The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-05-06
LnInping Anpronrintions.

A chief cause OF the abuses practsed by
The Department Of Justice, in the unlimited
employment OF supervisors and general and
deputy marshals as electioneering parti-
sans, is 10 hc found in the manner In which
the appropriation is made by Congress.
Take for example that for the current fiscal
year in the Sundry Civil act, as follows:
'rsrrSr. o. rin rsirtp .rIr,s COURT.
For detTayng the Of tie supreme Court and
Circuit aud District Courts ct the United states. including
the District Of Columbia. aud also tor jurors and Wit
nesses and expenses of suits which the United States
are concerned Of prosecutions tor offences committed
against the United States the safe keeping Ct prison
and Tor deiraying the expenses which may be in
CURED In the OF the act approved Feb .
1871. entitled An act to amend an act approved May
30 1870 entitled enforce the rights Of citizens
OF the United States the several states Of the
Union and tor other purposes any acts anendaory
thereof supplementary thereto, TWO million seven huu
dred and nity thousand dollars"
Under the Jumping system which leaves
the whole expenditure Of this large sum at
the discretion OF the department, the Attor-
ncy-General may apply it as he pleases for
the various objects generally stated above,
and without specification or limitation. 1t
Is all covered under the head of Expenses
OF the United States courts" He may. as
has been repeatedly done by his predcces-
sors, and as was last year done by Mr..
DEvENs, appropriate for the political SER
vice OF supervisors and marshals the money
actually needed for the ordinary admins
tration of justice, and let the courts run
short, TO be made up by a deficiency claim
at the next ensuing session Of Congress.
This practice has gone on year after year,
and although astounding exposures have
kna Ik ba ~ lnatt
attempted. The miserable expedient of re-
ducng the aggregate appropriation, and
then filling it up in future deficiency Till,
deserves something stronger than contempt,
Tor it is an insult to public intelligence to
suppose that this small trick has not long
ago been discovered. The very act from
which the foregoing extract is taken, con-
tains II deficiency OF one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars, eld miscellaneous items
aggregating eighty-eight thousand five
hundred dollars, SO that in fact this law
grants S2,9SS,500
The salaries Of the Judges, District Attor-
neys, and the like, are provided for in the
Legislative, Judicial and Executive act
and they sum up six hundred thousand
three hundred and twenty dollars, which,
added to the items OF the other law, gives n
total Of S3,5ss,s2O for the Department Of
Justice. Instead Of aggrcgating these ap-
preparations under one head, so that the
whole sum might be seen at glance, they
are scattered through two acts and require
some searching to bring them together,
The salaries are all specifically designated
in the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial
bill, which Is now pending for 1880.
The opportunity for misapplcation Of the
public money to party uses exists in the
Sundry Civil act, which has already passed
for the next fiscal year. BUTT Is competent
for Congress TO direct now how the money
appropriated in bulk shall be expended, and
% forbid its use for supervisors and mar
shals beyond certain clear and positive re
strictlons The Fraudulent President will
by that means DO compelled to show his
hand, and the country will DO able 10 SEQ
that this whole dispute, and the sole motive
OF the partisan veto, turn upon the political
machinery run by means Of taxes extortcd
from the people
Give the Administration the sword and
the purse to carry the next Presidential
election, and everything will be lovely, be.
cause then the Republican party will get a