Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-04

bills and bridge bills, the present Con
| greSs has not added unduly TO the
mass of statutory laws.
THE very considerable NUMBER OF
private bills considered and passed Is
| the result of a determined effort TO
give just claims for relief against the
| Government, many of them long DE
| layed, a fair chance to be considered
while the large number of bridge bllls
. is the direct result of the remarkable
activity in road building throughout
| the country. Aside from these two
| special types of legislation and the an
nual appropriation bills, the output OF
laws during the Congress just closing
has been somewhat small, but much or
that which has been enacted is of an
important character.
Revenue Laws Revised.
| 1.-THE 1926 revision of the revenue
laws was the outstanding feature of
the first session of this Congress. The
| foreign debt-funding agreements with
most Of our foreign debtors also fea-
| tured the first session. Again in 1926.
| prior to the converting of the second
session, the committee on ways and
means met and this time worked out
| a plan for the payment of the claims
of our citizens against former alien
enemies and the return of the prop
erty belonging to former alien en-
emies. which was satisfactory to all
concerned, thus laying the foundation
for the solution Of a difficult and
troublesome problem that had re-
manned unsettled since the World
War.
During the past four years per-
sistent effort has been made to amend
the national bank laws SO as to lib
eralize restrictions upon national
banks and place them more nearly
on parity with State banks and at
the same time to extend the charter
of the Federal Reserve system before
the existence of that institution should
be imperiled. The national banks are
the backbone and mainstay of the
Federal Reserve system, so that their
continuance in the system is mat
ter OF very great Importance. After
considerable controversy, chiefly
concerning branch banking, a reason
ably satisfactory bill has finally been
enacted into law
Law on Radio.
Prior to the opening of the Sixty
ninth Congress such rapid develop
ment had taken place in the field of
radio activity that the necessity for
regulatory legislation was clearly indi-
cated. 1t soon became apparent that
with only limited number of avail
able wave lengths and the rapidly in
creasing number of broadcasting sta.
tons throughout the country the air
soon would be overcrowded, and such
was the result. Some kind of regula-
ton was absolutely Imperative. A
dinerence of opinion between the
House and Senate as to the machinery
to be set up for applying regulations
delayed final enactment of the legisla-
tlon, put 1t is now law and the
board to administer the law has been
named.
The farm relief problem, concern
ing which so much has been said dur
ing both sessions of this Congress.
remains unsolved. That it has not
been solved Is due to no lack of
earnest effort, as it has had the at
tention of both branches of Congress
curing a considerable portion of the
tlme or both sessions. 1t is probably
the only fair statement to make. that
the inherent difficulties of the problem
itself are responsible for the failure
thus far to solve it. However, this
has not been a controversy between
the two political parties in Congress,
both parties being almost evenly
divided in the attempt to pass q bill
in both sessions
Bills Wide Range.
II shall not attempt to summarize
or even enumerate the MANY other
bills attracting less public attention,
but still of very great Importance.
that nave been considered and passed
during this Congress. They include
considerable number and rather O.
wide range of subjects, such Nas
amendatory legislation for veterans,
including pensions and additional
hospital facilities; improvement of
rivers and harbors, a business-like
puDlc building program, needed legis-
latlon for the District of Columbia.
and many other matters incidental to
the needs and requirements of a great
and growing country
the gentleman from Illinois. Mr..
MAIDEN, chairman of the committee
on appropriations, i'll his final state
ment, Will go more at length into de-
talls as to the state of the revenues
and public expenditures. 1t will suf-
fice for this brief summary to say that
the tariff law enacted in 1922 con.
tlnueS to serve most satisfactorily
the purpose for which it was enacted
by protecting, in most cases, ade-
quately American labor and industry
ana at the same time putting into
the public Treasury the Unprecedented
sum of about 100000 900 a year.
Another Tax Cut.
The revenue act placed on the
statute books in the present Congress
continues to demonstrate what Secre-
tary Mellon and those who agreed
in trtr
troversy over the revision OF 1924
claimed, that lower tax rate, if rea-
sonable, will raise more revenue than
| an professionally higher rate. There
fore we have the satisfaction of seeing
surplus instead of a deficit in our
revenues and may again entertain the
hope that with constant and persistent
care in authorizing drafts upon the
| Treasury we may soon look forward
to another moderate reduction of
| taxes.
Meanwhile, public expenditures are
being held down almost $4,000, 900, 900
annually below what they were in
1920. the public debt grows gradually
less-from about $4,000, 100000 in
, 1921 and $20,000.000,0 in 1925, to
about $4,000, 000,0 900 in 1927-and the
! annual interest burden year by year
grows lighter, from almost exactly
Sl,oVO,uUV,0OU IN lSzl and ABOUT $780,
| 000.000 in 1925. to about $7S5, 100000
| in 1927.
mo member of the Sixty ninth
i Congress need fear a comparison of
| the record made by II with that of
any Congress in our history. There
| has been no war or any other great
| untoward event during the period
of the Congress, but peace no less
| than war has its problems, great
and small. We are now. and shall