The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-06-28


The Appropriation Deadlock.
This quarrel between the Senate and the
House about economy is unworthy OF the
Legislature of a free government. The sup
position that underlies it, that the democrats
as a party want reform, while the repub-
licans as party insist upon stealing, is
demagoguery. The democrats especially.
who control the House, can claim no merit on
the ground of economical reformers. as only
the other day they passed the Equalization
Of Bounties bill, measure conceived in
fraud and brought forth in corruption,
which under a patriotic pretext pro-
poses to take . hundred millions ont OF
the Treasury for the benefit of a few claim
agents This measure, the most corrupt OF
the session, is the work of reform" House.
1t shows how sincere its members are in pro-
Tossing reforms.
The way to settle this question is to ap-
proach it like statesmen. Reform is never
party matter. There are good and bad men
in both parties. The whole business should
be taken up by the good men on both sides.
What the country wants is a reduction OF ex-
peqses, Topping off of sinecures; but tho
country does not want the axe to strike the
root Of efficient service. The salaries OF
clerks and minor Offices, of judges, especially
of all disbursing officers, should be raised
or let alone. Such place, for instance,
as the Postmastership of New York
should be paid twenty-five thousand
dollars year. So with the Collector
ship of the Port and the Sub-Treasury.
We should pay well all who have to do with
the finances. We need a small army but
large stats. We should keep the engineer,
artillery and torpedo corps at war footing
We should increase rather than diminish
West Point and Annapolis. We should stop
fooling with the Indians just now we pay
more money for the support of each Indian
than would pay for his board at the Fifth
Avenue Hotel We should seize every In.
dian and keep him out of mischief As to
the diplomatic service, it should be cut
down. AS it is our foreign embassies are
little more than gossip-centres for idle Ameri-
cans. Outside of London and Madrid We
do not have any diplomacy that an occasional
postal card could not accommodate. Let
US send some active, intelligent representa-
tive to Continental centre like Geneva and
give him charge of all diplomatic business
on the Continent. We could afford to pay
him twenty-five thousand dollars year,
and when we had business with the courts
he could take train and attend to it. Two
Ministers, one for the Continent and one for
London, with consuls in the main cities, are
all we need in Europe. In South America
we need none. In China and JAPAN we
should keep embassies with the sblest men
we can find at their head, for with these
countries we have real diplomatic relations.
Economy consists in cutting off useless
offices and paying the useful people we'll.
This deadlock between the House and the
Senate needs a statesman to straighten it. A
lot of demagogues and pothouse politicians
are anxious to make political capital for tho
canvass. To that end they will stop every
wheel Of government. But if real reform ID
desired there are dozen men in either
house who could draw up bill cutting of
millions and improving the service. These
men lack courage, however, to begin right,
and they would have no sincere support
from either party.