The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-10-04
WARRINGTON, scplcmhcr !. 1S12.

DEAR SIR: Your letter would have p.
Seived IN earlier answer, but for the fact
that we were all in different parts of the
country when il was received.
Your letter states that the charge has
been made by Senator rrumbGll that 81
per cent, or, as lie states il, $yj, 5000 -,
is lost 10 the Government annually from
our revenues, and that he refers To our
report Of December Is, 1871, rs evidence
Of the fact that so much money is plum.
dered from the revenues when collected,
and that this is the result OI corrupt
administration Of the laws by the present
authorities at Washington. You do not
say that Senator Trumbul states that he
believes that there IS any such enormous
theft, although his remarks necessarily
convey the impression that the friends Of
the administration acknowledge it; nor,
indeed, is il conceivable that unv well.
informed man should believe il. But, rs
he makes the statement and quotes our
report as evidence, it is proper that we
should explain the paragraph 10 which he
alludes, and which is AS follows:
at is not easy 10 compute in figures the
exact economical difference between a
good and bad system OF civil service.
1t is, necessarily, matter Ol inference
and comparison between the probable
operation Of careless and careful meth.
cd. But it is calculated By those who
have made Il careful study Of the facts,
that onc.iOurth OF the revenues OF the
United States Urc annually lost in c0llec
ton, and tOr large part Of that loss n
system Of the service which is fatally un.
sound may reasonably be held rcspon.
sible.
The calculations 10 which We have nj.
ludcd were made under the alminislra.
iiun Of Andrew Johnson, when the evils
Of the "spol!s' system eliminated, and
We selected the l4Ct5 Of It's worst cunI
tiOn rs the most lurcihlc illustration OF
the mischief OF the system The Calcu.
latiOns are found in the report OF the
commission iOr the revision Of the rCyc.
me laws, in January, 1856, and in the
report Of the special commissioner OF
the revenue Of the year 1868. The
Hon. +. a. JcnCkcs, in speech
delivered in New York in January, 1863
remarked: 81 have snid in discussions
on this bill that the present condition OF
the public sCrvicc loses 10 the peOp!r.un.
nunlly one hundred million dollars.
When SAY IN You that | have studied
, this matter for four years Uud taken the
testimony Of hundreds Gf wiluc-scs, find
that none Can trace any other result. 4
l have stated in the House Of Representa-
tivcs that By the due collection Ui the rev.
cnuG By efficient revenue officers you can
gain one hundred million dollars annual,
ly." lie proceeded to quote the report Of
the special commissioner in evidence Ol
his statement; and pointing ont the effect
upon the payment VI the public debt and
upon the national credit, ut the gain
he had mentioned, he concludes, that
does not depend upon my statement; it i.
sanctioned by the support Of the ScCrC.
tary OF the Treasury" Mr. MCCu,lOch
was then Secretary.
These are the calculations Of Those
who have made careful study Of the
iaC.s' TO which We alluded, and The char.
acler Ui the "iO,s' which they described
is apparent. II was chiefly Indirect It
did not arise from dcialcAions 70 much ~
from smuggling, undcryalultions, and
cYasiOns OF every kind Thus Tor some
;iIne the rate Of the tax upon WHISKY
was not less than seven hundred per cent
in excess Of the net cost OF production; 50
that the fraudulent dislilrr was fairly
paid II he could successfully place one
out Of eight barrels 0l whisky on the mar
kct without p!ylng the tax
THE actual evasion upIa this commodity
amounted nt one time 10 not lcss than
from IOur 10 five, siX, or seven numbered
per cent, instead u the moderate rate Of
twenty five per cent The loss COntcm-
plated by the calculations To which were
icrrcd was due to official COHuiylurn uE
incGlcicncy. II wAs, however, not u loss
Of money actually collected, md stolen
on the way u the Treasury, when is Mr..
Trumbulls assertion, but Oi money that
under the law was due hut never collect
Cd. Greater honesty nni cnlcirncy in tho
service would have saved much Of that
indirect los, and therefore the report snya