The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1866-02-03
S.Ycsl Millions.

cost. Our government is too deeply in deb.
to venture upon expenditures of this sort
The ccst is esti mated at seven millions. The
money must, of course, be borrowed, and
before it is paid, interest aud all will heve
run up to ten Or fifteen millions The main
source Of all ur troubles at present is debt,
and the enorn Gus rate of interest we pay.
Debt and interest are eating US up-ruining
our prosperity, and crushing US beneath an
intolerable load of taxation. How can we
hope for relief by increasing that debt?
The argument on It's face, is u forcible
one-unanswerabe. But should i. have any
force in Congress? In the pursuit of their
negro hobbies, and New England theories,
our national legislators evidently take no
thought of the cost. 1t has been demons
strated again and again that the present
tariff devised for the ACKNOWLEDGEMENT of New
England, costs the producing classes of the
West S6O0,000,00O annualy-double the
internal revenue that Expresses US SO griev>
ously. Let Congress remove the prohibitory
duty from the single article of prints, and
revenue enough would be derived from i'm
portatioa, and twice as much saved to our
people in the price Of that one article as
would be needed to build the Niagara ship
canal Ought rot New England, which is
fa,tcning SO enormously at our expense, to
yield just one little point like this to benefit
the West?
Then Congress, in the pursui. Of It's New
England hobbies is about to pass the law
lit has already passed the Scaate) to ''enarge
the powers Of the Frcedmen's Bureau
Before this enlargement Gen. Howard
estimated the expenses of the Bureau for
the current year at $l2,000,00o. The en-
largement will multiply these expenses enor-
mousy. A. present The Bureau has one
cher at salary of $1,000. The new law
divides the country into IL districts, with q
chief for each. at Il salary Of $1,000, making
$4,000. Then each county in the L. S. is
erected into z sub district with an "agent"
for each, at : salary of $500. There are
]. SIS counties in the 5 f.; So there is
another item OF SYST 900 io- salaries. Tsen
the bill authorises - clerks at $1,000 each,
making $50, 400. Tien it authorizes 3,IJS
assistant commissioners, al salaries thar
will amount to $7,4l2,00o more. Here We
have the snug little sum OF so ,3o4 400 for
salaries alone. Then the bill provides for
dividing up 100000 acres OF good lard"
into 10 acre Lome-teads for the negroes. At
s. per acre this makes Slj,0 ,OOh more
Then the bill provides that the negro Shall
have house. or shelter on his little home
stead. At $500 each these houses will COS:
So 900 more. Then the bill authorizes
the building Of school houses for the negroes,
and as there are at least l,OO0, 900 of them
that need schooling, It will take 10000
school houses, at $500 each-S9 900. 1000
and teachers. & c.. mounting to $50 Tor each
| pupil-S20 900, 900 more. But homestcads,
shelter and schooling are by no means all
| the good things Congress has in store for the
| poor negro. The bill in question also pro-
! poses 10 stock" his little farm for him, and
to provide him with ''lccessary provisions
until he can raise crop, and 10 furnish him
with medicines, asylums, Sc. Putting Il
very modest estimate on these, and adding
it To the su ms already enumerated, and your
Freedmen'S Bureau cannot cost the Govern
ment les than S275 100000 20 $500, O0o, O0l
i year. Nov, suppose Congress shoull take
Horace Greeley at his word, as the bes thing
that can be done for the ncgr0-makc bin
the equal Of the white man before the law
let GEN Howard expend his $4,000 900 il
providing for the really intirm and necessI'
tous among them; and then LEI the negro
"padile his own canoe" Here would be
sqci,.g of-weu. say S20).000,O0O Take
seven millions OF that to build our shiI
canal, and would no: the whole country
even the negro himsec-in the end be vastly
the gamer?
There could be another saving of twenty
or thirty millions by reducing the army tc
say 80 900 men, which is double what it evel
was before the rebellion, but which the radi-
Gals want to keep up to $1,000 men. The
provisional Government system az tho
South, winch the President and Gen. Gran
a month ago declared wholly useless, also
entails expenses Of millions that ought to be
saved!
SO it is seen that the cost of our ship
canal is a tribe that m ght in Ina:y ways be
saved, and our burden OF debt and taxation
itru,e nsely iightened besides, If the people
could only turn the thoughts of our Con
gressmen from the negro and New England
hobbies, which are so outrageously expen'
sivc, 10 the matter Of STrjng money to be
expended on things that are useful.
SENECA AND MARsEILLEs BRIDGES. Til.
bridge across the Illinois river Mt Seneca will
be completed during the coming week
There Is to be grand ball at Clark q
Underhill's Hall in Mnrseiles, on the 22t
inst. in Honor of the completion Of the
bridge across the Illinois river AT that place
Both these bridges are built in the most sub