OCR Text |
Show M SENATOR KING WARNS M On the floor of the Senate recently bpn- ' ator King gave the following warning H 'Tor hte current fiscal vear there will H be p deficit of considerably more than M $2,000,000,000; perhaps it will be $3,010,- M 000,000. It appears now that the rM'ieit H will ba nearly as great as the cost of the H Civil war. Notwithstanding that neavlv H one vear Ivs elapsed since the armistice, H we aro still spending hundreds of millions H of dollars monthly, billions of dollars for H .. the year; and though Ve taicos injpoed H upon the people are enormous, wo will br- H confronted with a deficit so huge and on- H- , ormous as to terrify even the n:o:;t eour- H nfreoim financier and statoniru. Mr. H President I am criticizing the executive Wm departments of the governmont and tho, HH) agencies, and instrumentalities of the go - B prnmp.nwhch are calling for such eno.r- H mous eonditures. Congress should hove H " served nfftice in no unmistakfib'le way IBL. ,... 'J.n , - -awy """ 'upon the executive departments of tlw government that their expenses were too great and that the most rigid economies should be practised. We have not dons so, but, on the contrary, we have listened to the pleas for additional appropriations and have answered their demands to meet enormous deficits. Though there is a statute sta-tute .forbidding (he executive departments depart-ments from creating deficits, we have not only winked at the infraction of this statute sta-tute but have encouraged it by making ' the mosti liberal and generous appropriations appropria-tions to meet deficits that covered millions mil-lions and tens of millions of dollars. "We will have difficulty, Mr. President in finding the sources of taxation to meet the expenditures of the government. In-, In-, deed, we will be unable in my opinion, to come within $2,000,000,000 during the coming fiscal year of raising the funds that Nyill be renuircd trmeet the exnensns of the government if we continue in this extravagant and prodigal manor of making mak-ing expenditures. It is possible a bond issue mav be averted: but if so, the Trw-ury Trw-ury will be compelled to issue short thro notes to (the extent of two or more billions of dollars. And if we issue bonds, wliei e will be found purchasers for the sinu.? The patriotic spirit which prompted millions mil-lions of American citizens to purchase wwernme'nti securities 'during the war will not reach the high tidelthat then was experienced. So banks will be in the end compelled to nurchasethe bond issues. Notwithstanding the creat earnineu of the people, their savings have been limited, limit-ed, and I do not believe the mass of the people can be expected to purchase anv considerable part of any issue of bonds that may be made.. Ik hi |