Evening star., 1933-03-11
All other States and Canada.
,,or,he- NJ tho Associated Press.
The Economy Bill.

President Roosevelt has called upon
Congress to authorize drastic economies
in the Government service end In pen
sens and compensation for veterans.
COMPARED to the Roosevelt economy
bill the efforts Of the Congress in the
past toward economies in Government
expenditures were only meandermgs
along the path. For the Congress. for
one reason or another, merely dabbled
in the matter of governmental economy.
Brought face to face With the crisis
which corfronts the country today,
however, the President may be given
his way in the matter. Certainly the
banking crisis has served to awaken
the membership Of Congress as we'll
as the whole American people to the
need for drastic governmental economies
and a balanced budget
Under the explanation of the economy
bill given by the Democratic leader OF
the Senate. Mr. Robinson of Arkansas,
the billion dollar annual bill fer vet
GIdI1S COlll pClLSdllOll oAid PSAioAoAAA' NN-
all wars will be cut about s400,000,000
and the slashes proposed for all Gov
ernment employees and officials will cut
the cost of Government by another
125,OoO,Ooo. The salary cuts are not
to exceed IS per cent Of the basic pay
Of the Government employees, and the
furlough law is to be repealed. The
cuts are for one year. The effect, there
fore, is to increase the salary cut OF
the Government employe from Sis
per cent under the furlough system to
a straight IS per cent with no fur
Tough, provided the cost Of living as
compared to the average for the last
six months in 1928 has fallen off as
much as is per cent.
For the yardstick is to be the cost
Of living in making wage and salary
cuts, except that in no case Is the
reduction in wage and salary to go be-
yond Is per cent. To arrive at the
percentage Of reduction, the cost Of
living in the six months beginning June
30, 1928, Is to be compared to the aver
age cost of living for several six-month
periods from January /, 1882 On. Ap-
parently the administration has been
convinced that the fall in the cost Of
living in the four-year period has been
at least Is per cent. The fiat cut made
for members Of Congress in the bill is
IS per cent-from $4,000 year to
$500.
The President in his message to the
Congress said that these proposed econo-
mics will, it is true, affect some Of cur
citizens. But the failure to make them
will affect all of our citizens The very
stability of our Government is at stake,
and when that is concerned the bene-
TITS Of some must be subordinated to
the needs of all"
The President has stated the case
succinctly The emergency Of the situa-
ton is clearly before the whole Nation.
No national political election impends
The President has said that blocs and
oClAloli AlltSIScto, WILL
must not govern in this hour of need,
but that the good of the whole must
prevail.
1t Is clear that the measure pre-
sented to the Congress by the President
yesterday is not the conception of an
hour or day. 1t has been the sub
ject Of deep consideration for weeks
and months by the President and his
advisers. It is, in effect, a major surgi-
cal operation when other cures to limit
government expenditure and to balance
the budget have failed. And, when all
is said and done, the government must
balance its budget, must maintain its
credit unimpaired If the Nation is to
survive. Democrats in Congress-with
some eptions-eave little heed to
the demands for a balanced budget and
cuts In the veterans compensation and
more limited appropriations when made
by President Hoover in the last Con-
gress. Tacy may give greater heed
to the der-cld of President of their
own political faith