Milford chronicle., 1959-04-10
DO YOU REMEMBER?

port this statement.
On April 9th, forty-two years ago, the
United States declared war on Germany.
That was in 1917. The war lasted nineteen
months.
This day was also set aside as Army Day
after the war The Mormon church was es-
tablished on April 9Th, 1880, while the Greeks
in the United States celebrate April 9Th as
Greek Independence Day.
April 7th is remembered as the day of
the first settlement in Ohio, at Marietta, in
1888. April 9Th is remembered as the day on
which Clay and Randolph fought their fam
GUS duel, in 1926, and also as the day Ponce
de Leon landed on the cost of Florida, near
ST. Augustine, seeking the legendary foun-
tain of youth, in 1913.
April 9Th is one of the best-remembered
days in US. history, for it was on this day
that General Robert E. Lee surrendered to
General u. S. Grant at Appomattox, in 1865.
Lee had whipped Grant on number of occa-
sons, sometimes with only half his strength,
but Grants persistence and the superior re-
sources and manpower of the Union had worn
Lees army down. and Grant won the last,
and most important, battle.
April 10th is the day on which the found
er of the Salvation Army, William Booth, was
born, in 1929 in Nottingham England. The
18th is remembered as the birthday anniver-
sary of Charles Evans Hughes, the eleventh
Chief Justice of the United States, who was
born at Glens Falls New York. in 1862. Ed
ward Everett was born on this day in 1884,
and the Queen Anne War ended on this day
in 1713
The 18th, which is this year the second
Sunday after Easter, is remembered as the
day on which Henry Clay was born, in 1777,
in Hanover County, Virginia This day is also
remembered in North Carolina as the day, in
1776, that resolutions were adopted favOring
the independence of the colonies. North Caro-
lima was the first colony to make a formal
declaration in favor of separation from Great
Britain.
PUT THE MONEY WHERE IT BELONGS
A 409o tax on even an extreme luxury
would seem excessive to most people. But
such tax is in effect on an absolute necess-
ity-gasoline. Federal, state and local taxes
on motor fuel now equal national average
of &c gallon. And that amounts to 40%o of
the service station price of regular grade
gasoline, exclusive of the tax.
To make bad matter worse, it is pro-
posed that the gasoline user be socked still
harder, by raising the federal tax from its
present rate to A ~ cents.
The excuse for this is that the money is
needed to pay for the multi-billion dollar
highway program, and that the burden should
be imposed on highway users. But that is
a highly misleading alibi. For, if all the
money collected from these users were ap-
piled to the road program there'd be no finan-
cling problem.
Simple statistics tell the story. In the last
fiscal year the federal government took in
$3.6 billion from what is known as highway
related" collections. These collections include
the gasoline tax, along with other motor We
hicle taxes. But only ST. billion of that mon
ey was earmarked for highway purposes. A
Whopping 1920 of the tOtal-S15 billion
xroyof into fbo 10 ho f0rI
federal activities that have no relation to
highways.
There is, therefore, no justification what
ever for increased gas taxes. What is needed
is to put current revenues from highway
users where they belong on the road.
$26,0OO,OOO BLUNDER
The new Senate Office Building, which
cost $26,00 900, will be remembered as an
example of government waste and bungling,
rather than building which adds efficiency
and needed office space for senatorial work.
Even though the building is new, the ele-
vators are the slowest in any of the House or
Senate office buildings on Capitol Hill Some
of the new rooms in the new office buildings
are monstrosities.
One is a theater-a auditorium which was
designed for important hearings but looks
like it should be the setting for amateur
talent contests.
The working press, for which we speak,
is certainly aware of what seemed to be
architectural mistakes bad design and bad
taste in many cases. The fault of course, is
with those members of the Senate who are
responsible, as well as those who built the
building
1t is, however, tragic mistake, for until
this new building was opened Senators of
the United States had only one office build
ing available to them, and their quarters were
dod odd
and an efficient annex office building They
do not have it, and the taxpayers have paid
$26,000,000 for a monstrosity.
5000
THE THREE-CENT ANSWER
In Washington right now many of our
Congressman are happily voting plans for
the federal government to spend more money