The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1866-01-11
Governors Message.

Gentlea,cn Of the Senate and House of Rep
reSeA;iCCs:
As the chosen representatives
ofthe people, you are convened in obedi-
ence to the requirements OF the Constitu-
ton, to discharge the important duties
VIII CHI devolve upon the Legislative branch
ofthe State Government, and I heartily
congratulate YOU upon the encouraging
auspices under which, We meet. From
condition of disastrous and protracted war
existing at the close of your last session,
the country has triunsphantly passed to a
p .riod of repose which through wise coun-
sells and the continued blessings of Provi-
dance, we fondly hope may become per-
pctual.
In communicating to you the condition
of the State, as required dy the Constitu-
ton, deem it expedient for yourinforma-
tion to present, i'm connection with the ii
nancial statement, an exhibit Of our mill
tary expenditures from the beginning of
the war to the present time. And may
be allowed to anticipate this exhibit with
the remark that, considering the sparse
ness of our settlements, the absence OF
8. eamboat and railroad facilities, largely
supplied by wagon transportation, and
that, in proportion to our population, we
Ii I'VE furnished larger number of troops
than any other State, promptly filling all
our quotas, our record presents through
the entire period an economy of expendi
ture clualled by no other State i'll The
Union
There was expended for military pur-
poses from
May. 1851, to Nov. 4, 1881 $3.50, 56S 43
Nov. 4, 1861, to Nov. 2, 1853 $50. l63 IS
Nov. =, 1863. to Nov. 4, 1856 1G9, 23I %
Nov. 4, 1885, to Jan. 1, 1855 4,O47 Il
These dates express the periods within
which the above sums were paid, but not
when they were actually incurred. The
mount incurred from Jan. IA, 1864, to
Jan. |, 1855, is S44,9al,32. Total military
expenditures for all purposes up to Janu-
a-y l, 1866, are 81 ,O46, 80.
1t will be observed that most of these
expenditures were incurred during the Pc
Rod beginning with the war and closing
with fiscal year lSG3. This was caused by
our being compelled, in order to facilitate
the military operations of the General
Government, todefray a large portion of
the expenses incurred in erIisting, trans
porting, subsisting, quarteriny and paying
the volunteer forces organized in this
State. The sums thus expended were
regarded merely as m ,ney advanced to
the United States, for which under the
Acts of Congress annroVed- rasn-.iivalv
July 18th and 9th, 1861, we are entitled to
reimbursement. ...
Although we have filled four several
acquisitions of the President for troops,
and organized four regiments and one bat
talon, during the last two years, yet the
entire cost to the State will not exceed one
thousand dollars. While / was anxious
that our State should promptly discharge
its entire duty in contributing to the ma
tional defense, in the way of furnishing
men, / refused to defray the expense in
volved in recruiting and forwarding our
quotas from the State Treasury; and ac-
cordingly the expenditures thus made,
were paid by disbursing officers assigned
10y the War Department.. The residue of
the expenditure of these two years wasIin-
currel in organizing the State Militia, UNI
der Act Of the General Assembly, approx
ell March rs, 1864, transporting arms and
ammunition, expense of the Adjutant Gener-I
ais Office, detail of men for protecting
Southern border counties from threatened
raids in the fall of 1864 and winter Of 1865,
and for all other military purposes except
the Sanitary Department.
CLAIMS AGAINST THE UNITED STATES.
Idesire in ahis connection as briefly as I
can, to present the condition of our claims
against the United States for reimburse
ment under the act of Congress above re-
ferred to. The sums embraced i'm these
claims were mostly expended during the
first and second years of the war from the
War and Defense Fund appropriated by
Act of the Special Session, May. 1861. The
history of our military transactions during
this period is too we'll known to the MEM
hers of your honorable body to require ex-
ptalrstion here. The evidence is perfectly
clear that thsse claim, are for money una
voidably expended for leytim tte military
purposes; ami also that they were allowed,
audited and paid by the accoun5in. and
disbursing officers of the State. in strict
conformity with the laws Of the General
Assem- ,y. Upon this point there ha,
been any room for controversy, as the ac-
counting officers of the United States Treas
ury freely concede. b ut the real difficulty
hetwaan US arises from the fact that, after II
large share of these claims he'd been paid
by the State in the utmost good faith, the
Secretary off,. :. Treas. aiopteda Sc: of
regulation, exceedingly te:hnical and un-
reasonable i'm their character, by which the
accounting officers of that department
were required te be governed in examin-
ing the military claims of the several
States. In the biennial message of my
predecessor, under whose administration
these transactions occurred, this conflict
Is fully explained as follows: ....
''There is due this State. from the Uni
tel States, for expenses incurred by the
State in raising and eqnpping troops, and
purposes growing out ofttse rebe. lion, the
estimated amount of 100000. There is
M IN difficulty in procuring an adjust
n,ent of this claim at Washington. When
these moneys were expended by the State
there was no law of Congress, or regua-
ton of the Federal Government prescrib-
ing the form i'm which proof of the expen-
iiture should be taken; and the General
Assembly ofthis State provided, by law,
for such proc and vouchers as were
deemed sufficient. both for the protection
of State and the United State. Upon