The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1939-01-19
What It Means: The Relief Squabble.
By MORGAN M. BEATTY
AP Feature Service Writer

By MORGAN M. BEATTY
AP Feature Service Writer
Washington - The question of
the moment in Washington:
"Is Congress at long last about
to face the relief problem in dead
earnest?"
That problem has been pointed
out-but not answered IL by eco
nomists of every hue, from stark
radical to ultra conservative.
Everybody has been talking about
the politics in relief, but few peo-
pie have been discussing the real
problem.
Simplified, it is just this-the
arithmetic of relief.
That arithmetic is simple,
seventh grade equation almost
anybody can understand. But the
answer is as elusive as the Elm
stein theory.
Here's one side of the equation:
By most reliable counts, there
are about 100000 unemployed
persons in the United States
people who can't, or don't find a
job.
The federal, state, county and
city governments are taking care
of about half of these people, part
of them with a dole and part
through work relief (WPA). The
rest are not getting relief from
government.
On The Other Side
Here's the other side of the eq-
uation:
The federal Government is
spending money at the rate of
more than two billion dollars a
year to care for some 100000 of
the unemployed. Every dollar of
that sum represents borrowed
money-red ink on the treasury's
books.
The states, counties, and cities
are spending at the rate of half
billion dollars a year to give two
milliOn-odd more a dole. And
many of these governments are
also going in the red to do the
job.
Thus, the problem is, how can
the unemployed be taken care of
without bankrupting the various
units of government in the United
States?
Naturally, the long-term ans
wer would appear to be that pri-
vate industry should be encour-
aged to- re-employ the 100000
unemployed. Everybody seems to
agree on that, even the most rabid
of New Dealers. But everybody
also agrees that this can't be done
right away; some even think it
will never be done.
Anyway, the immediate, press
ing problem of relief remains
unanswered. Congress, of course,
is torn between the pressure to
cut the cost of government and
the pressure to take a generous,
humanitarian attitude on relief.
The Roosevelt administration
has taken its stand - that the
problem is here and it's solution
not yet in sight. Therefore, the
President proposes to continue to
spend about as much this fiscal
year, and next, on relief, as dur
ing the last three years. That
means more than $2,000,00O,0OO
annually.
Hence, the President proposes
to spend another $875, 100000 be-
tween February l and June 30
the end of this fiscal year. add
that to the SLABS, 100000 appro-
priated previously for the first
seven months of the fiscal year,
and you have your annual total
exceeding two billions.)
Just A Compromise
The house subcommittee in
charge of the relief purse strings
has cut the $875, 100000 to S725,-
100000, slash of $15O,OOO, 600
Most authorities on all sides of
the political fence agree that this
is plain compromise between a
policy of spending, and a policy
OF retrenchment-not solution.
On the basis of that compro-
mise, most authorities figure that
Congress is going to make nc
more than a gesture to cut the ex-
pense of relief, or even of the
federal government as whole.
If that is true, the answer to
the question of the hour is:
Congress is not going to face
the relief problem in dead earnest
this year."
But it is a significant fact that
congressman who have never be-
fore had more than a speaking ac-
| quaintance with the intricate
realms of economics are burning
the midnight oil these days
studying the arithmetic of relief
For an understanding of eco
Monies is one way to begin to I'M
derstand the complexities of pre-
sent day social problems and their
relation to the national budget OF
| dollars and cents.