| Show purchasing POWE DOLLAR DOLLAH As measured by the index of the united states department of 0 labor imbor alln th 3 purchasing power of cut the dollar la Is naw fifty per cent greater than it was in 1829 1929 which la is somo some consolation for the mun man who lias has had his salary a 0 ilia his dividends reduced in tho the meantime because it ft means that he cun can go out and buy fifty per cent more in the way of at commodities with the s me amount ot of money than it would have been pos possible aible for him to pur ago in 1929 1111 this ot of course la Is small consolation tor for the fellow who Is out ot or a job or tor for the lain marv mani who holds holda tak sob stocks on which dividends have passed entirely for the bondholders bond holders however with good securities it means that a bond which ww paying aix alx per cent in 1929 and Is still a good security now pays the holder virtually nine per cent BO be tar far as the rural purchasing power ot of his interest Is concerned there la Is not so BO much consolation in n this however to wever for the man who wr aca a in debt in 1929 and has beon been struggling ever since to get out ot of debt the dollar collar today buys moro more on a 1929 mortgage than it would have three years ago and the dollar la is much harder to got now than it was then and while commodities have declined considerably since 1929 there Is one more important item in the aver c ase ge mans budget which lias has actually increased rather than declined that Is the item of taxation the united government has been compelled com palled to increase taxes because of oc tha declining returns from income taxes and othor other regular sources of 0 revenue and in the case ot of the states and r units ot of gavern government ment there has haa been no decline in tax taxation atlon which would in any way match the decline in commodity prices it li is true that tile the sentiment lor for decreased state arnd local taxes Is 13 increasing the tide Is rising and it can now be predicted fairly safely that in most ot of our states and communities there will be real and it Is to be ba hoped effective effort to decrease the cost coat of government during the next few years local government should save in the purchase of materials used for repair and construction due to the decline in tho the commodity price index there Is a tendency KISO to decrease the salaries of local officials jn 1 line with the decrease which has just been made in federal salaries and it Is also iso likely that public expenditures in the various states counties and cities of at the country will be more closely scanned during the next few yea years tax associations are springing up jip on every side and everywhere we are now getting propaganda for lower local taxes years ago we wa were launched on an orgy of spending public as well as private it seemed beamed that the public held an almost inexhaustible haus tible reservoir qt of money and credit but now we know differently and we are beginning to realize rea lize what it means to pay the tha piper it butof cult of the present mood tor for retrenchment comes a sober relaxation of the fact act that for year swe were traveling a too fast a pace and it if this can be reflected in plainer and more sensible government ern ment local as well as national then it will be indeed true that we haye hare gained som something ehing out of 0 the depression experience la Is still a hard teacher but now as before it Is the a only instructor to whom a great m lauy y people will agree to listen |
