The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1874-03-04
The Counter Memorial.

|Wo publish on our first page th'
Memorial of the Taxpayers Conven
ttion to Congress, which presents
clear and full exposition of the griev
.ances under which we arc suffering
sfrom heavy taxation, and makes Q
scalm and temperate remonstrance
against tho evils which have brought
this state of things about; and we
now make some extracts from the
,.Counter.Aemorial, prepared by the
Republican Committee, which want
of space precludes our publishing in
full. The Counter-Memoriaf makes
'this statement:
"The statement that "the annual
Expenses Of the Government have
advanced from four hundred thous-
and dollars before the war to two
millions and a half at the present
time" is entirely incorrect, and the
items of expenditures given to illus
Israto and provo this statement are
wholly ,inaccurate and untrue, and
+skillfully selected to deceive.
( The year 1866 is given in such
q manner as to convey the impression
that the expenditures under its head
arc for two years, especially when
1873 only is given at tho head Of the
,other column, so as 10 show that ii
ia unquestionably for one year. Why
was not 1928 given to correspond
with .ls65g662
v IN tho next place, tho appropria-
'uons and expenditures Of 1886:
under the provisional government
established by ex-Prcsident John.
son, are no criterion whatever of the
Irregular annual expenses Of this State
Government before tho war. That
was the year Immediately after the
Swar, when there was an unsettled
>and chaotic, condition of things, and
sthe expenses of the State Government
, were, therefore, exceedingly light.
Tho presence and supervision. of the
military also "relievedgt gthe State of Il
large portion Of her usual regular ex-
penSes. - =. ...,.~.
T@itans Of expenditures given for
1873 are totally and wholly incorrect.
'The period alluded to is evidently the
'sed ,yaar;,begnuir,g November l.,
1879, and ending October 81, 1873.
At the beginning of that fiscal year,
the present administration came into
;power. The previous administration
toft debts of two or three previous
year, amounting to one million two
;s1andrsd land th:rty-three thousand
nine hundred and ninety-six dollars
H(Sl 233, 1866. which the present ad-
had to provide for, in
addition to their own regular annual
sexpenses. Those annral expenses
i daring the fiscal, year above referred
ITO Were, "a shown by the appropria-
stions; one million one hundred and
seighty.faur thousand three hundred
sand seventy-six dollars (s1,194,376,)
(which. with the DEFICIENCIES of 81 1885,
s996, made a sum of .e2,4l9;a72. which
sthe present administration was called
upon to pay during the fiscal year
u 872-73.. ..Of this amount, sl,7l9,.
1881 was paid, leasing.a balance Of
1858, 1853 unpaid" =. ...
? Now admitting that tho expendi-
&ures'of tho fiscal year 1866, which
'were only s267,s6s.57 were excep-
:tional, yet from the table which the
Counter Memorial itself furnishes, it
appears that for period embracing
the years 1851 and 1857, the annual
expenditures only ranged from $780,
000..to. s600;000-a mere pittanco
Wifi the enormous sum of
two and half millions, which accord
ing to its own admissions the State
Government was called upon to pay
in 1873. but it is said in tho Coun-
tersMemorial that these expenditures
are not properly chargeablc against
&he present "rsdninistration, being
nadeup in part Of large Deficiencies
from previous years. THIS would be
q good answer to an arraignment of
Governor Noses and his administra-
ton, but not to charges against Re-
publican rule in the State. The de-
ficisnccssrose in a large measure
from tho expenditures Of previous
years of Republican rule. and it mat
:ters nothing for the purposes of the
argument in what year they were
paid Treasurer Cardozo puts the
annuaLexpenditures Of four years at
81, 1853, 1907 which docs not fall far
short Of the charges Of the Memorial,
and which are from three to four
times Of what was required to run
the State Government in ante-bellum
days.
/, But the Counter Memorial finds a
reason for the Increased expenditure
in the increase in the number Of citi-