course
OF which he will tell the country how
Uncle Sam has learned to save. This
week Gen. Lord will talk in Bos-
ton, New York and Cambridge. Mass,
and later on in Buffalo, Springfield,
Mass, and Cleveland
At Cleveland his audience will be
the annual convention of the United
States Chamber of Commerce. Every
where Gen. Lord will spread the gos-
pei of the budget. He will show how
the forty three spending divisions"
OF the United States government
ten executive departments and thirty
three more or less Independent units
have either willingly or unwillingly
mastered the art OF economy.
Extra gance used to be conta-
sious." says Gen. Lord. but it is
now economy that is Catching
Federal authorities everywhere are
watching the pennies, The dollars
viii take care of themselves"
TO tell the people about the practical
workings of the budget system. which
United States since the war has been
Healously advising certain "militaris-
tic" governments to balance their
budgets. AS matter of fact, America
mas been practicing what she
breaches only since 1921.
Up to that time. for more than a
century, government financing in this
country was conducted on altogether
casual lines. Lord wants to show
that we've broken entirely with that
happy -go-lucky system. He will ex-
plain that reduction of taXation-the
paramount issue now before the peo-
ple-is dependent mainly, If not ex-
clusively. on reduction OF federal ex-
penditure.
Eject of New Laws.
substantial progress in the ,direc-
tion OF retrenchment has been made,
but there would be an inevitable
check if such measures, however
worthy. as the bonus, the postal pay
increase bill and the Bursum plan
Tor liberalized pension grants are
enacted into law. Altogether, at the
lowest estimates, these work out at
= total annual expenditure of $685.
nHO.vO0; The estimated national sur
plus of 29,000,000 for 1924 would be
wiped out by il. Not only that. but.
according to Treasury experts, tax
reduction would hardly be feasible.
The budget director now has seven
deputy budget directors, known as
area co-ordinators." working with
him all over the country to keep
down government expenses. They
are federal officials who serve as Gen
Lords adjutants. in a purely ''side
issue. capacity. The AREA co-ordi-
nator' for New England. for example,
Is commander in the Navy, sta
toned at Boston.
In addition to AREA o-ordinators.'
Lord has organized throughout the
seven budget areas so-called federal
business associations" consisting of
government officials of all kinds he
mas leagued together for team-Wonll
IN saving Uncle Sans money.
Truck Hire Was Saved,
As a homely illustration of how the
taxpayers monev can be saved, when
all hands are pulling together. Cen.
Lord notes the example recently set
py the postmaster of Northampton,
Mass Mass Pres President coolidge's home
Mass. where there's Il Veterans Bu-
reau hospital. The superintendent of
the hospital had some trucking to do.
Ihe postmaster Of Northampton
heard about it. He said he had some
trucks that could do the Job and that
weren't working al anything better
Tor the moment. They were loaned
for the purpose and the Veterans
Bureau saved the hire of privately
owned trucks.
The other day the federal income
tax unit at Boston needed 1000 or
5000 extra feet of office space and
put in a re0uisition for the necessary
get bureau reported that the prohibi-
ticn unit at Boston had some extra
space. The income tax people looked
1t over and found that it was all
right, but had to be fitted with parti-
tions for office purposes.
All right said the budget folks,
the War Department has a salvage
bureau in Boston, where some sur
plus lumber is on hand" Then the
Veterans Bureau vocational training
establishment was asked if it had
any carpenters. 1t supplied some in
structors who were teaching service
mon traineeS carpentry. and they
did the work. The income tax unit
got its new Boston Office space with
out cent of extra expense to the
Treasury.
Not long ago the NAVY wanted