Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-09-10
THE ATTEMPT roDEFEAr EcoNoMY.

done to check the lavish expenditures of
we trust that Congress, at its next session,
will pass law forbidding the several do.
partments from mourning any liabilities not
covered by the appropriation bills. The en-
deavors of the House for the past three years
to economic have been seriously interfered
with by the Republican heads of the depart
ments. When the House insisted that the
appropriations were too high and the expen-
ditures extravagant, and proceeded to cut
down the allowances, the several secretaries
declared that large deficiency bills would be
necessary at the following session of Con-
gress. That their prediction might be veri-
fed they refused to reduce the needlessly
large army of clerks and maintained the
other expenses as far as they dared, and sure
enough it was necessary to pass deficiency
bill. Finding that the Republicans were de-
termined to prevent economy, and to make
it appear that the professions of the Demo-
Gratis were meaningless, the House adopted
the only course left to it-legislated some
costly officials out of Office and reduced the
salaries of others. It also placed whatever
obstacles in the way of the unauthorized ex-
penditure of money the Republican
Senate would agree to, and so compelled a
reduction of expenses which, for the past
three years, have aggregated over eighty
millions of dollars.
This style of doing things, however, is
working reform under difficulties and ought
to be changed. If the departments will not
willingly cooperate with Congress in effect
ing reduction of taxation, they should be
compelled to do SO. A law should be passed
forbidding any officer of the government to
expend single dollar not
contemplated by Congress in the appro-
priation bills, and any violation of
the provisions of such law should be visit
ed with the severest penalties. The open
defiance of the will of the people as ex-
pressed through their representatives should
not be tolerated.
This is matter of life or death to the
Republican party. They have been charged
with being lavish and extravaganza in their
use of the peoples money, and if the Demo
cratic party manage to conduct the affairs of
the government for a less sum than has
heretofore been expended, the charge will be
proven, aud the Republicans will have no
defense. To prevent the reductions contem-
plated by the Democrats and increase the de-
ficiency bills is their avowed purpose. Sen
ator Window, in his recent attempt to prove
the falsity of Democratic pretenses sof
economy, clearly implies that this policy will
be continued AS long as one house of
Congress remains under the control of the
Republicans, and as long as the executive
department is also governed by that party
they will be partly successful in defeating
the efforts of the Democrats to place the gov
eminent upon an economical basis. But in
the next Congress, when both houses will
undoubtedly be under Democrotic control.
there should be no hesitancy in putting the
brake on in compelling the officers of the
government to obey the law. Yet it is hard
that the people should be obliged to pay for
carrying out such disreputable scheme.
Competent judges admit that the appropria-
tions made at the last session of Congress
are ample for every legitimate purpose and
the attempt to make them appear otherwise
for partisan purposes is nothing but down
right robbery, which the people should be
swift to punish in most exemplary man
ner