Democratic standard. [volume] (Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio) 1837-1850, 1841-02-23
PUBLIC ExPENptruREs

- = ~eSs~esI EeOBrdft
. '22rlS4l.sj idaiu usu llag7 78s
Ia order TO swell The expenditures =,
!. me last four years 10 one hundred ana
= in'y millions, Senators have included
= !. ,ten's, not only Of The most uniusi bo, ~
"".. 's nOSt rediculous character. / shalt
enomerate few Of them. "''
One large item in this amount was r..
! y expended upon the public buiIJ.
: s Is mere single member Of The
= S ena'o VINO either raised his voice. or
: gave MS vote against the ann,on.;ss;,. =.
Tor this purpose? The mopev ornsad"S
on, these buildings alone dnrin0 nueN ,Ha .s:
90 OF the present Administrator. a am sTo,,r,. ryt
10 between four and FIVE millions 49,
iOl added up the sum; but i, is cer,.;n1
y not less than four millions. Ana va,
lnese appropriations made by Cono,...
Without distinction Of party, are co1vo,,
ca INTO an item of exlravagancs aga;r.,
Mr. Van Buren! against
Then there was the money expeDdsd
IN the payment of pensions, amoun,ino
upwards Of ten millions of dnII.rs
Liad the Administration any control orsr
this expenditure2 These peosions wsra T..
grained ny a grateful country fo ,boso
who had defended il in The ner;Iou.
lines which tried mems souls, and who
are now the feeble and broken relic" ~
past age, dependent on the public bonn.
y ior Their support. Congress has sIso
grained pensions 10 such widows of oI1
soldiers, as ip the days of the Revolu,;o0
remained al home, and attended IN ,bo;.
families whilst their husbands wen, for,L
10 the battle field. Be this right or ba
IL wrong, had ihe present Adminis,r,.
'lon any agency in granting these mem.
sionst Did not Congress pass these lave.
aud did not the Senator from Ken,rcLI
vote for Them! / do not know 1be fsc;
because il is not my practice IN eT,miOs
the llurnals for the purpose of ascertain.
ing how individual members NAV have
Fotedi but do know, from the natnra az
'he man. that he fMr. Critlendenl is one
OF The last members of the Senate wLo
would vote against such pensions. Ana
yet' strange 10 say, the payment of these
very pensions to old soldiers and their
widows, BY the Treasury, is one Of ,bs
items OF extraVagant expenditure charo.
ed against MIR. Van Buren's admiuis,rs.
aohi and the aggregate of S Sl30,OOOO 600
composed OF such.. items as these has besn
spread oV'r the whole country, in orAsr
to alarm the fears of the peoDle.
Again. There was the expenss of
sxtInguishing the Indian titles within tbs
states and Territories of the Union. and
u removing the Indians west of the Mir-
FssIPPI, which amounted to mora tyu
en- millions Of dollars. Are the presan,
AdministFationlo 10 blame for this ernsn.
IltureH Could the President have ayo;J.
q It, after the Senate had ratified r..
reatIes under which it was incurredp M
senator on this floor will saw tha, he
ould. he had no discretion, whatevar
n the subject; bnt7was obliged to exa.
ute these treaties and the laws made in.
ursuance of them. How unjust is i
len, TO put, down this item in The agore',
ite ofone hundred and thirty millions of
oliars expended BY the present Admins.
might, if pleased, pass in review al
ae other heads Of extraordinary expsu.
lture detailed by the Secretary of ,hA
'reasury in his report, and show ,ha. Il
as impossible for the President TO avoid
ny one Of them. He can exercise mo
Ispenslng power. He must obey the
cts OF Congress and treaties; and these
ws and treaties we're ofsuch pressing
scessity as even to have disarmed opuo.
ton, aud to have received the votes of.
70 political enemies, as we'll as of the
lends OF the Administration. NAV
ell spare myself this trouble, as not one
these items of expenditure has ever
zen questioned by any Senator upon
IS h"or. II is true, they exclaim, YOU
we spent one hundred and thirty mil
ms ofdollars, and, this is enormous: bnt
ey make no attempt to show how ii waa
ssible for the President to have reduc.
this amount.
There ars two or three itams enbrae-
within this aggregate, Of character
extraordinary as to deserve more than
mere passing notice. ID the Secreta.
5 report, the indemnites amount "a he,
eensix and seven millions oFdollars.-
bat are these indsmnities? General
cksons during his prosperous Admins.
lion, suceeeded in obtaining satisfac.
p for allithe old claims which our citi.
hs had against foreighh GoverDmsnts. '.-
got neatly FIVE millions from Frances; y
q lido not Fecollect precisely how much e
'm7Denmatk, and other nations, AtalI1
ents, he left us a clear score, and the
jDylnent of peace with all foreign be.
ms. Nov, according 10 the terms of p
Q treaties, these ihdemnities, obtained
om foreign Governments for our own t',4
iizsns,g were paid into 8the Treasury
r their use, and were of course paid out
the Treasury to them, as soon as il was