State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1831-1836, 1836-06-28
MONTPELIER, <vT.> JUNE es, nsae.

prohtaDle he expended III any gwen period
of time. A document on our table shows
that there remained in the Treasury on the
first day of January last, of money before
appropriated and not then expended, 49,
! 100000. Of this sum more than two
millions were of appropriations for repairs
ofshlps, and the increase and improvement
of the Navy; $l33,000 for Navy yards and
although no fortification bill passed at the
last session, there still remained in the
Treasury at the beginning of the present
year over fifty six thousand dollars, of
money previously appropriated to fortifca
tons-and all this during the existing diff
culties with France. Sir, either the Exec
utive must have been wilfully negligent of
its duties, or the uneXpended money in the
Treasury could not be profitably expended.
Gentlemen certainly will not take the first
horn of the dilemma. Neither will j. We
all know that the demand which the Gov
eminent makes for the peculiar kind of
materials and labor which it requires, may
become greater than the natural means of
supply and that when such point is
reached, any attempt to force the proseCu
ton of works must result either in mate
rial reduction in their quality and value, or
such wastefnl expenditure of money as
a period Of the most extreme necessity and
danger. Sir, most of the money under
these eXtravagant appropriations cannot,
and will not be expended. 1t will still re-
main in the Treasury, and all attempts to
drain it by this mode of operation, will, so
far as the money is not extravagantly vast
ed, be altogether migratory. The Secreta-
ries, bdsh ofWar and the Navy, well under
stand this matter, and wisely decline max
ing themselves responsible for these Quix-
otto appropriations. If gentlemen desire
to assume a responsibility which the Exec
utive declines, they are certainly at liberty
to do so. | shall take care to wash my
hands of the responsibility by voting against
the appropriations
But, sir, the "national defence" project
having encountered so many obstacles from
| the Departments, and it being ascertained
that it will entirely fail of dissipating the
public revenue, gentlemen have very in
dustriously set themselves at work in in
venting other schemes for accomplishing
the same laudable object. ] shall not stop
to enumerate the various projects which
this strife for the honor of being the in
ventor of the most expeditions and effectual
mode of draining the Treasury has produc
ed. Any gentleman, who has curiosity
to examine q list of them, will find one
approximating as nearly to perfection as
the nature of the subject will admit, in the
printed remarks of the gentleman from
New York on my left, Mr. Gillett, who
catechised so non eOmmttdlly his colleague,
Mr. Grauger,] in regard to these various
schemes, and who, thought before the
prompt responses of his colleague were
completed, most heartily wished them back
in the brains of the very respectable gentle
man who had concocted them. ! feel under
great obligations to my friend from New
York Mr. Gillett] for the labor he has so
praiseworthiy expended, in hunting up
from among the dusty files ofthe twoliouses
these various schemes, and or presenting
them in so condensed and portable a form.
| ! have had thoughts OF moving the House
for the printing of an extra number of the
gentleman's catalogue, in order that my
constituents might have perfectknowledge
of'the very great variety of modes by which
the public money may be ingeniously
squandered; but as | doubt whether such
n motion would be in order without a Sis
pension of the rules, trust the gentleman
will pardon me for waving 1t, at least for
present. 1t is little remarkable, sir, that
two ofthe most prominent of these objects
in pursuance erhaps, ofthe great anxiety
of gentlemen to put down all monopolies-,
are for the benefit Interpretations. refer
to the project of The grave Senator from
Tennessee, Mr., Grundy] for entering into
partnership with railroad companies; and
to the no less commendable one of the
Senator from New York, Mr. Wright for
investing the surplus in co poration stocks /!
Who are to be the agents of making these
investments we have noty yet been informed.
] hope ! shall not he considered out order
in suggesting that there are sundry very
worthy gentlemen in the New York Senate,
who have had great experience in these
stock matters, and whose claims for services
rendered, and trials and trbulations endured
in the bloody wars against monopolies,
ought not TO be overlooked.
Mr.. Chairman, there is very great in
herent difficulty in this matter of spending
the entire surplus. When there are really
no proper objects of expenditure, it requires
immense intellectual labor to discover them.
J ] wonder, sir, that some gentleman has not
introduced an appropriation, say ola million
or two, to be awarded to the person who
should invent the most plausible mode of
draining the treasury. | do not think it
would produce many new schemes, for
'N''N'c W" ''fSh"''y VI SNhhNIilNu has AZ
ready been taxed to the utmost; but il
would have the merit of being itself n
project, and of ahstracting from the Treas
ury precisely the amount which was APP
prOpriated as a premium. Ifany gentleman
has scheme in his drawer ready to offer,
and thinks this better one; or II any gem
tleman who has produced scheme, and
I ridden it through its butterfly life, is DESTROYS
Of mounting another hobby, he is welcome
TO this--"free gratis for nothing" leave
} the sum blank, to be filled up by whoever
receives it. do not engage that it is abso-
! lutelY proper mode Of Spending the nuh-