The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1946-08-09
News q.
BEHIND
THEtEg|E|Il!$i||YlI!5
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
MARK-UP OF FOREIGN MONIES
COMPLICATES OUR PROBLEMS
Paul MALLoN

MARK-UP OF FOREIGN MONIES
COMPLICATES OUR PROBLEMS
WASHINGTON. - The Swedes
have made their krona more costly
to us. 1t is worth q cents plus, now,
instead of % cents plus. The Cana
dams did the same thing. Their
dollar has been marked equal to
ours instead of 80 cents as former
ly. To whatever extent the rest Of
the world follows suit its money
will go up in value and ours will
go down. theoretically it can buy
more goods here but only theoret-
ically because actually our prices
have gone up more than the 10 per
cent increased value of the foreign
currencies.
An item from South Africa
tells the inside tale. 1t says
American goods were being
bought there in quantities hith-
ertO unknOwn-until the OPA
price ceilings went off but since
then purchases have been limit
ed. Do we want them to fill
their shops with goods Gas they
report) when we are short?
Well, we want to increase our
world trade. But can we do
this with shortages? OF such
considerations is the character
Of our confusion.
Really it is worse. Today we are
proving we can have initiation with
a balanced budget.
BIGGEST PEACETIME BUDGET
The main business of this adjourn
ing congress has been its least
widely reported aspect. It was
charged with appropriating money
for Mr.. Truman's unprecedented
peacetime budget of nearly $4,000
600, 900. The house trimmed sharp
ly but the senate put most of the
money back in the bills as is the
custom. In the end Mr.. Truman will
get appropriations for this peace
time fiscal year (Which began July
y that are roughly four times and
more greater than what Mr.. Roose-
welt ever spent. The highest Roose-
welt expenditures in prewar was
SO, 665, ZOO, 900 in 1910, when he took
in nearly $4,000, 100000. In his
whole administration he roughly
took in half of what he spent, which
was thought to be infationary al
though it never got prices up. The
spending is largely for army and
navy, along with increases in
eeacetime activities of government.
However, Mr.. Truman is APP
preaching balanced budget at this
spending level. Wartime taxes
have not been reduced materially,
for fear of the big debt, so he will
take in this year around or upwards
of $35, 00O, 000, 1000. (Retiring Budget
Director Smith calculated the figure
at $39, 500, 000,0 900, which is $8,000,-
900, 1000 more than the January budg-
ct estimated.) Agitation thus has
begun here for real tax reduction
but some authorities want to retire
che debt instead. In the war we
roughly took in half what was spent
or about SAC, 400, 900, 900 in 1915,
while spending 500, 400, 600. 900.
INITIATION is HERE
In the face of this promised sta
bility for the first time in is years
we have imitation. 1t is q real in
hation due to a shortage of goods
in the presence of widespread buy
ing power. The administration has
figured it would stop the initiation
as soon as it obtained production
but we are not getting production
and business estimates it will be
three to five years before it can take
care of accumulated demand, not
calculating the increase in consum-
err demand which has developed
from the presence of widespread
buying power. To add to the deter
rents of strikes, slowdowns, govern
mental mismanagement, famine re-
lief, the absence of a foreign trade
policy, cheapening money, sensa-
tionally high prices and no real
peace, along with pitifully insult
ficient production-the OPA was
sharply modified ahead of time.
Csu we get out Of it? Yes,
but only by shrewd manage
ment. BY this mean cOnstruc-
tive management Of overall pol
icy as well as detailed affairs.
Obviously we are entering a pc
riod in which there will be no "nor-
NAL" 1t is a previously uncharted
period. We are in initiation. Instead
of fearing imitation" as officialdom
verbally does (and then shoots
wages up, then prices and next
wages again), it must recognize we
are in it. If we get production and
prices start to decline we will rec
ognize that the era in which we now
are was period Of unprecedented
initiation. Ia a word, the govern
ment has started the toboggan. The
.,,actior, no,u is. can IL be StQnned2