Evening star., 1932-09-10
More Money for Building.

BY the use of cheering double
negative-"I am clear that 1t will not
be necessary for me to certify that
the funds necessary for such expendi-
ture cannot be obtained upon reason
able terms"-Secretary Mills has n
formed the President that money can
be made available for financing that
portion of the 1922 ,224,oo0 worth of
public works already authorized and
conditionally appropriated for in the
relief bill and the President has di-
rected the immediate expenditure OF
| $l86, ,224, 600 on such works.
The Presidents order means that in
addition to public works Internationally
appropriated for in the relief bill, such
as highway construction in the States,
national forest road improvement and
national park roads, highways and
bridges, those that were appropriated
for contingent upon the Treasury's abil-
ity to finance them will be built inme-
diately. These latter items include a
$100O0o.o00 building program under
the Treasury, river and harbor and
flood control work, the projects being
selected by department heads and the
Secretary of the Treasury from those
already authorized by Congress in the
last five years, and for which plans are
ready. The President notes that these
additions to the public works program
undertaken by the Government since
the depression began will swell the total
to something more than $4,000, ,Ooo, 900.
For the current fiscal year alone the
Federal Government will be spending
nearly billion dollars on public works.
The selection of the public works to
be built now will be announced early
next week by the Treasury and the
various departments. The impetus that
such construction viii add to the Fall
recovery now under way is obvious. 1t
will take up some Of the slack In
employment and add to buying orders.
OF equal significance is Secretary Mills
assurance that there will be no difficulty
in getting the money on reasonable
terms. His conviction In this respect
was doubtless based upon the Treas
ury's experience in its Fall refinancing
program, which, it was announced to-
day, brought siX-and-a-half-to-o one
oversubscription for Government offer
ings totaling $l,15o. 100000. More than
four billion dollars was proffered for a
$750, 100000 offering of Treasury notes
maturing in 1887, bearing interest at
three and quarter per cent, and more
than three billion dollars was subscribed
for 400,O0o,0 900 offering Of one and a
quarter per cent Treasury certificates
maturing next September. While the
oversubscription undoubtedly reflects a
certain amount Of padding" by banks
that were asking for twice as much as
they knew they could get, it indicates
the amount of money available for in
vestment in low interest bearing Gov
eminent securities and denotes the
thorough confidence of the investing
pubic in the Governments credit.
Controller General McCarl has Slip
ped fly in the ointment of the Gov
ernment's relief building program that
promises serious complications. Like
other McCarl rulings on the twisted,
hit-or r-miss economy bill, it indicates
the confused results Of combining legis-
lative efforts to save money with those
to spend money, the final objective OF
both efforts being relief. Mr.. McCarl's
decis5on that the ten per cent cut In
certain expenditures ordered in the
economy bill will apply to the appro-
priations under the relief bill will, un-
less modified, cut $4,000, 900 from the
Treasury building program alone. Its
! application to other programs is in
doubt. The absurdity of some Of the
provisions of the economy bill has never
been better emphasized than in this
case, where the Government appro-
pirates $10O,OO0,000 for relief of unem-
ployment through one measure, and,
through another, lops off tenth of 1t
in the name Of economy. While Mt.
McCarl may modify his decision, it IS
doubtful whether the confusion can be
ended pending necessary amendment
If the economy bill