Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1841-12-31

extra session of Congrcss--from any increase Of
the Army! No; that was done under Van
Buren,. Ills venerable friend, formerly at the
| head of the Committee on Military Affairs,
sought to give them some account of tb e. These
| appropriation outstanding on the 4h of March
last, were more than thlrty-onc millions of dol
| lars, and the works of last Congress and the
last Administration, when these gentlemen had
a majority, and it was for them to account for
these appropriations showing large an in
crease. Had the gentleman forgotten, too, that
| when Mr.. Woodbury. was the Secretary of the
| Treasury, he preached to them to economze
and REFORM and keep the appropriations within
! the estimates and docs the gentleman remem-
| Der the conversation on this floor between dis.
tngushcd gentlemen from Philadelphia, Mr.
! Sergeant, now no longer member of this
House, when he asked him Nj. Jones if the
appropriations had not already exceeded the
estimates, and the chairman of the Committee
of Ways and Means said they had by something
like million of dollars; and the gentleman
from Maine, Mr. Evans, now in the Senate,
asked him, and he said they might exceed the
estimates by million and half of dollars I!
lie Mr.. s. would read from report of that
day to show him the unkndness in throwing
these taunts on US. Mr.. S. then read the fol-
lowing:
"On the Sd Of March. tSi1, Mr.. Jones, chair
man Of the Committee Of Ways and Means,
sald in answer to question from Nr. Sergeant,
as TO the probable amount OF receipts from the
customs, every gentleman could Judge as well
as Mr.. J. His own opinion was, that, owning
to recent occurrences, they would probably fall
far short of what had been formerly anticipated
"Mr. j. admitted that the whole amount APP
propriated by the bills and amendments would
exceed the estimates by million of dollars
"Mr. Evans here observed that the chairman
had omitted some important items.
| "Ar. Jones rcCollccted that he had omitted
'one Of $4,000, contained in the Naval APP
preparation bill. THIS would make the whole
amount of excess about million and half
"Mr. Evans said the total would be nearer
two millions and half lie then went into an
enumeration Of items to show that this was a
correct statement.
"Mr Jones said that he had spoken only OF
bills from the Committee of Ways and Means.
")Ir. Scrgcant observed that even admitting
the estimates of the Secretary of the Treasury
'to be correct, we should have this year but -
millions from the customs, and three and hall
millions from the public lands; and the sums
already appropriated would exceed this amount
by between ) and Millions
last Congress, when the reign of Van Buren,
ceased, and he no longer had the power to mis-.
rule this great and mighty nation, Mr. Wood
bury makes his estimates, and tells us we must
not exceed them and yet, before the session
is out, the chairman of the Committee of Ways
and Means admits that they we're exceeded by
nearly two millions of dollars How did they
dupe the country! Was there in those estimates
of Mr.. Woodbury's any estimate for the Florida
war!
Mr. S. then read from document No. 20
26th Congress, ID session, letter from the
Secretary of War to Mr.. j. w. Jones, chair.
man Of the Committee or Ways and Means, in
which, speaking of the arrearagcs due to the
Florida troops he says "This pay is now due
and, as the troops stand in need of it, Justice re-
quircs it should be paid at the earliest possible
day"-''wh as little delay as practicable
With this letter, of the date of December L.
1910, was transmitted the following statement
receive d from the Pavmaster Generals office
November ID, 1870 of the dues to the Florida
loops a: "For arrearages to the militia called
into service to Florida, S22l,224 o. and fol
pay of battalion Georgia volunteers for service
three months in 1870 S2D,il6 0S: amounting
to S2JO,G9O lOI
Mr.. II oodbury, in submitting his annual cs-
Inmates, kept out of view not only the money
wanted, but debts due; among others, this debt
thus the Wing party must be saddcd with char.
res which the Van Buren, Administration made
Was it kind fair, or generous for the gentle
man from Virginia to impose on the country in
this way Take away the twelve million dol
lars public debt, and we should be able to re-
duce the expenditures some ten or twelve mil
lion dollars. These appropriations, therefore.
were TO pay the debt created Sy the last Admin
istration, and not the Whiy Congress- or since