The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-07-15
WASHINGTON, ID. c..
The EXPENDITURE, OF THE GENERAL GOV
lRyNENT.


SPEECH or HON. JOHN SHERMAN,
OF OHIO, -f-t
IN THE HoEsE OF REPRESENTATIVES,,
MAY ~, 1853
The House being II commii,ee OF The who.e OH III
Amy bin, SHERMAN, Of Ohio, said
I wish 10 state my reasons for opposing thi
bin. and also the bill authorizing loan 0
Sl5,000000. II Is with some reluctance that
uespass upon the time Of the House at this peri
Cd of its session; aud win make my remark
as brief as possible. / do not know that an.
other opportunity will occur, and shall there
fore embrace the present.
PRESENT CONDITION OF TREASURY.
ou the first Gay of July last there was sar
plus of Sl7,7lGli "A in the Treasury. This sur
plus has been rednced to the shadow of shade
The Secretary OF the Treasury in December last
in a message calling for an issue of $4,000, 00C
of Treasury notes, told US that in all probability
but a small part, if any, of the amount would
be needed at early day; yet, now, we have
another message from that same officer, in which
he tells US that
This COO 600 loan of Treasury MODS, authorized by
the acI December ~ 1867 will be exhaus ed ,up
nyine the Deficiencies the Treasury for The
fiscal year
We mall commence the next fiscal year dependent
entirely upon The receipts the Treasury
meet all dem Irde from q"
So, for the first year of this Administration
have in addition to the current revenue, an
old balance OF SI7, GOO, 900 and $4,000 600 Of
Treasury notes already expended and gone We
have a deficiency of $37 600, 900 in a single year
and now called on by the Administration
for another loan of $l5,O00,000. And, sir, we
told that this loan will not meet the exigen-
cy-it is only a partial remedy, homeopathic
dose. The Secretary gives us fair notice that he
will want further loans during the next fiscal
year. / will call the attention of the Committee
TO this clause of his letter:
have confined this inquiry TO the two first quarters
OF the fiscal year. Congress will reassemble be-
fore the Close of the second quarter and il will be
enough Ihen should becom. necessary 10 provide for
iuBre contingencies, that cannot be foreseen"
Future contingencies that cannot now be
foreseenl" Is the Secretary, like Micawber
waiting for something TO turn up?" Sir, these
future contingencies can be foreseen. |
demonstrate to any sensible man that the Secre-
tary of the Treasury will be compelled 70 call on
Congress for S42, 100000 to supply deficiencies
in the next fiscal year. To that will have to be
added S2l, 100000 to redeem the outstanding
Treasury notes and interest, which run but for
one year, SO that there will be an addition to
the national debt of S63, 000, 900 in two years.
Under these circumstances, q loan bill is pro-
posed to the House. and it is not accompanied
by any measure of revenue, or of retrenchment
and reform. No proposition is made to increase
the tariff no measure to enlarge the revenue
As the first fruits of this Administration, we are
embarked in permanent system of loans to sup
port the Government.
UTAH WAR.
desire, for moment, to call the attention of
the Committee to another remarkable paragraph
of the Secretary's letter. He says that since the
meeting of Congress, the demands upon the
Treasury for the present fiscal year have been
below ten million dollars
would like to know by what legislation we
have increased the burden thrown upon the
Treasury Has the Committee of Ways and
Means introduced measures into this House ap-
propriating 100000 not sanctioned by the
Executive? Has any act been approved by the
Hou5e which appropriates $40 000, 900 not called
for by the Secretary of the Treasury If Con-
gress has thrown an additional burden upon the
Executive Departments, would like to know by
what law and for what purpose it has been done.
] have no knowledge of any bill which has not
been demanded and urged upon us by the Exec
utiye Certainly Congress has proposed no new
expenditure. But the Secretary says this has
been done LEGISLATION. We did pass a def
cheney Jill, and that suppose is the legislation
referred to- But at whose demand2 We all
know how urgently these Executive officers who
now seek to charge that Congress has thrown
upon the Treasury an additional burden, begged
to pass the deficiency bill. And what was
this deficiency for2 To carry on the Utah war
purely Executive war-a war made and car
ried on without the assent of Congress An i'm
provident war-a war as feeble in its conception
as it is likely to be ridiculous in its termination
With great ecldt, and at great expense, the Ad-
ministration gathered together army in the
Territory OF Kansas to overawe that people, and
retained it there until period too late to march
to Ctah before the approaching winter. With
utter disregard of either policy economy, the
President then ordered forward our gallant army,
10 spend the winter in the Rocky Mountains
He did not wait until Congress could be consult
ed. Instead of sending peace commissioners to
reason with rebeliious people, and negotiate
terms of peace, lie posted this army in the noun
tains, and compelled them to be supported there
with flour at fifty dollars barrel, and other
provisions at an equally enormous rate After
millions have thus been wasted, he discovers for
the first time that negotiation might prevent the
war and then, with ridiculous haste, commits
sioners are dispatched to overtake the army
Recent advices indicate that a private citizen
has accomplished what the Administration too
late attempted, and thus the Treasury has been
burdened by the useless expenditure of millions
of treasure by an unauthorized act of Executive
power
EXPENDITURES FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR
Mr.. Chairman, now desire to submit to the
committee some remarks In regard to the expend-
itures OF our Government; and to show their in
crease, and where we are drifting to- The ex-
penditdres of the last fiscal year, according to
the documents which We have before us were
il,O12,2l3, inclusive OF payments on the public
debit and S65,o32 ,559, exclusive of the public
debt. This is several millions more than was
expended for any year during the Mexican war
] have endeavored to estimate, as nearly as I
could, the expenditures for this current fiscal
year; and, in doing so, have taken the mate
rails furnished US by the Committee of WAYS and
Means | find that, at the third session of the
Thirty-fourth Congress, $72,ll2,2ss were APP
propriated; for this year, / find that the Com
mittee of Ways and Means has increased this
sum by deficiency bills amounting to Sill ,2Ol 7ol,
composed of the following items:
Sound duties by treaty with Denmark &333OIl
Prlhiing dtheiency already passed 3alISs
Balance OF printing deficiency for this year.
tesumateol 6OOOO0
IL
Posi- Office deficiency i469'I73
II,DI, 7ol