The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-12-08


State Hull, who called Secretary
of Treasury Morgenthau, who called
up his customs officers and gave
the order that the senator's baggage
was to be passed without inSpec-
zion.
The senator and Mr.. Munford
tlad little use for their shooting
irons in the wilds of Latin America,
for all the planes flew on schedule
and no bad men were encountered.
Instead of bandits wanting to take
money away, all hte senator found
was Americans wanting to give U.
S. dollars away-six billion of them,
she SayS-a hemisphere hand-out
replete with international WPA'S,
pWA's, NYA's and FSA's that are
neither good nor neighborly.
SENATOR WILL NEED GUNS
But If the senator found no use
for his weapons below the Rio
Grande, he is going to need them
badly for self-defense on the floor
of the Senate in the next few days,
after the printed copies of his re-
port are distributed. For every gov
eminent agency that has dime to
spend in Latin America will be
checking his figures and issuing
blasts to point out his mistakes.
The only typewriter carbon copy
Of the report mace available to the
press shows at the end tabulation
of some 80 items of U. S. expense
in Latin America during the past
three years. The total is over So
billion. 1t is understood that the
list is being revised and added to
on the galley proofs, so that the
total may be closer to $40 billion
when the final report comes out,
but whatever it is, Senator Butler
is claiming only Sc billion in com
mitments and OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
there may be some Implications.
There are:
Item II in the tabulation covers
administration of the Sugar Act of
1887 for the three years, 1941-43, at
$145 million, in round nunmers
Item 81 covers expense Of admin
istering the Sugar Act Of 1887 fol-
the same three years, at $145 mil
lion. This one will probbaly be
caught before the final report comes
out, but 1t is only one of the arnaz-
ing items which the senator has in
Guided to make his figures.
This isn't the only sugar In the
report, however, for item II lists the
purchase of all the sugar and mo-
lasses which the U. S. is buying
in Cuba in three years, of 1892
million.
Item is covers maintenance and
operation Of the Panama Canal for
three yeras, at $75 million, though
this is a U. S. possession.
Similarly, item 70 covers govern
ment aid to Pue1 0 Rico, $57 million.
At last report tt S island was a U.
S. territory and it will no doubt
please the natives to know they're
Jumped in as Latin America.
TWO BILLION FOR NAVY
Over two billion dollars worth
of Army and Navy expenses are
listed, including 1921 million for the
Navy, $500 million for construction
OF airports, $500 million for mill
tary bases, $40 million for COM
munications services, SIS million for
road building and $50 million pay
for U. S. soldiers and sailors sta
toned in Latin America. In addi-
ton there is said to be uncom-
pleted construction of another 1920
million.
Expense of the Office of the Co.
ordinator of In American Affairs,
Nelson Rockefeller, is entered at
5000 million for the three years.
Lend lease is Jumped at $500 mil
lion.
No effort Is made to separate
legitimate purchases from what
might be considered boondoggles,
and the whole thing has every
appearance of being a jungle which
the Truman Committee investigat-
ing the defense program, to which
the report has been referred, will
be months in trying to straighten it
out in some kind OF orderly book
keeping. The report thus runs &
good risk of not only going off half
cooked, but also back-firing.