Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-11-12
What's In q Name.



Taylorsvlle, Illinois, Mr.. +. A
Hec bricks said:
jackson conducted the government on
$50, 000, 900. Polk carried on the govern
ment Tor sol, 100000, and fought the Mexican
war for 5O,U00,000, and not dollar was
lost to the treasury during all tina; period.
Now the pensions and interests on the public
deb, extraordinary expenses created by the
war, amount TO Sl50,U00,000, and yet The
government requires to run it S3O0,OO0,0OO.
What, | ask, becomes Of the other $l50,0uO,-
600? What is there IN the government TO
make II cost nearly three times much now
as under democratic rule, after the payment
OF expenses occasloned by the war is taken 2"
From such Isolated and incom plete
statements, aud such false deduc
tions. the Indiana Bourbon two
horse rider would have sen IDLE men
infer thai Tom Hendri, ks, or aDy
other professional politician who
dubs himself democrat" would
"carry on the government" upon
the expenditures of Jackson and
Polk. Why did Mr.. Hendricks lin
1t the data of his argument within
such narrow bounds ? He under
stands, of course (prcsuming that be
is rot polltlcaI ignoramus), that
whether an expenditure OF $50 0O0,-
900 year in Jackson's admnlstra-
tlon, or S60,000,000 a year in PoIk's
excluding the cost Of the Mexican
war, was or was not economical adj
ministration, depends on facts which
he wholly omitted To mention. For
instance, in Jackson's administration
the republic had a population of
only 13 100000 Gin round numbers
An expenditure of $50 100000 was,
then, an expenditure equal TO So II
per capita of the who's population.
| La Polk s admins tration, the c0un~
try had population of 20 100000
An expenditure of $60,000,000 was,
hen, an expenditure equivalent to
So per capita of the whole population.
| Mr.. Hendricks excludes from Polk s
administration the expenditure on
account of the Mexican war, and he
is also kind enough to subtract from
the expenditure of Grants admins
tration that portion which is on ac-
| The remainder be finds TO be, in
round NUM- ers, $3.50, 000, 900, and be
wants to know what is there in the
government TO make it cost nearly
"three times as much now" as under
the democratic" administration of
Mr. Polk. when its cost was So per
capita? The population of the re-
public is now 40 100000 is, then,
equivalent to So rs per capita Is
So rs ''three times" So, according to
Indiana arithmetic?
But another fact comes in here,
which Mr.. Hendricks, being rag
money apostle was careful to exclude.
The sum of $150,0O0,000 expended
by Grants administration represent is
n Ut real money, but rag-currency
worth only 80 cents pc: dollar de-
nomination. Reducing 1t to real
money (Which is necessary in order
to make the comparison with Polk :
expenditure, the actual money sum
IS found to be only $l48, 900,
which is equivalent co an expendi-
ture of So II per capita OF oopula-
ton OF ~, 100000. From which il
appears CuaO ulanU-s administration,
as compared with pol9's, is uudoubt-
eddy extravagant just as POLK :
was by comparison with Jacksob's.
Grants admin stration costs mot
three hundred per cent. more, a. Mr.
Hendricks asserls) but II cents per
capita more than Polk's cost; aud
PoIk's cost nearly % cents per
capita more than Jackson's Why
did Mr.. Hendricks omit Buchanan's
and Plerce's, and sundry other
"democratIc" administrations, which
cost more than Folks, and the las,
of which cost as much as or more
than Grants? Why did be exclude
such interesting &C as statement
OF how much Old Buck conducted
be government for; how much
Floyd and Jake Thompson conduct
ed Their departments for what w
nj. Tweed conducted the government
Of New York for and so on ? These
men were all democrats. And
Mr.. Hendricks argument implies
that there is virtue in that particular
name. He perceives that there is q
power OF honesty, economy, and ca
nacity in the word democrat" which
exists in no other word. He per-
celVes that a man who calls himself
a democrat" is, by reason of that
fact, capable Of administrative vir-
tnes which no man is or can be capa-
ble of who applies to himself diff
ferent political handle. He per-
ceives, too, that when a man ceases
to call himself a democrat" be at
once becomes incapabls of perform
ing public functions worthily. He
perceives that all political ability,
honesty, virtue, and knowledge re-
| side in a semi barbarous name, that
was given in derision to the partisans
Of Gen. jackson, and that except
man be called by that name be is
necessarily an incapable and untrust
worthy rascal And this superior
political understanding of Mr.. Hen
bricks he would incuIcate among the
people, as the highest political
knowledge free citizens can possess
a Jas. W. Weed, of Wheeling,
West Va, has just reached home from
Middleton, Ct, where he has been in