The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-06-16
How the Expenditures Are swslled at Wash.
ington.

| ington.
| The Legislative, Executive and Judicial
| Appropriation bill, as reported to the
Senate sums up more than fifteen and q
| half millions of dollars, and contains
| nearly thousand amendments to tha,
| sent from the House of Representatives,
every one of which is on the side of ex-
peDdlture as against economy. Not sin =
gle proposition of the -maHy-maae- to lep
OF excrescences, to combine unnecessary
ofncee, and to reduce large salaries, has
been accepted by the Senate. The Repub-
lican majority of the Senators have set
their face sternly aud resolutely against
retrenchment in any form, no matter how
urgent the necessity may be, or how glar-
ing the prodigslity sought to be curtailed.
They make no response to the popular
demand for rigid reduction of expenditures,
but run on in the old ruts, as if there was
no suffering in the country, and no need of
reform.
A single example will serve to illustrate
the method by which the appropriations
are augmented. Every comm ttee of the
Senate has a clerk, either permanent or
temporary, who is generally more of pri-
vate secretary to the Chairman than any
thing else. Some, Dephews, brothers,
personal friends, and active political man
ayers are thus provided for at the public
expense. The temporary clerks receive ak
permanent vary from 90, 500 to 90 900
year. OF course the temporary patriots are
always struggling to get on the permanent
roll.
The Committee on Appropriations re-
ported in favor of giving Mr. Ingalls,,
Chairman on Pensions, and Mr.. Thurman,
Chairman on Private Land Claims, perms.
nent clerks to their committees. When
this item was reached in the bill, Mr..
Spencer, Chairman of Military Affairs
thought his fliend and secretary ought to
be advanced in the same degree, 90 he moved
to insert, Sand clerk to the Committee on
Military Af1airs." When he was asked
what good reason could be given to justify
it, he said:
There are seven or eight CO N mittees that |
pay their clerks annual salaries, and if there |
2 70 reason Why one committee should have
same reason why the committee on Military
Affairs shouid have it.
Mr.. Merrimon-What will the clerk have to |
10 in the vacation3
Mr. Spencer-The same as other clerks We
lave missed from our library At different times |
'alu able works and books which If the oom.
nlttee had Permanent clerk We should not
o do during the recessf What does the olerk
4 the Committee on Appropriations do during
he reoessi So with the clerk of the Commit.
ee on Private Land Claims.
This motion was o little too etrong for
DR.. Salisbury, who bluntly said here is
proposition, now, to take money out of
he public treasury to give to a clerk when
he Chairman of the committee cannot
tate one single duty he would have to
,erform during the recess of the Senate.
lave the people of this country no rights
lave the taxpayers of the country, who
1rnish every dollar that goes into the
rreasury, no interests to be protected by
he Senate2"
These suggestions disturbed the harmony J
+ the body, and Mr. Window, who had ]
he bill in charge, dropped it suddenly to
make conference report on the Consular
md Diplomatic bill, in which the Senate
lad captured the reforms of the House and
estored the big salaries of Welsh, Noyes,
ksssou, Taylor and the rest to their old
ooting. When the people see and read
hese things as they are daily reported in
congress, is it surprising that they should
ct restive, discard party ties and think
bout organizing for their own protection.
Mr. Spencer, it may here be noted, is the
arpet-bag Senator for Alabama.