Show Where Your Y our Taxes Go How Uncle Sam Spends Your Money in Conducting Your Business By EDWARD G. G LOWRY Author Close Up Upi Bantu and nd etc Contribute Political and Economic to Leading Periodical and nd Writer of Rec i Authority on the National Government Bum Method Copyright Western New Newspaper aper r Us Union oo X JUST KEPT GROWING The origins of ot these antiquated cumbersome cum b costly Inefficient pieces of ot the national machinery that we call the I Executive departments show how any ony I establishment It If well watered with I government money will expand and bold hold together no matter how bow conflictIng conflictIng conflict- conflict Ing log and Incongruous Its functions Hardly one of ot these great areat business establishments es es- I for for that Is what they are was are was planned As th they y are today they Just happened Take the Department of ot Agriculture for tor example one of ot the Teat greatest est and most complex and of ot all the departments It Is In closer touch and more directly affects the thc greatest number of or people In the United States than any other branch of or the government government govern govern- ment went with the possible exception of ot the post office It began To Tn 1839 with an appropriation of ot 1000 taken from rom the patent funds for tor the distribution distribution distribution tion of ot free tree seeds and the collection of ot agricultural statIstics statistic by the patent office then a bureau In the State department de de- de- de Now look Jook at the darned thing It Is all 1111 over the place The title of ot the department Indicates Its most mOlt Important field of or activities but Its functions havo have b been en extended to Include include In In- clude elude the tile whole range of rural Industry Industry Industry Indus Indus- try and some branches of administration tion Lion only very Indirectly related to agricultural Interests For about CO GO rears Sears subsequent to the Revolution the Interests of ot agriculture were left almost entirely to Individual Initia tive Uve Federal activity was confined to relatively narrow limits and was merely merely merely mere mere- ly sporadic Soon after the national government was organized some att attempts attempts at at- tempts were were made to establish a bo board rd t f of ot agriculture but neither the first proposal In 1796 nor a second effort In 1817 was successful Shortly after the Revolution following follow follow- lug ing the example of ot Benjamin Frank- Frank Un while In England as agent alent of ot the colony of or Pennsylvania during the sears rears 1764 to 1775 American consuls find and nd naval officers began the practice of ot sending home foreign seeds and cuttin cuttings cuttings cut cut- tin tings is for new crops and of aiding In Inthe inthe the he Introduction Into the United States of new breeds of ot domestic animals J Even such small governmental partial participation 0 patina pation was In the beginning rather extra In 1830 1836 the commissioner of patents pat pat- ants one H. H L. L EU Ellsworth be began an the fT distribution of or considerable quantities of ot seeds and plants plant received from government government gov goy representatives In tore foreign countries and three years ears later through his In Influence on nn appropriation of or 1000 was made for tor the purpose of ot procuring and distributing seeds of ot new plants carrying agricultural Investigations investigations In In- and collecting agricultural statistics This was the historic beginning beginning be be- ginning of or the talked much-talked-about free seed distribution By an act of or congress In May 1802 since generally called the organic act the then n activities of the government affectIng affectIng affect affect- Ing agriculture were placed under a separate and distinct organization known as ns the Department of ot Agriculture Agriculture ture In char charge of or a commissioner of ot agriculture It did not rank how ever with the other executive departments departments depart depart- ments and the commissioner was not entitled to a seat In the Presidents President's cabinet Isaac Newton chief of ot the agricultural section In n the patent office was appointed the first commissioner of agriculture Other officers provided by bt the organic act Included a statistician states statis a chemist an nn entomologist and anda a superintendent of ot the propagating garden and experimental farm tann The chrysalis was now ready to be brok broken n. n In 1889 th the Department of Agriculture Agriculture Ag Ag- was WIlB elevated to the rank of ot the other executive departments and Its commissioner was made secretary of ot agriculture with a seat In the Presidents President's Presidents President's dents dent's cabinet This was In Gro GroVer er Cleveland's administration In honor honorof of ot Its new rank a few more functions were taken on But that's enough dew detail II It kept on growing Beginning with an appropriation of or 1000 and two or three clerks the department had In 1910 employees to the number of ot 12 and nu appropriation of ot Five Fhe tears sears later Inter the appropriation hid bad grown to and the employees employees em eln to 1621 1 The employees In May 1920 numbered and the appropriation given by congress for forthe forthe forthe the fiscal year 1921 was 31 The department has Increased Its cost of or living Jiving In n 82 years ears from a mere 1000 that 1000 that Is Is s a month month to to more than a year year 2622 2622 every month That shows as aR and as ae sharply as It can cau be shown n how the high cost of ot government govern ment meat living affects your own cost of living We you and I 1 1 paid out of ot our savIngs savings sav sav- ings and earnings every red cent of that Increase from 1000 a year to to m mare He than It may have been well spent We probably got a run ruf for tor our money but nobody knows except except ex ex- ex In a general way We have ha a aright aright aright right to know It Is simply fatheaded fatheaded- ness neBS on our part not to find out |