The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1941-11-27
u. S. Payrolls Now
Increasing Average
of $4,000 Monthly
Political Analyst Sees 100000
Federal Civilian Employees
In Another Year

So rapidly is the army of Fedora
jobholders growing under the stress
and in some instances the excuse, Of
the current war emergency thai
Frank R. Kent, the Baltimore Sun:
noted political analyst, recently esti
mated a Federal roster of 100000
civilian employees year from now.
Mr.. Kent pointed out that at is dis.
tinctly an understatement to say that
the civilian defense organization Oh
! today is several times as large as the
| civilian war organization of 1917,
1918 and is costing several times as
much"
"At the end of March 1940," Mr.
Kent recalled, "there were GAG, 229
civilians on the Federal pay rolls
alone; on March 81, 1941, there were
1,2O2,3 on September 81 there were
1,444,985.
"In other words, 100000 persons
have been added to the pay rolls in
the last eighteen months-more than
100000 of them in the last six
months. The number is increasing
now at the rate of $4,000 a month. So
a reasonable estimate will put the
total civilian pay roll a year from
now at 100000. That this is a rea-
sonable estimate is attested by the
expansion plans already revealed by
various agencies.
Zone of these is the contract dis
tribution division of the OPM, headed
by Mr.. Floyd Odlum. Shortly, it is
stated, Mr.. Odlum, with a $23,000,00C
budget, expects to have 1000 men in
the field, 200 field offices, exhibit
trains running through 81 States anC
defense clinics in all major cities
Another is the Treasury, where q
most enormous increase is necessi.
tated by the new taxes. Many thou,
sands of new clerks, inspectors anc
agents will be necessary to collect the
SIS tax on some 40,000,000 automobiles
and to handle the returns and pay.
ments from the 20,000,000 individuals
who never paid taxes before, but are
now brought in by the lowered eX.
emptions of the new law.
"Then there is the edo (Civiliar
Defense Organization), nominally
headed by Mayor LaGuardia, but
largely, it seems, being run by Mrs
Roosevelt, around whom "social work
ers" cluster thicker than flies. At the
disposal Of the edo are many mil
lions and its rapidly growing roll OF
employees extends from coast to coast
There are some who feel that there
is building up here an organization
which it will be difficult to uproot
after the war-and that Mrs. Roose-
welt, with, of course, the noblest OF
motives, is using it to extend her in
fluence over women's activities in 8
quite extraordinary manner Certain
ly, since she took hold in a big way
the social workers are swarming as
never before.
"In fact, the idea has thoroughly
percolated through the country that
anybody who wants job can get il
in Washington now. And they are
coming in from all directions-anc
getting on. Unchecked, the result in,
evitably will be bureaucracy swollen
to so huge a size that it cannot be
supported and may precipitate chaos
Leaving out the men in the military
naval and related branches, 1,449,00C
civilians cited above means that one
person in every eighty-seven in the
whole country is now on the Federal
payroll.
"When to these are added WPA
CCC, NYA, farm subsidies, social
security benefits and pensions, it is
conservative to say that 100000
persons, or nearly one-siXth of the
total population, are receiving Gov
eminent pay, pension or benefit
checks. The Administrator plans are
not to reduce this number, but to in
crease it. With a half million added
to the Federal pay rolls in eighteen
months and with the rate of increase
about 1000 day, it does not seem
unfounded to feel that the dangers tc
democracy inside are not much less
than those from outside. At any rate
there is the picture"