Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1942-11-17
The Political Mill
Woste Of Monpower and Money
BY the Government Attacked BY Byrd

and q big Navy. 1t was con-
structing q huge merchant ma
rine. 1t had its Food Admins
tration and its Fuel Administra-
tion-both with problems on their
hands. The costs of that war,
including the Government ex-
penditures for its civil employees,
seem like chicken feed, when
viewed in comparison with the
expenditures today.
Agencies Have Multiplied.
Under the New Deal admins
tration, which has had charge of
the Government since March,
1888, the civil agencies Of the
Government have multiplied, and
the civil employees have become
an army. This had happened be-
fore Pearl Harbor and the entry
OF this country into World War
II. Now a half dozen new agen-
cies Of Government, which did
not exist in the days prior to the
New Deal, employ 252,853 per-
sons. Broken down, this figure is
divided as follows among the va
rious agencies: Office of Price
Administration, 28,357; Federal
Security Agency, 1882; Federal
Works Agency, 31,141; National
Housing Agency, 1882; Once of
Emergency Management, 1922;
War Production Board, 1907. It
Is expected that unless halt is
called, the personnel OF these
agencies will be still more in
creased. Indeed, it is certain that
they will be.
The number of civil employees
Of the Government on August 81,
1912, was 2,606, 900. On Armistioe
Day, November II, 1918, the total
number Of civil employees OF the
Federal Government was ol7,76O.
In other words, at the close of the
last war. after the country had
been exerting every effort to win
that conflict, and had won it, for
10 months, the number of civil
employees Of the Government was
about one-third of the number
now on the rolls when the coun-
try has been at war for not quite
IL months. 1t may be argued that
the problems presented now are
infinitely greater than they were
In the First World War. Never
theless, an Army of more than
1900, 1000 men was raised, trained
and equipped, and more than
100000 men and the necessary
supplies for them were sent to
Europe during the last war.
Increase at White House.
Senator Byrd has been a critic
OF governmental expenditures for
a long time. He has shouted for
economy, without effect, until,
with the country on the verge of
war and spending billions for ma
tional defense, he was able to
bring about the appointment OF
the Committee ON Non-essential
Cover I'm n al Expenditures
which he now heads. This COM
mittee made recommendations
which resulted in cut of 81, 3OO,-
100000 In the present Federal
budget. But at that, the only one
OF the many new agencies which
had been set up by the New Deal
was entirely eliminated-the CCC
and that only after a hard
fight with the administration.
The National Youth Administra-
ton and the WPA were contin-
ued, though their appropriations
were decreased largely.
Mr.. Byrd cites as an example
Of what has been going on in the
civil government the White House
rolls. In the days of Woodrow
Wilson the number Of employees
Of the Executive Once, which is
the ofiicial name Of the White
House, was 48, and the salary
list totaled $161,3s0. Today the
number Of employees Of the Execu-
tive Once in Washington is 726,
and 100 in the field, with a salary
total of 50 1899 ,460.
The Virginia Senator has esti-
mated that the civil employees of
the Federal Government, plus
those OF the State and local gov
ernments, will soon reach almost
100000. In his opinion, this
situation ought not to exist, when
man power is needed for the
armed forces and for war produce
ton as 1t is today.