The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1933-11-09
Duck Flies Against Gun, Bends Barrel

taxation whereby the wage-earner
and home owner will be still further
burdened. The slogan of Lower
Taxes BY Less Spending" cannot
be improved upon and it should be
universally applied. Stricter econ
omies in every department of pub
lie service, in my humble judgment,
seems to be far more fundamentally
sound than is the fallacious propos-
al that we borrow more money to
get out of debt, or, to use the time
worn and oft-used phrase, "to try
and pull ourselves up by our boot
straps!"
And so reiterate in an absolute
ly bipartisan spirit, that we shall
not receive more than a vague and
temporary relief from present eff
forts of Government to spend bill
lions of dollars (Which we do not
now have) in a vain and futile at
tempt to relieve a situation which
is, in the last analysis, an inherent
weakness in our American social
and financial life rather than a de-
feet due to some governmental &C
|tivity.
For ages past we have been told
that he "who made two blades of
grass grow where but one grew
before" was a benefactor. but we
now attempt to reverse that doc
trine and appeal to the patriotism
of our citizens to destroy what they
have created, pay them for so do
ing; and urge them to make one
blade of grass grow where two
grew before. What a strange phi
losophy and how contrary to that
Biblical admonition that Gin times
Of plenty we should prepare for the
famine"
While war clouds gather on the
European horizon, and state OF
great unrest prevails throughout
the civilized world, no where do I
hear a voice raised in the advocacy
Of a general lower standard of liv-
ing-a return to the game of put
as well as 'fTake," such as our for
bears exemplified when this Repub-
lie was founded! There is no call
for an elimination of needless and
extravaganza motor travel, for less
public service, for a lesser indul-
gence in all those things which can
hardly be called the necessities of
life," and which bear so heavily up
on the wage-earner and taxpayer
particularly stressing the existing
tax levy which is nationwide in its
confiscatory application!
Earnestly and vainly do I seek
for that stabilizing element in our
American citizenry which has car
ried this beloved country of ours
through so much of travail since
the Declaration was signed in
1776. Despite the fact that SO
many thousands of our smaller
units have so mater
tally reduced their local tax levies,
how greedily some of these same
units now are grasping at the Of
fer Of the government to contribute
80 per cent Of the cost Of approved
public works. And the height of
was reached a few
weeks ago when the mayors Of one
hundred cities, in conference in
Chicago, passed a resolution ask
ing Congress to pass a law which
would permit them to declare a
state of bankruptcy and thus in
validate their outstanding bonds
and certificates of Indebtedness
This is indeed a strange philosophy
and one which I, at least, find ii
difficult to correlate in my own
mind!
Have we not left the rocky shores
upon which a century and a half
of fundamentally sound govern
ment, coupled with like precepts OF
right living as a Christian nation,
had erected almost impregnable
fortresses of financial and economic
stability, and are we not now-as
President Roosevelt has so truly
stated, sailing our Ship of State
upon uncharted seas?" This, per-
haps, would not be so alarming If
our destination was definitely
known and the objective which we
desire to attain more clearly out
lined!
Do you not feel, as do, that
what civilization needs is more
civilization-of a more uplifting
Spiritual character We all have
distinct recollections Of the Great
War to end war, and yet at this
present moment practically every
so-called civilized nation is utilizing
its resources in preparation for