Show 0 Nati National nal Topics Interpreted b by William Bruckart National Nat Press Pres Building Wn Wa s D D. D C C. s 1 Washington Senator Senator McKellar I Tennessee Democrat arose in the senate recently to Silly Law offer a n bill that tha Doomed would repeal a provision of law prohibiting the employment of bo boman both bothman bothman man and wife b by the government It II has been in effect summer summer sum sum- mer 0 of 1933 The provision ought ough to be and probably will be repealed because as far as I can see there i is actually no sense in the national government refusing to employ efficient ef- ef e- e workers because a mans man's wife or a womans woman's husband already already already al- al ready is on the federal pay roll It was not the importance of this particular ar repeal proposal how how- ever ver that interested me Senator McKellar's action was significant i and vand and interesting only because when repeal of the so called marriage clause and federal law was proposed proposed proposed pro pro- posed it marked the beginning of the end of one o of the most abortive pieces of legislation that has bas been on our statute books I refer to the so- so called economy act of 1933 1033 I cannot refrain from recalling a prediction that I made when the economy act was before congress in 1933 It was introduced and supported supported supported sup sup- ported by the New Deal legislature in an effort to carry out a campaign campaign cam cam- promise made when President President President dent Roosevelt was running for office office office of of- fice in 1932 You will remember that he promised to reduce the cost of government twenty-five twenty per cent saying in in many speeches that the cost of ot government was too high and that a reduction in taxes was necessary It will be recalled likewise likewise likewise like like- wise how he said that Taxes come from Irom the sweat of every m man ln who labors Well Wen the economy act was dr driven ven through despite declaration from many senators and many representatives representatives sen- sen that it was impossible to mutilate the structure of government government government govern govern- ment as proposed in that bill and still have a government that would function properly And here were some of the most ridiculous provisions provisions provisions provi provi- in th that legislation to come before before before be be- fore congress in many years They worked injustices on veterans of the World war on farmers on retired government workers on the army and navy and marine corps and hamstrung and handicapped government government government gov gov gov- agencies in a manner I I. I had not seen in my long experience as an observer of national affairs It was on that occasion that I Imade Imade Imade made the prediction mentioned above and to which I call caU attention attention attention atten atten- tion because of the McKellar proposal proposal proposal pro pro- for repeal of the marriage clause I wrote at that time my definite conviction that the economy law was silly that it would work hardships and that its basis was ninety per cent politics I predicted predict predict- ed further that within a a year the politicians in the house and senate who had shouted so loudly about economy would begin to chisel various various various va va- rious provisions out of that law Each of those things has happened and now we see the end The end of the law has come but not the end of its effects Practices Practices tices in federal government adminIstration administration administration admin admin- that had been operating I satisfactorily and very efficiently throughout the years were thrown Into the discard and new ideas sub sub- The discarded methods were the development of experience and were were serving the purposes for which they were intended Some of them have been restored and are again functioning as they should but butone butone butone one can wander around through the maze of government corridors and find attempts still being made to tomake tomake make schemes work that are unsound unsound unsound un un- un- un sound in practice schemes from the minds of theorists It will be bea a number of years before the effects of the economy act will be As the chiseling began and the economy act fell to pieces under sounder thinking Spending the there r e was Orgy 1 launched a un c h e d the greatest spending orgy any nation ever witnessed It has bas continued with unabated peculiarity peculiarity peculiarity and is still continuing notwithstanding notwithstanding not not- withstanding the fact that within the last few weeks we have heard statements f fro from r o m administration sources to the effect that administration administration administration adminis adminis- expenditures will be cut The fact Is they have not been cut But the average person outside of Washington sees and hears only things related to large totals of government government government gov gov- spending such as relief forthe forthe for forthe the destitute and vast programs of public building They do not hear nor do they see what is going on among agencies of the government that relate to comparatively small items Stems of money outgo It Is these small items when taken together that bulk so-large so even though by comparison with relief the total appears appears appears ap ap- ap- ap pears insignificant I am going to call attention to just juston on item a small item as government government government govern govern- ment expenses go about which I suspect most persons who do me methe the honor to read these articles 0 have had little information They have had little Information because they are