The republic., 1850-12-04

and New Mexico, remote from navigable streams
and from the States where enlistnents are made
and whence all the supplies drawn. The dis
tance OF land carriage to many Of these posts is,
has already been mentioned, very great, and nu-
merous trains of wagons constantly employed
in conveying supplies to them well as in accom-
panying the troops in their marches. The exorb-
tant cost OF furnishing supplies to the troops in
Texas and New Mexico has already been stated; on
the Pacific, owing to the high price of labor, water
transportation is proportionably expensive. The
consequence Of all this is immense increase in
the expenditure of the Quartermaster's Depart
ment. In the year ending June 30 1874, the
pendtures of that Department
amounted to only, ......... $S70,999 10
In the year ending June 80, 1850,
they were ..................... 1925, ,293 90
In the year ending June 80, 1851,
appropriately ................ 39l5,954 00*
la the year ending June 80. 1852,
In the year 1914 the cost of transportation for the
army was less than s 10000; in the year ending
3oth june laet Il amounted to about Il 300 900
showing an increase of about fifteen hundred per
cent.
II is hoped that as settlements increase and cul-
tivation extends in Texas and New Mexico, and as
mining becomes less profitable and labor more di-
versiiied IN California, these enormous expenditures
will diminish. In the mean time every effort will
be made by this Department to curtail them II is
possible that at points remote from the super
vision of its chief, defects of administration in the
quartermnster's department may exist, to remedy
which some change in its organization may be-
come necessary.
No economy can, however, be effected by re-
ducing the estimates, which based upon positive
data, and cannot safely be curtaied The only
consequence which has heretofore resulted from
such reductions OF estimates, tcittout diminishing
the objects Of erpense has been the accumulation of
arrearages. An arrearage which has existed In the
quartermaster department since the year 1S4S.
amounting to the sum Of S ,290 $50 32, is said
have originated In that way. The practice of
allowing disbursements to exceed the appropria
tons is dangerous in the extrcme but if estimates
carefully prepared by the proper officers, are re-
duced, without diminishing the objects Of xpendi
ture, this irregularity may sometimes be unavoid-
able.
hereto annex such portions of the correspon-
dence OF this Department relate TO the subjects
mentioned in this report together with the reports
Of the general-n chief, and of the several heads of
bureaus of this Department; to all which l refer
you for more ample information in regard to its
operations.
Respectfully submitted,
G. NJ. CONRAD,
Secretary of War.
To the PRESIDENT or THE UNITED STATES.
= The amount stated for the year ending June
30, 1851, is that of the appropriations only, which
were based upon supposed increase of the army
Of fifteen hundred 500l men instead of three thou
sand, l3OO0,l as provided by law. 1t IS believed
therefore, that the expenditures will exceed the APP
preparations, though they will not equal those of
the year ending June 80, 1852, in Consequence Of
the delay which necessarily intervened after the
passage of the act of June, $780, before the augmen
tation authorized by il could be effected.