New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-01-21
RFTRENCH.UFN 4 Id NODE

Few persons have any adequate idea of the
monstrous extravaganza, waste. and fraud TO
which the last and present Congresses have
subjected the country i'll the matter of expen-
ditures for public buildings. After a some
what extended investigation Of this matter
we are more than ever of opinion that there
is no necessity Of increasing taxation at the
present time. The duty of Congress is to cut
down expenses Without reference to the
question of taxation, the public good would
be promoted by a more honest and less costly
administration of Government. Retrenchment
Oh large scale is not Mt all impossible, and
would be easy were the peoples wishes of any
weight with their so-called representatives
Without further preface we will submit pOr
ton of the evidence upon which we base our
conclusions
|. The expenditures for public buildings
during the year ended June 80, 1873, were
s9O39,69S 10, and for the year ended June 80,
1874, they were, as near rs we can get at them
$795G,208.
II. On the LIST of July, 1873, the balance of
appropriations standing to the credit of the
Office of Supervising Architect and available
for work on public buildings amounted to no
less than S14,7H,573, as we learn from page
Xxxv. OF Secretary Richardson's repOr. of that
year.
III. The total of the appropriations for pub
lie buildings made at the last session of Con-
gress for the fiscal year ending juno 80, 1875,
was $S,3jGj25. (Seo TIE TRIBUNE ALMANAC
for 1875, page "a
". BY special enactment of the same Con-
gress, all former appropriations for public
buildings remain valid until the Secretary of
the Treasury can raise the wind" (See chap
ter 476 of the acts of the present Congress,
first SESSION.
V. The sum total of the balances TO tho
credit of the Supervising Architect on the LIST
of July, 1873 being $14,774,573 added to the
$S,35G,525 of fresh appropriations made in
1874, gives an aggregate of $23 ,09S, from
which deduct the 1885, 03, expended during
the last fiscal year and we have left Sl5,174,-
800 as the sum standing to the credit of the
Supervising Architect on the 1st of July, 1874.
vi. From tho above summary it appears
that although the appropriations made for
public buildings were $12,34l ,944 for the year
ended June 30, 1874, and only $S,356,525 for
the current fiscal year, the sum at the disposal
of the Supervising Architect was actually
$4,000 greater for the current fiscal year
than for the year preceding, and that so far
from the reduced appropriation being any
guarantee of reduced expenditure, as claimed
in speeches made at tho close of the
last session of Congress, the effect of the
legislation at that session was to place at the
disposal of the Supervising Architect sum
which Is nearly double his expenditures for
the previous year!
VII. The vast sum of s15OO0,O0O which the
Supervising Architect is authorized to ex-
pend cannot, of course be expended in the
present state of the revenue without an in
crease of the Public Debt. Hence the sig
nificance OF the modest requests which the
President is making for an increase of taxa
ton.
VII. The Administration being protected
by the Senate until March a. 1877, from adverse
Legislation, and haYpg 9btaiasd the additional