Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-08-21

Senator Windom-Ninc. It was thought at one
time that it would be necessary to classify and mum.
Der them. as it was feared there was not enough
letters to indicate them in that way.
Correspondent-Why was it necessary to divide
the amount into so many bills?
Senator Windom-Our Democratic friends of the
House knew that the people would understand these
deficiencies" to be refutaton Of their former loud
prctenses of retrenchment, and hence they reluc-
family docd out in detachments such amounts as
they were compelled to appropriate from time to
time
THE EMPTY BOAST OF DEMOCRATIC ECONOMY.
| Correspondence notice that at recent banquet
| given in New York to Speaker Randall, Hon. A. s.
Hewitt is reported to have said that Mr.. Randall
and his friends in the Forty fourth Congress ac-
compiished saving in the entire Congress of $54-
00000o and that it the fruit of putting men in
power who were able to do the work set for them to
do. Allowing for all the deficiencies it amounted to
1891 600 clear saving" &c. (See New York Worla
of the Sd instantly Now. Senator, you have been
member of the Appropriation Committee for many
years. What do you say to this boast of Democratic
economy, in comparison with the alleged Republican
extravaganza?
Senator Windom-It is my turn to ask you ques-
ton. Don't you think this boast of having saved
only S23000o0O Gin the entire Congress- is great
letting down from the claim made by them in the
Presidential campaign that they had saved $40,-
| 000,000' at one session? This modest claim now
amounts to only about Sill 100000 for that session.
in which they insisted that they had saved 40 O09.
ooo. ~ me ora confession there seems to hare been
only about % per cent of truth in their economical pre-
tensions IN 1870. 1t Will be noted alse that Mr..
Hewitt admits that it required about S3 600 900 to
make up the dehclencies created by the pretended
retrenchments and reforms Of the Forty-third Con-
gress In looking over the tables and statements in
MT Atkins speech, notice that he makes the de-
ciencies appropriated since 1876 165 that
he and Mt Hewitt are substantially in accord on that
point. If You will permit to turn the tables and
question you for moment, should like to ask If
anything could we'll be more disgraceful in the
leaders OF great party than to go before the people
with the pretense OF having saved over SioOOOOOO,
when, in fact, they knew that $50 100000 of that
sum would have to be made up by deficiency bills?
Correspondent-Were the S23OoOOOO which Mr.
Hewitt claims to be clear saving" by the Forty
| fourth Congress an actual saving, or only post-
ponement of appropriations and failure to provide
properly for the public service, &c?
Senator Windom-Some portion of it was doubt.
less saving" but by far the largest part was not
On the 18th of August 1876 after carefully apaly-
zing every item on every appropriation bill for thai
year anu comparing each one with ike items IN th(
nilis lor the previous year stated on the noor Of
the senate that OF the total pretended re.
ducuon OF s4o,oooooo not s0,OooOoo could in any
sense De called saving OF money to the treasury,
and that this sum fell far below the retrenchment
enected by the preceding Republican congress.
now repeat that statement, and am prepared at any
moment 10 prove IL beyond doubt
Inc mere postponement OF APPROXIMATIONS Tor
pubic buildings winch were under way in 1876, as
compared with the preceding year, amounted to
SS,sSoo93; the postponement OF surveys OF public
lands to s6413oo the failure to appropriate money
to pay judgments OF the Court OF Claims, &c, to
Sl,6l1,OoO There were numerous other items,
amounting to many millions, OF like character,
which were merely 'postponed,' not saved" They
are not dehciencies, but simply postponements"
which VIII come IN at some future time to swell tho
DIS Inc three items have just named, amount
ing to So,oii9o3, were only small part OF such
postponements" made in the one year 1876. De-
Quoting them from III ooOooo which is one-haif OF
what Mr. hewitt claims to be the total savings OF
the Forty fourth congress for 1876 and 1877, we
nave less than Se,oooooo as the actual saving for
that year. There were many other items of reduc-
uon made IN 1870, winch are IN no possible sense
saving to the treasury but which, deducted from
pretended economy of which so much boasting has
been done.
! Correspondent-Does the amount of appropriations
nj ind the Of ad fba