New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-08-23
THE RRooRD OF CORRUPTION


actual Congress, their violent assaults on the
fundamental principles of the government,
their revolutionary tendencies, and then
fragrant usurpations, they are by far the most
venal corrupt body of legislators that ever as
sembled in this country. The shameless bar.
gaining which characterized their proceedings
on the tariff question and their unblushine
eonspilaoies with lobbyists and spectators tc
plumber the treasury, are enough to stamp
them with an infamous notoriety and to sig.
nalize their acts as conspicuous illustration
of all that is proaigate in legislation. Even
the New York Herald denounces them fol
their veual profigacy, and calls on the people
to place the stamp of public reprobation on
them atlthe next elections. The following is
q specimen of the manner in which that paper
| treats them
| Elected as Union men, they have proved to be
the worst disuni0nists: pledged to economy and
reform, they have INDUCED in the most lcentious
| extravaganza. At last, apparently quite despe-
rate Of consequences, they vote themselves higher
| pay, and they decree that this increased salary
shall be paid to them from the commencement Of
the session that has been passed in conoocting a
series of the most fragrant Jobs that have ever dis
graced our history. We call upon the people not
| only to take care of these Congressman at the
coming elections, but to watch how they spend
their ilgotten gains in after life. They are the
grand iobbers of the country. We cannot com
pare them to any former coTruptionists for they
have stolen millions where others have been sat
lstied with few thousands. They are not like
Judas lsoauot; for he sold himself too cheapiy in
the estimation Of these worthless. But their names
will be remembered like that OF Benedict Arnold
who also sacrificed his country to his love of ucre
and their children and their chdrens children
will be ashamed to say that their ancestors be-
onged to the infamous Ihirty-ninth Congress.
The brief official record of the passage, at
the last hour Of the session of the sbounty
bill, affords no indication Of the character Of
that measure People would hardly infer,
from its title, that it is really one of the most
extraordinary schemes for plundering d treas
ury, and taxing people, that ever was de-
vised by a legislative body. Yetsuch, in fact,
is its nature. The bill has two principal
features One of these is the section under
which the members of Congress voted to raise
their own salaries sixty-six per cent. in oppo-
sition to plain prohibition of the Constitu-
ton; and the other is that by which ninth
is, at one stroke, added to the public debt.
Under the specious title of an act for the
equalization of bounties" this bill raises the
debt from twenty-seven hundred millions. to
more than three thousand millions. The N.
Z. World says that !" all the internal revenue
duties under which we groan, with their entire
receipts for a whole year, will not pay the cost
Of this gigantic bounty swindle. The esti-
mated receipts for the year ending June so.
1867, are from customs, 500, 900, 600; internal
duties, S275, 600. 600; lands, 81, 600, 000 other
$20,000,000 total, 1896 900, 900,
which leaves surplus of Sill, 100000 over
he estimated expenditures Of the year. In
hese figures the tax-paying and voting citizen
has ready standard of comparison by which
o judge Of the enormity of the crime perpe-
rated by these jobbers and stealers of the
Jump Congress,
The same paper thus effectually disposes Of
he himsy arguments argued in favor of the
ill:
1t is not a debt. Where is the evidence of it
where is the law where are the papers in proOf9
We do not owe this S350,000,000 to any body, for
lnything.
Its not moral obligation Soldiers were paid
y bargain to which they were free parties
ney agreed to perform military service for GER
I
hose who went first were paid the least in boun-
es, and those who went last were paid the most {
bounties. And this is just as It should be. pre-
sely it is such justice as Christ preached in the ,
arabic Of the householder, and it is the Justice
Dheld by every sound economist to-day. Those G
whom the sacrifice was easiest went first. and 1
ere paid their own estimate of the value of their
crlhce. Those TO whom the sacrifice was more =
~ more dlincult and costly, Went later, and later
Ill, and were paid their own estimate of the va u
e OF their sacrifice. Not whata man does alone 81
II also what he is withheld from doing and is Il
AIRED the doing, enter into his own and others es
nate Of the value Of his services =
Nothing was more natural and reasonable u
erefore, than that bounty should increase ac II
riding to the demand for soldiers not in propor. fl
% TO time seryed-the wages paid were alike to =,
for like periods of time-nor in proportion 70 =
ne to be served, which no one could foreknow AZ
t Tor which all were TO be and have been paid
ke Naturally and justly, therefore, hedemand 1t
tfeased tfof bounty represents demand eXaetly0 -
q IN ofderto get soldiers the demand had to in VI
aase, exactly Is THO supply ofsoldiers diminished
e dHefenGe 1nthls demand for soldiers, early 81
late IN the war, represented by the difference ia
0ounties paid, was not so great as it seemed -
hough considerable, for the currency constantly !"
grecatedd until the temonths of 1864. CT
10 equalize bounties therefore, is as absurd and ia
unjust as it would be to equalfze the price Of iii
Yernment bonds by a vote of Congress- having :
er to the purchasers in these easy times enough ~
nds to make their price to them no higher than ca
" pau W tllS puICudSSTS III IlG dark DAYS OF fa
war. In the 7-30 three years. bond which the ne
gave in the fall of '6I and in the $50 ~
ee years bond which it gave in the spring Of nlt
It contracted to do identical things in return
receiving needed money. But the buyer Of i6l. Or
the soldier of '61, and the buyer of 65, like an
soldier of '64, paid very different sums of X
1ey and Of time for their bonds or their bounty
the fnctuation Of the bounty, like the Ructua-
OF the bonds, represented exactly the relative
le Of the same service rendered in the different
,s. VIII the Rump, atitsnext session, equalize
rewards Of those who lent money to the gov. +be
nent during the war, as it has now undertaken wy
qualize the rewards Of those who lent it their
Ice IN the field during the war? has
Ut, in fact the soldiers will profit to ten
little extent by this extraordinary mea-
!. Probably nine-tenths Of the soldiers ,.C
ms have already gone into the hands of nil nil
nty Jumpers, spectators and lobby men. we
irresistible pressure of these people, s say
lght to bear on such. a Congress as the era ara
ent, has forced the measure through, and tina
cal regard for the soldier The very inter I ns
between the introduction Of this bill and pdl
final passage, its apparent defeat for Z
lths, was contrived for nothing but to gu
ice the value Of the soldiers claims, SO F
] Congressional and outside spectators sur
lat buV then, III, aft l,1,-o,, 20 Zoo rlI, Ill NAY