Salt Lake Herald-Republican | 1918-05-23 | Page 1 | 7 Billions Asked for Army by Baker

it 1 N A ASKED K f FOR R. R ARMY ARM BY B It K f Requests This Thi in Addition Addition Addition Addi Addi- tion to the Eleven Billion Billion Bil BH- Bil- Bil lion Carried in Army Armyl l Appropriation B Bill i ill 1 1 t By International News Service May fay t- t WASHINGTON vy W v Secretary Baker today unfolded un folded his tremendous ordnance program in iii submitting to conK congress con- con K gress an estimate of in cash and contracts In addition to tho the arm army appropriation bill almost ready to be reported favorably by br tic the house military committee the figures of ot to toda today to- to da day daj Indicate an almost land forces program Of ot the great sum asked tolla today however however how how- ever er Baker Bacr informed congress that he expects to disburse only onh b by March 4 next next the present congress expires Th The rest is in contracts contracts con cou- tracts which he asks to be allowed to close and on which he will make payments payments pay pay- ments as tho the work prOT progresses He asked ed a lump sum of to be spent without itemization in his discretion If It this is approved ed by hy congress it Jt will be the largest large H sum vcr over thus voted an official dwarfing the discretionary fund to tho the president mt which at tho the time of ot its proposal l met wide opposition Baker explained that ho was asking only in n cash because he intended as fast Cast as the contracts which he ass asks to be allowed to close are arc carried on on to apply to congress gs for Cor additional cash appropriations Thus he said ca cash h and hond bond money would not be taken from the public until ab absolutely ab- ab necessary This hu huge e appropriation appropriation goes oes to the house appropriation tion committee for Cor action Many of its items items have been sone goro over o one b by ono b by the committee already I Chairman Shede has announced that although the lie is friend friend- ly lJ It will vc resel the right ris-ht to trim estimates s This is taken to mean that Secretary Baker may b be asked to give a il full account of nt his discretion billion The largest lars which Baker Daker asked arc are Small nall arms ammunition n 1 small mall arms repairs 3 small arms target practice manufacture of arms machine rifles armed cars field and siege cannon cannon cannon can can- non ammunition for or cannon altering arliller artil artil- ler lery ammunition tests unspecified purposes i P S Bakers Baker's plan of ot not asking for Cor cash until actually needed met the approval al of the appropriations committee mem nem- bers They said it indicated a carefulness careful careful- ness fleas of or expenditures often orten ignored by officials with immense bu budgets els