The Santa Fe weekly gazette. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.T. [i.e. N.M.]) 1851-1854, 1852-11-13
Log Rolling and its Cost.

country. By putting Of all the bills to
the close of the session, SO much work
has got to be done in so small guam
tity Of time, that not one man out Of
dozen can tell what he is voting for.
During the last three days Of the session
just closed, upwards Of $l0,000,000
were voted to this, that, and the other
object, but what these objects were, not
score of members will know till they
see the laws published in The Washing
ton papers. To show the effect of this
sort of legislation we would mention
that grant of $4,000 crcpt into one
Of the appropriation bills without any
man, in either house, being aware how
it got there. The present arrangement
forces men to go things so blind, that it
would not surprise us in the least 10 find
in some bill for the relief of the Bull
Head Indians, section giving the fee
simple of the Capital TO some Jeremy
Didler about Washington.
Another objection to the present mode
of doing business, is the quantity of log
rolling connected withit. Bills no longer
depend on their intrinsic merits for sue
cess, but on the merits of the bill 10
which they are attached as riders. If
Mr. Gag wants an appropriations for the
purpose Of constructing canal between
Duck Creek and Mud Hole Inlet, he
don't bring in bill for that purpose,
but he hunts up law that should and
will pass and fastens the Duck Creek
Canal to it as an amendment-by this
means thousand outrages aie commit
ted on the Treasury, and a thousand
bad laws are annually forced into being.
10 show the tendency of this sort Of
legislation, we would point to the civil
and diplomatic bill-a bill that has been
so loaded with amendments that you
can't tell whether it is law 10 defray
the expenses of the government, or q
statute to encourage saw filing. Wilh-
in a week after it was brought into the
Senate, it had over a hundred different
and distinct laws attached to it in the
way yof postscripts, and so dovetailed TO-
gether that q man couldnot vote against
an hundred thousand dollar appropria-
ton for the advancement Of lobster
market, without endangering bill on
which the vitality of the whole govern
ment depended The Harbor Bill, as
originally reported, contained appro-
priations which only amounted to one
and half millions of dollars. Before il
became law, it contained appropria-
tions which amounted 10 over five mill.
ions of dollars. The bill as originally
} reported, contained few appropria'
tions for few national purposes. The
bill as it PASSED, contained, as we sale
before, over $5,OOO,OOO Of appropria,
} tions; three millions of which are devo.
ted to matters Of no more consequece tt
the nation than would ship canal b'
between Sand Lake and Troy. Th,
| Navy Bill as passed by former Congress
} ses, Contained matters which related tt
the Navy and the Navy only The Nav.
bill of this session is devoted TO all pos
sible subjects--beginning with frigate
/, and leaving of with the bounty on mack
: erel and fishing smacks. To this bill
/, : the Senate in one day, ,tackcdon amend
E ments which filed sixteen pages Q
closely written foolscsp-the cost Q
: which amendments will amount to owe
e $5,0OO,0O0. We say they may amour
d to $5,OOO,OOO, but there is not Sena
. , tor who voted for them can say, wit
Y any certainty, that they will not amour
e to double this sum. THE way they rush
q ed things on Monday, renders it NOR
!. ally impossible for any one to say wha
: he did or what he did not do As "
said, the whole system is wrong, an
!, wen calculated 10 foster inproyidenc
mi y o..