Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-05-13
What Becomes Of the Money ::

into the belief that money contributed to the
| U. s. Sanitary Commission IS in too many
instances squandered or misappled. Wefre-
quently see such statements in the copper.
head papers, and it is for the purpose of Civ
ing what we believe to be correct informa.
ton upon this subject that we copy the fol-
lowing circular of the Commission, which
gives but a brief outline Of what is really
being done:
The cash which has actually reached the
Treasury Of the U. S. Commission, at Wash
iogton, has in three years amounted to about
one million dollars, of which the Pacific
coast has given three quarters. 1t would be
| we'll for those on the Atlantic coast, who
sometimes question our economy, to consider
this fact. Fifteen -sxteenths of this amount
is expended for supplies and transportation /;
the other sixteenth goes into the support OF
its homes, its lodges, its machinery of dis
tribution, its hospital directory, and hospital
and camp inspection. Supplies purchased
are such as country homes do not supply
such as .....
Condensed Milk, by the ton.
Beef stock.
Wines and spirits, by the barrel.
| Crackers and farinaceous food, by the ton
| Tea, coffee and sugar, by the chest and
hogshead. s.
Clutches, bed-rests, mattresses and bed
steads, by the hundred.
Cargoes of ice, potatoes, onions, picked cab
bage, sour krout, lemons, oranges, vegetables
by the car loads; anti. scorbutics and tonics.
H. D4 IL, of h.
consisting of President, Treasurer, Medical
Committee and Standing Committee, give
their services and their time gratuitously.-
They receive nothing. Their travelling ex-
penses alone are partly refunded them, and
these are trihIng. except the case of one or
two, who go frequently on tours of observa-
| tion.
The Commission supports twenty-five Sol
diers' Homes or lodges scattered over the
whole field of war, from New Orleans to
Washington, including vicksburg, Memphis,
Cairo, Chattanooga, Nashville, Louisville,
Washington, &c. Twenty-three hundred
| soldiers per day are taken care of in these
homes. Multiply $500 by 365, and you will
get faint idea of the number Of men thus
relieved. .......-
Three other agencies to secure the soldiers
rights are sustained by the Commission: /.
A Claim Agency to secure his bounty; Q.
A Pension Agency; 8. A Back pay Agency.
Often $4,000 back pay is secured in one day.
A Hospital Directory is also sustained, by
which the whereabouts of the sick men IS de-
termined. It costs $40, 900 per year to main
tain it. and is worth million, ifhuman anxi.
ETY. can be estimated in money. p. .,,7
The Commission also has sixty hospital
inspectors, constantly in the field. They
also have hospital cars on the main roads east
and west, along which sick soldiers are car
ried. They also supply the hospitals with
daily carloads of supplies from the princi-
pal markets. f... r..
The cost Of distributing supplies Is less
than three per cent ..-.,rris 81
The battle service of the Commission re-
qulres large funds and supplies. At MUIR
freesboro, Antietam. Gettysburg, Chattanoo.
ga, Vicksburg and Port Hudson, sudden aud
vast demands were made. $50,00O would
not cover the outlay the first two weeks after
our battles. At Gettysburg it was $4,000.
The average cost is. s., 30 to each man, often
as atGettysburg, $40, 90 per man. Are these
expenses extravagant, considering the bless
ings dispensed by the variety and amount Of
the Sanitary Commission?
Their agents, two hundred in number, re-
ceive, some more, some less, averaging just
$4,000 per day, or less than ordinary mechan.
ics wages; total, $4,000 per month, for
this vast human machinery Of the Commis'
sion, stretching from Texas to the Potomac,
and from before Charleston to Kansas.