The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-08-24

WOIO nave balu. ouE hcpuuiiCaH
friends are very much astonished at this
exhibition. [Laughter.] Did you ever
know a spendthrift when he was
brought face to face with the condition
of his affairs, that was not very much
astonished indeedi They will turn
upon us with some statements mae
by this same commissioner.
In his letter to Mr.. Allison, he says
that during the three years OF which |
have been speaking, the amount paid
on account of the public debt is $780,
600, 900, and that ought to save SIS, 5,0OO,-
600 annually in gold, by way of in
terest. Now if you look into that re-
port carefully you will find the actual
reduction Of the public debt is but
Sl34, 10000 and that the balance is
made up of an estimated surplus in the
Treasury, which is not there, if at all,
for the purpose of paying the public
debt, but for the purpose of being used
for the ordinary expenses of the Gov
ernment; and if you look at this sl3I,-
100000, you will find that of this
amount 81, 100000 have been reduced
by virtue of the contraction of the cur
rency and calling in the greenbacks,
which pay no interest at all; and if
you will put side BY side with these
facts that in three years the increase of
the debt which pays interest in gold,
has amounted to S602 900 900. you will
see how much your burdens have been
lightened.
Then this same Commissioner tells
us that tho estimated surplus in the
Treasury, on the lst day of July, 1863, is
S34 ,00O,0O0 Where are theyf They
have not been puid on the public debt;
that l have shown you. They are not
in the Treasury; that have shown you.
/ have, unfortunately, for our Republi-
can brethren, list of the deficiency
bills that were passed during the last
two or three weeks of the last Congress
and the last that have, imperfect as it
is, shows that they have appropriated
out of this S34 ,000, 900 the sum of 81 ,000,-
600 in that way. Ihold in my hand this
list. hate to trouble you so much with
the details of figures, but as this is u
fair specimen of the way in which our
fellow-citiZens. when they
get invested with power in Washing
ton, seek to cover uD their doings, you
will excuse me if l call your attention
to it for one moment.
The way in which these gentlemen
manage is this. They appropriate very
much less each year than they know
will be expended, and, toward the end
of the session of the year for which the
have been made, they
get up what they call deficiency bills"
to cover the excess. Then they 60 on
in the same session and appropriate for
the next year very much less amount,
and when that year comes round they
pass deficiency bills" again; but when
they come to tell you what the expenses,
year by year are, they say, THAT is all
we have appropriated" These are our
"See how much we
have curtailed upon last yearw They
forget to tell you about these deficiency
bills" Laughter
Listen to me ono moment. | will not
detain you long. Deficiency in expenses
of reconstruction, S657 900; second, ap-
for the same object S27S, 900;
a further deficiency in Third District,
and SS1 900 for destitute people (chiefly
negroes) in the District of Columbia.
Then we come to the War Department,
and we have q deficiency in the War
of Sl,900,000. Then comes
the Postmaster Generals Office and the
Quartermastcr-Gene Office and the
Post-oitice Department, and We have
deficiency bills in each; and the Treas
ury Department, and we have diff
cheney bill there; and coming to the
Collectors of Customs, we have a def
cheney there; and coming TO the Con-
struction branch of tho Treasury. and
we have two deficiencies there. Then
comes the Interior Department., and we
have deficiency there; and then the
government of Territories, and we have
a deficiency there. Then comes the
Department, and We have
deficiency Of S60O,000 in the Senate,
and $4,000 in the House. Then we
come to a second legislative deficiency,
then Pension Office, then two deficien-
cies in Public Buildings and Grounds,
and lastly n deficiency III the miscella-
neous bill. Great laughter
When next any of your members of
Congress tell you how much money
they have appropriated for next year,
ask them to read how much they dp.
in deficiency bills. [ Will
not weary you with this detail of figures
any further. might speak to you an
hour on that subject. They would af-
ford you very instructive lesson. You
would see n great many things that you
don't see now. / don't know whether
it is worth your while to see them. 1t
certainly is not unless you can correct
them. The conclusion of this whole
matter is that we are more than g.
600 900, 900 in debt, and that year by
year the Federal Government collects
from your pockets more than $780,
000, 900.
If you add to that $500, 200, 900, the
amount collected by the various State
Governments, it will run up to S500, ,000,-
600, and that is more than six per cent.
of the value of all the property in the
United States, and more than thirty,
almost fifty, per cent. Of all the earn
ings of labor and capital in the coun-
try. Let me state to you in sharp con.
trast with this Republican extravaganza
that the whole expense of the four
years of James Buchanan's administra-
tion amounted to only $3.50, ,000, 900.
Let me state that the expenses of the
whole four years of the War Depart
ment during the Mexican war, under
James K. Polk, amounted only to
800, 100000.
To be continued Tomorrow
Weaning Lambs.
Lambs should be taken from the ewes