The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1878-08-08
sums imperatively necessary in various
branches of the service, the Senate added


branches of the service, the Senate adde
1904, 776.
The P0stofice BiU.-To the Postoffice bill th
Senate added 1856, 900. This bill, as passed b,
the Senate, appropriated $33. 996, 1873 for tn,
year 1879 The bill for 1878, with all the de
ticiencies that have been added by this Congress
appropriated $35, 584, 143. 1t therefore appear
that the bill, as it passed the Senate, including
the, additions, was still $1,5S7,77O less thai
both Houses have agreed was necessary
Tor 1878. The House, however, insisted upon
reduction in conference; and as the bill finally
became law it is 50, 117,770 less than was ap-
proprlated for 1878. There is, therefore. q
manifest deficiency created for that amount,
which will have to be supplied next session,
The Senate can hardly be charged with ex-
travagance for wanting to reduce that forth
coming deficiency as much as possible. be-
heve we have now glanced at all the items con-
shutting the additions made by the Senate and
think you must agree with me that. having a
due regard to the public service rather than a
care merely to reduce the aggregate appropria-
lions, the House should have Incorporated
them in the bills before sending them to the
Senate.
| Correspondent many deficiency bills
did you say hid been passed by this Con-
gress?
Senator Windom-Nine. It was thouebt at
one time that it would be necessary to classify
and number 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 small bills?
Senator Windonl--Our Democratic friends of
the House knew that the people would under
| stand these deficiencies to be refutation of
| their former loud pretenses of retrenchment
and hence they reluctantly doled out in de-
tHchmanfS
PEELED to appropriate from time to time.
Correspondents notice that at recent ban
quet given in New York to Speaker Randall
hon. A. s. Hewitt is reported to have said that
MIR. Randall and his friends in the Forty-fourth
Congress accomplished a saving in the en-
tire Congress of 1854, 100000 and that it was
the fruit OF putting men in power who we're
able to do the work set for them to do. Allow
ing for all the deficiencies, it amounted to
$23, OOO,O 600 a year saving" etc. (See New
York World of the Sd instantly Now, Senator,
you have been member of the Approximation
Committee for many years. What do you say
to this boast of Democratic economy, in com-
parlson with the alleged Republican extrava-
gance?
Senator Windom-It is my turn to ask you
question. Don't you think this boast of having
saved only $23,000,0O0 Gin the entire Con-
gress' is great letting down from the claim
made by them in the Presidential campaign
that they had "saved $40, 100000" at one
session? This modest claim now amounts to
only about $11 100000 for that session,
in which they insisted that they had saved
$40, 100000. By their own confession there
seems to have been only about Is per cent. of
truth in their economical pretensions in 1876.
1t will be noted also that Mr.. Hewitt admist
that it required about $31, 100000 to make up
the deficiencies created by the pretended re-
trenchments and reforms of the Forty third
Congress. In looking over the tables and
statements in Mr.. Atkins speech, notice that
he makes the deficiencies appropriated since
1876 $50, 242, 165, so that he and Mr.. Hewitt are
substantially in accord on that point. If you
will permit me to turn the tables and question
you for a moment, should like to ask if any
thing could well be more disgraceful in the
leaders of great party than to go before the
people with the pretense of having saved over
O,OO0.0 600, when, in fact, they knew that
1880, 900, 900 of that sum would have to be made
up by deficiency bills.
Correspondent-W the $23,OOO,OOO which
Mr.. Hewitt claims to be "clear saving" by
the Forty-fourth Congress an actual saving, or
onlya postponement of appropriations, and
failure to provide properly for the public SER
vice, etc.?
Senator Windom-So1ne portion of it was
doubtless "saving," but by far the largest
part was not. On the 18th of August, 1876,
after carefully analysing every item On every
Appropriation bill for that year. and comparing
each one with like items in the bills for the
previous year, stated on the floor of the Sen
ate that "of the total pretended reduction of
$4O,0O0,000 not $5,0OO,O0O could in any sense
be called saving of money to the treasury"
and that this sum fell far below the retrench-
ment effected by the preceding Republican
Congress. I now repeat that statement, and
am prepared at any moment to proveit beyond
doubt.
The mere postponement of appropriations
for public buildings which were under way in
1876 as compared with the preceding year,
amounted to So, 1856, 593 the postponement of
surveys of public lands to $647, 300; the
failure to appropriate money to pay judg.
ments of the Court of Claims, etc., to 81, 611,-
900. There were numerous other items
amounting to many millions, of like character,
which were merely postponed" not &c saved"
They are not deficiencies, but simply ''post-
ponements," which will come in at some future
time to swell the bills. The three items I have
just named, amounting to 1854, 983, were
only a small part of such postponements
made in the one year 1876. Deducting them
from $11, 500, 900, which is one-half of what
Mr.. Hewitt claims to be the total savings of the
Forty fourth Congress for 1875 and 1877, we
have less than 100000 as the actual saving
for that year. There were many other items
of reduction made in 1876, which are in no
no possible sense saving to the treasury, but
which, if deducted from the $11 500, 000
would wipe out the whole of the pretended
economy of which so much boasting has been
DONE
Correspondent-Does the amount of appro-
priations always indicate the exact cost of ad-
ministering the Government during the year
for which they are made?
Senator Windom-It does not. There are
sources which come over from one year to an
other. These ''unexpended balances" after
standing two years subject to use, are ''car-
ried to the surplus fund.-" which means they
are returned to the treasury. 1t is, therefore,
the annual Expenditures, rather than the