Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1871-1872, 1871-09-12
FRDERIL TAXATION.
Between One and Two millions of
Dollars a Day %aken from the.
People By the Grant
Administration.
Five hundred Millions of Dollar. Stolen.

From the New York Expressly
The direct federal tsx il imposed upon our
tax ridden people for the fiscal year ending
June so, 1871, was three hundred and eigh-
ty-shree million, three hundred and twenty.
three thousand, nine handred and forty four
doilSss "A million and a large fraction for
every day 10 the year, Sunday included.
This is what the Tribune oails n good show
ing. 1t shows the old story Of bleeding the
people TO the uttermost, with very poor re-
turns. Adding other federal sxSesioDs, the
tax last year was at least $500, 600, 900.
Prom the Cincinnati Enquirerl
Such has been the soiI0iEude observed BY
the radical administration al Washington 10
conceal the enOrmIty OF Ihe current pu 0lIc
expenditures, that IE ls VITA greSE dIuioulty
a true aud plete account of the rev
enues oAn be Obtained, OF course, If the
revenues we're Ill shown in the othciAl Ie-
cspltulStions Of accounts published from
time to time, seemingly ~ guide, bur really
TO mlsleRd the public, the expenditures
would have to be shown. For exam PIE, ii
the secretary Of the treasury had SeknoWi.
edged, in his last report on the finances,
that IN 1870 the government had received
$500, 22S, 1855 Of public money, he would
have been obliged, Et the same time, 70
show wha at be had done with 1t. But this is not
the coarse the secretary pursued. II has
bsen the invAria bic practice Of the treasury,
since it has been under radical management,
TO bsittle she revenues, 80 as after ward 60
belittle the expenditures. Thus in the in
stance in question It would appear, accord
ing to the finance report of 1870 Up 272,)
that exclusive of revenues from loans, tie
total revenues of that year we're buI SAIL
2j5,477. In point of fact they were, as has
been already stated, $500, 228, 355, or $6S,
972,S78 more. What explains the differ
enoe? Simply this In the year 1870 the
government received $l9 ,772,22l from pos
tags, 500, 205 ,657 from sales of old war
material. Neither of these amounts were
acknow ledg ed to have been received by the
secretary of che treasury, but they will be
found duly recorded in the published reports
Of the postmaster general and the treasurer
Of the United States. IL must be remem.
bered that the secretary Of the treasury and
the treasurer are two different persons.
Bat our exhibit of the revenue does not
exhaust its value with the mailing of this
radical lie and false boast concerning the
taxes. First Of oil observe the working OF
the protective system, which these statistics
reveal. Ia 1850 the custom house Ii imposed
but $4,000, 900 Of taxes upon the people
In 1850, but So, 100000 in 1870 they
screwed out over $l94, 00O, 900! In 1850
we had no internal revenue taxes to pay in
1860 none even in 1864 in the middle Of
the WAr-the revenues from this source
amounted TO but $l09,0 O0, 900. Now,
five years after the close Of the war, they
sum up $Is5 900, 900.
But perhaps the most remarkable feature
Of this exhibit is that relating to the sales
OF WAT Material. The details OF these secret
Ssles Of public property have never been
given TO the public but enough has tran
splred 20 NIX upon them 9 strong suspicion
OF corruption aud fraud. There is at least
one instance upon which TO ground the pre-.
sumption that immense stores ofpublic pro
pertyhave been gold at q greGt sacrifice. pur-
chased BY bers Of the notorious and cor.
rupt military ring, and re-sold to the govern
ment at q prodigious profit. And there can
be but LITTLE doubs that she entire lot of pro
perty thus sold by the war and navy depart
msnts for some two hundred and fifty and
oed m'lAons, and which probably coat, in
the shape OF war bonds still outstanding and
unpaid over one thousand millions, was
SOLD ooffuPuY IN order TO be corruptly pur.
chased AGAIN oy the same dishonest officers
" I
OF the government. Else Why attempt 20
conceal the sales from the public unda, .ha
uumeahing title Of REPAYMENT, " ga -
them out OF the secrstAry's report. vh;ot
everybody reads, only to couver,lv ;D,rodnns
them into the treAsurer's report. which mo.
body readsH
with regard to the postal revenues. Z.
xould seem that in spite of the fact tha,
wbaro ten years ago, but nine millions 49,
snnually received from postage, now nina.
taan millions are received, the post Office de-.
partment oannot be made to pay for itself.
The expenditures in 1870 we're twenty-fOur
millions. The deficit in that year amount
ed to Eve millions. Bot this year will prov,
20 be still more. According 10 the essi
mates of expenditure transmitted by tn
department to Congress last winter, the pos
Office deficit for 1871 will amount to no les
than n~ineteen milEonsl In other words
while the revenues are expected to amount
twenty millions, the expenditures are est
mated a. thirty eight w%illionsl
n almost impossible to rise 10 the CON