in a position to see only isolated examples I refer to government government gov gov- government publications Representative Taber of New NewYork NewYork NewYork York called attention to the condi ondi- tion lion respecting government publications publications I recently when the house appropriations appropriations appropriations ap ap- ap- ap committee was holding hearings on a bill approprIating funds lunds for several government departments de de- Mr Taber estimated that government government government gov gov- publications were costing coating in the neighborhood of twenty mil lion dollars a year He called them administration propaganda Every organization in the government government government gov gov- Mr Taber declared is sending out all sorts of propaganda da propaganda in fancy lancy colors pamphlets with pictures of resettlement resettlement resettlement resettle resettle- ment projects pictures of propositions and all that sort of thing It was the first estimate I 1 had been able to obtain of the cost of government publications for it is not easy to ascertain how much these beautifully done magazines cost each department or agency Nor is it easy to determine how much Is paid for the distribution o othe of of the countless thousands of statements statements state state- ments issued for the press or mailed in fn millions of copies to voters The whole thing constitutes a maze that thatis is so complex that it is staggering The government printing office lists 73 periodicals of the magazine type for which it will till take subscriptions or sell individual copies These of course are printed documents They do not include the many pamphlets that are mimeographed or published otherwise by many governmental agencies I mentioned the distribution of official official of of- statements for the press and to voters through- through W Weighing out the country the Cost There is no way as far as I can see to calculate the total but one Washington correspondent recently took occasion to weigh the output of press statements from the Department Department Department De De- of Agriculture for one week His curiosity had been aroused by the tremendous volume that hat had been delivered to his office of of- fice both fice-both both by mail and by special messenger messenger and and so he weighed the weeks week's grist It totaled more than three and one-half one pounds This as asI asI I said was from only one department department department depart depart- ment and the weight was the weight of the paper alone One need not employ a great gre t deal of imagination to think of the cost involved First there was the paper paper paper pa pa- per itself In the second place there was the cost of typing the material and then of mimeographing it But before it reached either one of these stages it was necessary that a vast amount of work be done by well wen paid men and women writers and research workers who prepared the material that was used whether in mimeographing or In printing There are two publications that come to my desk regularly that strike me as being extraordinarily ly y expensive The Consumers Guide a product of the Agriculture ture ure Adjustment administration and the he Electrification News published pub- pub by the Rural Electrification administration are the two most expensive expensive expensive ex ex- pensive and most elaborate periodicals periodicals periodicals cals that I regularly see They are sent out free not only to the Washington Washington Washington Wash Wash- ington correspondents but to thousands thousands thousands thou thou- sands upon thousands of voters voters- to o any my voter whose name either agency agency obtains And they arc are paid for out of taxpayers' taxpayers money Typographically each of ot these periodicals periodicals periodicals pe pe- pe- pe is exceptionally well done from a magazine standpoint They are replete with pictures and coper copper copper cop- cop per er engraving is expensive the articles articles ar- ar and news items contained in th them hem m are well wen written thus showing showing show- show ing ng that good writers are on the pay rolls of these agencies And so it is throughout the government gov gov- Everywhere a correspondent correspond correspond- ent goes among government offices he je meets federal workers among the he government personnel engaged in preparing and distributing the goy go governments government's stories for public reading Now let me touch on another phase of the cost of government publications I reF re- re r F ranking Franking for fer to the use of Abuse the franking lege As everyone knows mows government mail mall goes through the United States mails malls without the p payment of postage That does not mean however that the he railroads or the airplanes or orthe orthe the he steamships haul that mall mail free Cree The only difference between that mail mall and the letters you write or receive is s that the government pays the he transportation tion lines on a pound basis and on stamps are used It is bulk transportation whereas when you and I mail maH letters we pay the cost of transportation on those letters letters letters let let- to the government by means of a postage stamp It is entirely proper and reasonable reasonable reasonable reason reason- able that government mail should not require postage stamps It would simply be taking government money out of one pocket and putting putting putting put put- ting it In another Yet in the en enyou end you and I as taxpayers pay for the transportation of the government mail and md we pay for the tho millions of pieces that are sent out from the various government departments lf Newspaper Union I |