Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-02-04
Extravaganza i'm the Pennsy Iva.
min LIE z fslature.


Wherever the Republican party has had
a foothold for some time, with the promise
of permanent occupancy, the extravaganza,
amounting almost to undisguised robbery,
is astounding. From time to time, we have
had glimpses of the way the. Radical patri-
OTIS at Washington do up the plunderiug of
the people there. Below we furnish the
exhibit first made by the Reading (Pa,)
Times of the startling manner in which the
Pennsylvania Legislature is run !, ...5- ..ys
/ In my yesterdays letter referred to the
subject of ''Retrenchment and Reform"
which is beginning to attract some atten-i
tiOn here. 1 also stated, in former let
ter, that a resolution was adopted directing
the Clerk to inform the House as to the
number of ''oficcrs" now employed, which
resolution was offered BY Mr. Mullin
(Dem }, of Philadelphia and adopted by
the Democrats with the aid of a sufficient
num mber of Republicans to constitute a
majority. When the Clerk came to make
up the list, itwas evident that it would be
pronounced simply outrageous by ninety
nine hundredths OF the taxpayers of the
State. did all in my power to ascertain
in advance of the Clerks statement, how
many there are, but could only succeed in
getting the number employed as
'.pasters and folders" and this fig
ure is truly startling, there be
ing now no less than thirty-eight abl,
bodied men on the list, who aI last year.
rate eofcompensation (about $500 average)'
will amount to over thirty thousand dollars
for doing the work of folding, wrappin.
and putting up about four thousand copie
of public documents daily. . 1 know that
responsible parties would be glad to do all
this work by contract for So 600. and YET
f, f..ly A. n
this petty item alone. Last year the sum
required to pay these pastors and folders
was $2O.6OO tsee Auditor Generals Report,
page 1l2l. .rt.,-,.,.'l. d4 I. .--,4 -.
The amount paid the officers of the SEN
ate, last session, including passes, was $32,-
67l. Although, in 1866, the Capitol extern
sion was put up and everything i'm and
about the Senate Chamber newly furnished,
painted and repaired, we find that last year
there was paid. for furniture, material and
labor furnished Senate Chamber, the sum
of $2040l75.s l4A7 slli a,4 la,st'rs';05} q
But the House account is the interesting
one. Sixty -four thousand, three hundred
and ninety-six dollars and eighty cents
1854 1896 SOY were paid to the officers of the
House, during the session OF 1867. The
postage bill amounted to Sl64e3.40. The
contingent expenses of the House, includ-
ing $4.293 paid for stationery. Purdon's
Digest, &C., amounted to 236S9'69. = ''4
$50 10 Maid To A w Renedict for sa1vices
as assistant fireman. aud l have very
good authority for saying that Mr.. B. did
man; or in ~ ony otber ,,;sv for s;,r,.n..,
that no one knew OF such an assistant
fireman" as A. w. Benedict. until his name
w was cerIlned as such ana Iaiu oy the state
the naster0 pT ap .f,,an @ &c W;,i;n Sr,,is
who received, "a salary of nearly $500 for
tdoing-nobody knows what. He certainly
d'a a1 NOT serve IN the folding room at all:
ond Hi ns tha p1LS Wnma 'no Somae OfamDei ~
and the whole ieb NOT mora than two ,peets
amounts to S2isG5 " F6r - This snm p the cnss ,ss