Show expenditures OF THE DEPT OF agriculture much criticism has been launched against the department of agriculture ri for the heavy expenditures charged against that branch of our government and the following 10 ring letter written by secretary arthur M hyde in reply to a chiago chart published in the chicago tribune with reference to these expenditures is very enlightening on march 13 the tribune printed a chart which purported to show that the expenditures of the states department of agriculture had bad increased from 30 in 1917 to nearly in 1931 no explanation no statement of items accompanied the chart it created the impression that this increase in was for agricultural purposes because this impression is entirely false and because it does an injustice to the cause of the american farmer I 1 am asking you to give equal publicity to the following facts of the 1931 expenditures went to the states as federal aid in highway construction this money served the general welfare and relieved unemployment went to farmers in drought areas as emergency relief loans the department of agriculture did not ask forthe for the money it was no part of our regular program dollars went to the states for experiment stations extension services and forest fire prevention the department of agriculture did not spend it we were merely the channel through which the money was passed deducting these sums leaves spent by the department this contrasts with the spent in 1917 all other moneys were either paid to the states direct or were emergency funds for which this department made no request in 1931 went to the weather bureau including 1200 for commercial aviation only of the entire appropriation being directly for agriculture |