The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-02-10

AioimeO O Ne present ana estimated uehcien-
cies OF TIE treasury for the ensuing fiscal year.
and of 'he imperative necessity of mOdifica-
ton o. e tariff with q view TO the increase of
its revenues With equal impressiveness the
trenc hment in all available cases. 80 as to re-
duce, as far as practicable, the present heavy
schedules OF government expenditures. All
tlis inf rmaticn-with the figures, facs, argu-
ments and estimates of the several executive
deparuen's-was laid before the two houses on
the FIRST Monday in December last aud now,
within some three weeks of the end Of the ses-
son, the question recurs, what has been done by
Congr rs in reference to these executive recon-
mendationss
First, upon the tariff question, we have had
any number of consultations and caucuses on
the part of the democratic members of both
houses who are responsible as the majority
party; and the nearest approach to any definite
line of action is in the proposition of Mr.. Miles
Taylor to suspend for two years the reduced
tariff law of 1857, which. for the time indicated,
will be the restoration of the 'higher law Of
caucus in this connection we turn over to the
careful digestion of the reader. There may
be yet time enough for the simple process of
suspending the law Of 1857; but it is quite pos
sible that even this expedient of relief may fail.
In this event, the President, in order to provide
the ways and means whereby the revenues may
be brought within striking distance of the inan-
cial liabilities of the government, will have no
other alternative left him than the call of an
extra session of the new Congress.
On the subject of retrenchment we have had
some very beautiful proceedings in both houses.
The Senate. for instance, has passed the old
French Spoliation bill, measure which involves
a demand Tor five millions of dollars beyond the
calculations of Mr.. Cobb. The House has
pas, al om,nium gatherum Old Soldiers Pension
bill, wlich, should it become law, will call,
perhaps, for an extra sum from the trea 'ury of
five, Il hit or ten millions of dollars-no man can
tell how much within several millions The
same body has passed the Homestead bill, which,
if it should become law, will at once cut of
from the treasury the three or four millions q
year now received from the sales of thu public
lands.
These are retrenchments with a veng' ance. y
But the most farcical proceedings of the House
in this direction have yet to be recited
That learned body of buncombe political
managers abolished our diplomatic esta-
blishments If Rome, Sardinia Switzer-
land, Persia, and other places, and then
they were all restored to the bill, and it has thus
passed. And go, the other day, the appropria-
ton for the support of the Congressional Globe
was stricken out of the bill under consideration
by the casting vote of the Speaker; but shortly
thereafter this item If $1,000 was restored by
nine majority. 1t was again struck out yester-
day. (See House report for this and other
items.) These are the most conspicuous of
the retrenchment experiments attempted by the
"men of buckram" and the men of buncombe
of the House. But should they get the expected
astounding reports from the naval investigating
committee of Mr.. Sherman, and the public print
ing investigating committee of Mr.. George
Taylor, they may, perhaps, be furnished with
matter for some retrenchments and reforms of q
practical character before the close of the
session.
The House, however, has done one good thing
in the way of economy, and the Senate another
The House measure to which we refer is the
adopted resolution from Mr. Faulkner, of the
Military Committee, that, preliminary to the
final settlement with the citizens of Oregon and
Washington Territories for their military SER
vices against the Indians in 1856 and 1856" the
Third Auditor of the Treasury shall overhaul
these claims and report thereon to Congress.
"NO double pay to be allowed, and supplies,
transportation, &C., to be paid for with due
regard to the number of troops, and the prices
current at the time" This is called "scaling."
and to the fshy contractors concerned it will be
pretty rough scaling. live are not mistaken, these
Oregon Indian fighters have made up budget
of claims which reaches the handsome figure
five or six millions of dollars, including all the
fabulous extortions Of the Florida war under
Martin Van Burens administration. But in that
case the bills were paid while in this they are to
be "scaled," or raced down to the regular
market price, which makes all the difference in
the world to the treasury, to say nothing Of the
difference to the contractors.
The Senate bill Of economy in question is the
bill passed by that body calling for bids for the
construction Of the Pacific Railroad by the
Northern, the Central and the Southern route,
before entering upon the prosecution of the
work by any route, or upon any plan Of opera
tions. Here, between the policy of proceeding
blindly into this enormous enterprise and the
policy Of first ascertaining the best and cheapest
route, and the probable cost, there will be
margin for the saving Of twenty or thirty, and
perhaps even fifty millions Of dollars. Upon this
subject, therefore, the Senate have hit upon the
practical idea of retrenchment; but their bill has
still to run the gauntlet Of the buncombe men of
the House.
Beyond these few measures of precaution and
economy we have had little or nothing from