Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-03-30
THE SPOILS.
The Rich PIaeerS OfWashingfOn- Great
Nuggets Laying Around Loose.

, Nuggets Laying Around Loose.
| Correspondence of the New York Express.
WASHINGTON, March 24-The i'm
mense influx Of office. seekers at the sea-
Of government has been duly noted and
commented upon in all the journals O.
the day. But to the people here behind
the scenes, the wonder is not that there
are so many, but so few, when the mag
nitude of the spOls and the grand aggre-
gate Of prospective thelts are carefully
regarded.
In the department Of the Public Print
ing there is a book-binding establishment.
of which the annual Clipping" amount
to $4,000 or 81 900 week. These
clippings sell at from eight to ten cents
per pound, or the same as cotton waste. :"
The amount for which these clippings"
are sold belongs to the United States
| government. But not one cent from this
source ever reaches the treasury The
question arises, who receives it? 1t is
magnificent placer for somebody and has
doubtless been we'll worked. Perhaps
an enplOye of the printing office, who res
ceives salary Of only 81 SOC year, but
who lives in a house elegantly furnished,
and provided with fine library elegant
" bound, can give some information On
this point. There ought to be, at this
time, at least 500 "epterprising' and
loyal book binders here to look after
these clippings Fifty thousand doll
lars year does not grow on every bush.
Men and brethren of the boOk-binding
persuasion, why stand We idle in the
Northern binderies, when such rich spoils
await you here?
The printing Of the Congressional |
Globe is another rich placer, yielding an |
annual profit of at least $4,000 for the |
last twenty years. The late Mr. Rives,
its proprietor, left a fortune of half
million of dollars, acquired mainly from
this office. lie was one of the most sa-
gacious men of his day. He lent his
money freely to members Of Congress and
never asked them TO return it. lie is
said TO have lent prominent member Of
the Printing Committee the large sum Of
100000, which has never been repaid
and never will be. Yet it has turned
out profitable Investment The prints
ing of the debates will not be taken from
the Globe while that person remains in
Congress.
When members Of Congress raised
their own salaries to s. 600 a year, be-
sides mileage, some credulOus people
believed they would be satisfied, and re-
frain from schemes of public and private
plumber. Those credulOus people were
mistaken. The increased compensation
only rendered them more greedy for i'll,
gotten gains. They had read OF Verres
and Warren Hastings, and they longed
to follow in their footsteps. When they
thought of the robbery of the Spanish
and churches by Marshal
SOult, they regretted that 50 superb
thief was not an American whom they |
could unanimously nominate for the
Presidency and install by force or fraud
n the seat of Washington. When they
looked over the list Of government de
aulters in the Treasury report of lS4S, :
hey could not conceal their contempt |
or the pusillanimous wretches recorded |
here for defalcations of only $4,000 and
$4,000 and $4,000, while for the mag
lifcent defaulters Of a million apiece
hey could hardly find words of approba-
ion sufficiently strong.
When the war was over in 1865, the
Southern States deeming themselves
estored to the Union, elected to the
Senate and House delegations composed
II men CT great ability and unsullied in- {
egTity. Among them were VIM. A.
iraham, of n. c., Randall Hunt, OF La
ohnson Barbour and Robert RidgNay,
f Va and many others Of the same i
lamp. The well known responsibility
f these men terrified the Radicals.
hey saw at once that if such men were
Omitted to Congress their occupation
TOuld be gone. 10 admit such men to |
he Capitol would be as suicidal, as for a
GARD of sWindling railroad directors to
Omit such gh-toned, honorable men as
rich. Oracle, or Geo. GTisWOrld, or JOna-
han Goodhue. No they must have
Onyenient tools, in Congress from the t
,Outh, who would conniye at any meas 9
re of extravagance and corruption.
Ience their invention of RecOnstruc- q
ion," and its twin brother, Carpet bag
sm," by which the halls Of Congress are
lied with so worthless a crew thVt even
heir foster fathers are ashamed Of them.
ten. Grant has proclaimed his intention
D administer the government with econ~
my. 1t remains to be seen whether
ven he has power enough to restrain his {
blowers in the National Legislature !
'Om continuing their depredations upon
he National Treasury.