Evening star., 1925-04-13
Coolidge and Economy
$l5O,OOO Year Paid U. S. Experts Directing
Drive Against Governmental Waste.
BY WILLIAM HELM.

The idea OF saving the taxpayers
money was not born in Calvin Cooiidge's
New England brain, much as its parent
age would do him credit. 1t was not born
in the brain of Warren Harding. II
did not originate With Woodrow Wilson,
or yet with William II. Taft. 1t is an
old idea, old as the founda tions Of the
Republic. For generations it knocked
around Washington. Once every four
years the politicians used to dress 1T
up and parade it before the voters. At
other times 1t was neglected, forgot
ten entirely abandoned.
Warren Harding put it to work, and
after he died Calvin Coolidge became
its buddy. Under the genial Harding
the idea OF economy got it's start: under
Coolidge it was made to give up its
union card and work 25 hours day.
Ever since Coolidge has been President
he has been riding the idea Of economy
harder than hehas ridden his electric
hobby horse, And how he has made it
perform
In its details the idea has been turn
ed over to the Bureau of the Budget
and by the director of the bureau, Gen.
II. M. Lord, transmitted to the Govern
ment's working force Gen. Lord has
gathered about him a staff of workers
whose sole duty is TO find new ways
OF saving Government money. He
spends about $150000 a year in running
his bureau. and most Of the money
goes 10 pay salaries of men who think
up new ways Of spending less
The business of saving money has
been systematized to as fine a point
as change making in department
store. The intangible idea of econ
omy has been dragged down from the
clouds, given an outline, a set of
| books, corps of assistants. and set
up in business as unromantically as
a corner grocer. 1t has been thor
oughly commercialized. It works
with adding machines. typewriters,
| loose-leaf systems. once it was a
political poets dream; today it is
like sleek business man.
Whit Is 1t All About,
How has the Transformation come
about? Who did it? How do the
wheels go around? What has it ac-
complished? What more can it do?
And when it does all it has in mind.
what of it? In other words. now
that we've got economy in Govern
ment, what are we going 10 do with
ii and Of what earthly concern is ii
to the average man in the street?
eThese are questions to which an
swers will be attempted in this series
of articles. But here and now 1t is
opportune to say that thus far econ
omy in Government has led the aver
age man in the street to two tax re-
Guctions. 1t is on its way to a third
reduction. And after a time it will
take the taxpayers to a fourth one.
This correspondent has listed 1000
separate and distinct Federal econo-
mics, all of them unknown little more
than three years ago. Each one OF
them has helped save money. Each
one has contributed TO past reductions
I in taxes and is helping in a coming
reduction. About many of them
opinions differ. Some persons feel
that here and there the wine of econ
| omy has turned to the vinegar OF
| stinginess. Maybe so; maybe not
| But the fact remains that the most
| economical man-in his own affairs
| who ever sat in the White House Is
| riding his hobby hard for nationa
! benefit
| Space will not permit listing thu
! 900 Federal economies in this series
! of articles. Even if It were possible
| the recital would become tiresome
But some of the outstanding saving
| come straight home TO all of us. AnC
| these, with their origin and manneI
of execution. will be detailed.
| Copyright 1s25.)