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Show National News Summary War Costs The continuing costs of World War II are expected to amount to more than the 531,000,000,000 total military mosts of World War I, by next June 30, according accord-ing to a survey just made public by the National Conference Board. The continuing costs of World War I, which include interest in-terest on war debts, pensions and cost of care of veterans, "are already al-ready about 40 per cent greater than the military costs of that conflict." By 1972, total costs of World War II to the United States are estimated at $700,-000,000,000, $700,-000,000,000, according to the War Department. Beneficiaries Veterans and their families, all prospective applicants for Government benefits, will number num-ber approximately 62,500,000 by 1957, according to an estimate by the National Industrial Conference Con-ference Board. Vet Bonuses Nine stales Connecticut, Illinois, Illi-nois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont Ver-mont have already authorized $1,500,000,000 in bonuses for veterans of World War II. Six other states Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin are considering programs which would increase the total to $2,-000,000,000 $2,-000,000,000 by 1950. Maine is the only state so far in which voters rejected a bonus program after its approval by the Legislature. Legis-lature. Vermont, in 1942, became the first state to provide a bonus and so far is the only state to finance the grants from current funds. Indians There are almost half as many Indians in the United States now as there were when Columbus discovered America, according to the National Gcorgraphic Society. So-ciety. The land they live on, however, is only twice the size of Pennsylvania. According to ethnologists, in 1492, there were 846,000 redmen roaming the territory ter-ritory now covered by the 48 States. There are now 400,000 Indian wards of the Government on reservation. This does not include in-clude the many who have become be-come independent citizens, nor the 33,000 Indians, Eskimos and Aleuts in Alaska. Air Forces The Air Force has announced that 250 Boeing Superfortresses and about 400 P-51 and. P-47 fighters have been taken out of storage as the Air Force builds its strength up to seventy groups. About 130 of the big bombers have been assigned to strategic air commands, while the other 120 B-29s will be used to replace out-worn aircraft of the Far East Air Forces and for other purposes. pur-poses. Home-Building With an estimated 92,000 new permanent dwellings begun in October, even better than the phenomenal 88.000 in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that 1947 will prove to be the best home-building year since 1925. |