Evening star., 1932-04-24
The PAY Cut Must Be Beaten.

bfampled the sales tax to death in its
mad rush to defend the poor man"
must decide this week on an issue that
more directly affects the welfare of the
poor man" than a dozen sales taxes.
The House must decide between ef-
fecting Federal economy at the cost OF
throwing thousands of skilled men and
women on the streets without hope OF
work. retaining others at drastically re-
duced salaries, or effecting Federal
economy through the wise elimination
of non-essential functions, amalgama-
ton of others. postponement of public
projects and carefully drawn provisions
for safeguarding the. employment of
Federal workers.
Circumstance has placed this final
responsibility on the House and made
the almost completed omnibus econ
omy bill" the vehicle for the expression
of its decision.
The President has signed the In
terror Department bill. thus establish
ing precedent for the bills that will
follow and which in all probability will
bear the Senate's fiat ten per cent re-
duction below the figures approved by
the House. The Interior Department
bill provides for the building of park
roads paving them with the dollars
saved by throwing men and women out
Of work The Treasury Post ONCE bill,
shortly to follow, provides for the con-
struction of beautiful post Offices and
public buildings, the money to come by
cruel, arbitrary discharge of tens of
thousands of low-salaried employees
Other departmental bills are following
the same course, effecting economies at
the cost of outright discharge of en-
ployes.
The one opportunity for softenins
the harshness of the senate's ten per
cent cut policy lies in writing into the
omnibus economy bill the Presidents
furlough plan, and substituting this
furlough plan for thes11 per cent salary
slash above 1000 that the House
Economy Committee has inserted in the
bill. ..
Unless this Ia done the Govern
n1ent's whole economy program is
jeopardized and for the following rea-
son: The mere physical act OF balane-
ing the Federal budget has little, If any,
substantial value as an economic restor-
ative. 1t is question, even now,
whether the Federal budget can be
balanced in. dollars and cents The
thing that counts Is the will and de-
termination of those responsible for
the orderly conduct of the Government
to seek a balanced. budget by methods
conducive to a restoration or preserva-
tion of confidence. To approach the
task Of balancing the budget as If the
physical act of accomplishment repre-
sented a cure-all, to be attained at any
cost, is mistake. And TO approach
the task of budget balancing by such
panieky, hysterical and gravely IN
furious fits and starts as exemplified in
the plans and actions of Congress now
is to overthrow and to render futile
all Of the tedious, expensive and care
fully planned reconstruction steps that
have been taken. No paper balancing
of the Federal budget can Offset the
effect of haphazard, destructive ges-
lures made in the name Of economy"
Is the Federal Government TO set
itself up in the eyes of the Nation and
of the world as an employer so blind to
the interests and welfare of its en-
ployes as to cast them out by the
thousands, thus contributing Its bit to
the vicious momentum Of the unem-
pleyment cycle? Are the responsible
party leaders in the House to present
to the Nation the spectacle OF undieei-
plined and chaotic stampedes? Is the
Federal Government, in addition to
throwing out of work thousands Of en-
ployes, to approve the principle Of
salary slsshing, reducing to new low
ebb the purchasing power upon which
depends National recovery?
These things it will do if the House,
in its consideration Of the omnibus
economy bill this week approves the
pay slash and adds that devastating
blow TO the Senates ten per cent cut
policy on appropriation bills.
The Presidents furlough plan should
be substituted for the pay cut to pre-
vent the wholesale dismissals now
threatened, and to restore confidence
in the ability Of the National Legis-
lsture to forego petty political con-
siderations when dealing with ma
tional crisis.