Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1859-05-29

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Total officers and men $50
of whom FIVE bundled and thirty-nine are reported
| as absent leaving but three Thousand and eight
hundred actually present and IN service at CHOSE
distant posts" o. the date Of the returns; which
! suppose shows pretty fairly the general average
| proportion Of sbsentees. These troops slresdy
at CHOSE distant posts" and, of cOurs will not
have to be transported TO them, unless the powers
that be shall think proper TO order them home and
20 send out others n their places. The expeudi-
| lures Of the QUsreTmastsrs Department cannot be
estimated for with even much preCision those
Of the Subsistence D pert nent depending, iEey
do TO a very great sent, upon the moveneJ t. Of
the Army. The estimates for the year 1852 for The
| Quartermasters DepSrtnent, much larger, in
proper ion, than The expenditures Of the same
department in any one Of the years during the
| with Mexico, when 0lmost our entire army vas in
| the eEemys country and almost cent Guslly NOV
! ing; requiring extraordinary expenditures for the
various kinds of transportation incident TO in
yadng army. This fact Of itself is conclusive, at
least TO my mind, that thesc estimates eKtraVa-
gantly large and should not be granted without the
slrctest scrutiny, and satisfactory that the
public interests require their appropriation and ex~
penditure.
The Quartermasier General thinks the service Of
his department viii require the extraordinary ay-
preparations for which be has estimated, because Of
our acquisition of territory and he distant posts
therein He Gays that ''in the year ending Tie
3Olh of June, 1874 the whole expenditure for Army
TRANSPORTATION amounted to Sll5,299 .; in the
yesr ending the 30Jh OF June last, accounts already
received and examined show expenditure Of ST.
9lG 49, accounts to be received sill swell tli5
penGiure to over tw0 millions; and that amount /
have estimated for the next fiscal year" Why this
! is done VIC are not informed. can l conceive
The troops are already in The aad distant Ter
rtories sufficient numbers Tor all practical aad
useful purposes.
The Commissary General Of Subsisteuce largely
increases his estimates, because 'he price Cf the
Fstious has been increased by elntrac;s made in
California, New Mexico, and on the upper Rio
Grande, for articles OF subsistence, TO save trans
portstion" The one or the other of these est-
mates it seems 10 He must be WIoDg. If contracts
have been made for the delivery Of articles Of sub
sistenee ct those distant posts 10 save transPO,-
tstion, Of course the expense CT transporting them
will not have to be paid. Ga the other hand if he
articles to Go purchased and received in the old
States and transported to the posts where required
at the expense of the Quarlermastcr's Department,
the Subsistence Department should net estimate for
tie increased price of the ratiors
Accompanying the estimates submitted by tie
Secretary Of the Treasury ct the commencement Of
the present session, is letter or report from the
Quartermaster General showing the "f5iJ estimates
for the QHartsrmJsteTs Department. for the year
1852 to be ''S4, 1900
Accompanying the annual report cftie Secretary
of the Treasury On the state of the fiaauces, De
CtEnDeF TO- lOJv Is d letl0F anu statement L. NO
/ } from The same officer showing The increased
annual expenditures On account Of the Quartermas-
ters Department for the last six years, and the sup
posed and estimated expenditures for the years
1851 and 1852.
From this statement or table it appears that the
estimated expenditures for The fiscal year ending
June 30th, 1852, are 81 1872 538 65 which is S242-
$50 65 more than the estimates submitted by the
Quarermsster General, for the came year, at the
commencement of the session, dIted November 4,
1850. This discrepancy, however, can be accounted
for on the ground Of ascerlaiue1 anticipated
deficiency which will occur in the appropriations
for the service of the Quartermaster's Department
in the year 1852 discovered en- the llth OF Novem-
Der, $780, seven days after the estimates we're pre-
pared.
By the reports eff the Adjutant General it appears
that in 1876 there were in the military service of
the country 27,lS0 persons, eff GERS and men; of
whom "A 1854 were in the field, aud 2, 1876 at the
forts and stations in the Eastern and Western divi-
sions of the United States. The aggregate expeRd-
itures Of the Quartermastors Department for that
year was 81 S27, 302 Is, which was an average ex-
penditure per man Of $85 g.. The war vas not
declared until May 18th, 1916, and consequently
but little Of the increased expenses, account of
the war, actually paid before the expiration Of
the fiscal year.
The report of the Adjutant General of November
4, 1e47, shows that 'Ihe army in the campaign,
gulars and volunteers" was 80 $50, and st forts
of the army 2 424 eff GERS and men-sggregate 10
Zoo The total expenditures of the Quarterrssters
Department, for the year 1847 were SIT, 1926 1856 !
"A, being an average expenditure of 1914 81 per |
man.
From the same sources Of information, we learn /
that the number Of regulars and volunteers in /
service at the termination Of the late war; was |
AZ, loo officers and men, regulars and volunteers
The total aggregate expenditures of the Quarter |
masters Department, for the year ending June !
S0th, 1888, were Sl7,2l4 3S2'35, which was az |
average of $3.50 09 per each Individual, officer and
man This aad the preceding fiscal year we're, in
point Of fact, The gears OF The Mexican war ia which
The enemy was conquered, and the heavy disburss-
ments we're made
The report Of the Adjutant General, November
%, 1850 shows that the aggregate strength OF the
Army ct the latest returns, was 10 T63 persons in
GLIDING officers and men-abseat and preseu. The
estimated expenditures of the Quartermaster's De-
partment for the year 1852, are $4,75O Gee, being
an average Of SAL 81 for each individual which
exceeds the average expenditure per man for the
year le47, that being the highest average expendl
ture during the war, 500 so. This excess alone,
over and above the highest Expenditure of
The Quarernnsters Department for the highest
average war expenditures, is within twenty d5lsrs
ot What the average expenditure Of that depart