The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1875-04-01

A Nice Debt for the People to Pay.

The New York Sun publishes the follow
ing letter:
when was in congress, some years
ago, / opposed the proceedings OF the
Washington board of works on the ground
of extravaganza and mlsapproprlauon;
The Sun sustained me, and when ceased |
to be member of congress carried on the
contest for honesty and economy. The re-
suit has justified our position, and every
charge which we made has been sustained.
There remained only one disputed point,
and that was the actual amount of the in
debtedness of the District Of Columbia.
About this, contradictory assertions had
been made, and different amounts were pre-
scented to congress by different officials.
We alleged thatit exceeded twenty millions.
The Washington ring and its friends asser-
ted that it did not exceed ten millions, to
which by law it was limited. The various
committees of inquiry. or local ofheia.s'
placed it at anywhere from twelve to NJ
teen millions. I have to-day received
letter from a prominent Republican mem
Der of the congress which has just expired,
and it contains the following paragraph re-
ferring to this subject
THE debt Zone Of the board Of audit told me) is
over tweDtyseven millions, and we shall have 1t all
to pay
"When he says we, he means the tax
PAYERS of the United States at large, as no
one pretends that the city OF Washington
can pay any such sum. think no more
need be said.
ROBERT B. ROOSEVELT.
New York. March Is. 1875"
This is sufficient confirmation OF repeat
ed declarations in these columns. The
District of Columbia, during the last ff-
teen years, and more especially during the
last six has been in the hands of the most
impudent and INSCRIPTIONS ring Of corrup-
tionists the country ever produced. These
men have made the national capital a
wholesale swindling shop, and not only car
ried on their operations under the very
noses of the president and congress, but SC
managed matters as to obtain protection
and encouragement in the very quarters
from which they should have had exposure
and punishment. The president has KEEP
his eyes shut, if not his hand open, anC
his friends in congress have resolutely re
fused to abate the nuisance whose fou
OuOE WAS peEO6ptlUlc W Tue uOotAho VI hOu
est people throughout the land.
The consequence is that the city ant
territory honore1 by the presence of tn
machinery of the federal government, nov
owes the pretty sum of $27 100000. Thi
debt the people of the United States wi
sooner or later be called upon to settle
questionable whether the whole Distric
hn
brought to the hammer to-day. If tn
$27,0OO,0OO had been honestly and jude
iously expended in adding convenience
and adornments to the seat of government
even then the burden would have been
very grieyous one, and not justified by tn
present condition and prospects OF tn
popular finances But when we rehe'
that in all probability fifty per cent. Of IL
money has been either wasted or stolel
then the subject is one calculated to pr
woke liberal quantity and strong quali
of righteous wrath.
There are certain organs and orato
that never grow weary preaching abol
Tweed and Tweedism. We suggest tn;
they may as well drop for little viii
the WORKOUT New York text, and take I
and expatiate upon the new and fresh OIL
which Washington and its suburbs fu
nish. In that favored region there a
fifty Tweeds, large and small, and a uni
of Tweedism the bottom of which b
meyer been reached. And the Twee,
and the Tweedism haye been, and are,
high favor with the leaders of par
which processes to have for its foundation
God and morality" and all the imagin
BILE and unimaginable Christian virtue
Here is chance to let the Jewel consi
tency shine forth like the morning star, al
by all means let it shine speedily and 81
isfactorily, for never did darker hole d
mand brighter light.