Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-06-19
Byrd Disputes :
Fiscal Claims
BY Humphrey
Rise in Federal Debt,
High Spending Cited
In Senator'S Attack
BY CECIL HOLLAND

Senator Byrd, Democrat o.
Virginia. today sharply chal'
lenged Secretary of the Treasur,
Humphreys claim that the Fl.
senhower administration has re.
duced the Government debt anc
Government expenditures.
Senator Byrd commended the
Federal debt has been in.
creased by SO billion and Federal
expenditures are at a record
peace-time level.
He launched an attack on the
Secretary's budget and debt fig
ures as Mr.. Humphrey went
before the Senate Finance Com
mittee for detailed questioning
about the Governments none
tary and fiscal policies.
The committee, headed by
Senator Byrd. is undertaking q
full-scale investigation of the
lcountry's financial condition.
Budget Promise Cited
Senator Byrd reminded Secre.
tary Humphrey that President
Eisenhower had promised to re.
duce the Federal budget to $50
billion but that instead the
budget submitted for the 1851
fiscal year was $73.6 billion Il
road funds totaling SIS billion
are included.
That was before he was elect
ed" Mr.. Humphrey replied a
committee members and others
Joined with him IN laughter.
Mr.. Humphrey added that he
had never seen anyone who
tried so hard" to reduce the
budget as the President.
Before beginning the ques.
tioning Of Mr.. Humphrey on his
lengthy statement yesterday that
the administrations policies had
brought unparalleled pros
Iperity" to the country, Senator
Byrd made public a list Of Mr.
Humphreys holdings at the time
he was made Secretary of the
Treasury.
Humphreys Holdings Checked
Mr.. Humphrey had submitted
the list when his nomination
was before the committee but
the record was missing from the
committees files. Some Demo-
cratic members Of the commit
tee had requested the list with
indications that they would
question Mr.. Humphrey on
whether the value of his hold
ings had increased because of the
"tight-money" policies adopted
by the administration.
Senator Byrd said Mr.. Hum
phrey had voluntarily supplied a
new list. The list included:
Canadian and Dominion Sug-
ar. 100 shares: Hanna Coal and
Coke. 12.47l shares: M. A.
Hanna (class Al, 44,550 COM
mon shares; M. A. Hanna Cclass
b. $4,000 shares; National City
Bank Of Cleveland (sold soon
after the original list was sub
mitted). 278 shares; Pittsburgh
Consolidated Coal. 10000 shares;
and Republic Steel, 100 shares.
Senator Byrd caused a bit of
laughter when he referred to Re-
public Steel as Republican"
Steel in reading the list.
No Dollar Value Set
No dollar value on Mr.. Hum
phrey'S stock holdings was given,
either for 1858 or for the pres
ent.
Senator Byrd suggested that
Mr.. Humphrey had given a mis-
leading statement in telling the
committee yesterday that the
administration, in its anti-infla-
tionary program. had reduced the
Governments debt.
Mr.. Humphrey said that his
statement was based on a book
keeping calculation which In.
volved the deduction Of obliga-
tons inherited from the Truman
administration. He acknowl-
edged that the only actual reduce
ton in the Federal debt was SIS
billion from last years budget
Senator Byrd and Mr.. Hum
phrey argued at length over the
Secretary's statement that the
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