Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1880-09-23

purposes were 6,8441 millions, OF
which 6544 millions were for ordina.
ry Government purposes, and the
remainder were war expenses The
items OF this war expenditure show
how money can be used up for such
purposes. The Treasury has paid
l,7644 millions for interest on the
public debt during the Is gears, be-
sides 81 millions expenses of issue
of national loans and currency, and
500 millions premiums in issuing
loans. This does not include the
interest on the debt existing before
the wal, which took overl45 millions.
For the management OF the war itself
l29 millions were spent in conduct
ing the War Office, and nearly "a
millions for the other Executive de.
i partments The Army cost 1914
millions for subsistence, 3S48 millions
for the Quartermaster's Department,
d, 3394 millions for transportation, 1854
millions for clothing, 1869 millions
for horses, 81 millions for barracks,
l,l454 millions for pay, l404 millions
for bounties to enlisted soldiers. 40
millions reimbursed the State Goy
ernments for their expenses in enlist.
ing troops, l l millions recruiting and
conscription expenses, 81 millions for
medical and hospital expenses Gin
Guiding half-million for artificial
lmbs), 704 millions for ordnance and
the armament of Notifications. 100
millions for the armament of troops.
8 millions for the Homes for Disa.
bled Volunteers, l33 millions for
forts, 20 millions for collecting, dill
ing, and organizing troops, 24 mil.
lions for bridge, tool, and siege
trains, 81 millions paid for supplies
furnished by loyal citizens and for
horses and other property lost in the
service, and large sums beside for
other miscellaneous items. While
the Army caused the bulk of the war
expenses, the Navy also came in for
a considerable share. The Navy cost
TAI millions for pay, l65 millions for
provisions, Il millions for clothing,
1909 millions for construction, repair.
and equipment of vessels, Sl4 millions
for ordnance, 2 millions for surgeons
necessaries, 500 millions for yards
and docks, liz millions for fuel, near
ly l million for hemp, 494 millions
for machinery, p millions for nayi-
CATION, II millions for the marine
corps, d millions for the Naval
Academy and Asylum, 10 millions
for chartering, &C., of vessels for the
Temporary increase of The Navy, three
millions tor bouDties, ana also other
items.
The above give the three chief
divisions of the war expenditures
tor the Debt, the Army, and the
Navy. But the list Is by no means
complete. Many millions were spent
to pay the cost of raising the extra
money required to meet these expen.
ditures, which was gathered largely
from taxation. The entire inland
revenue system was made necessary
oy the war, and the expense of that
department was about lis millions
while 1t cost nearly 100 millions to
collect the Customs revenue, of
which 424 millions are directly
charged to the war The Govern
ment has paid s. millions for war
claims, and S9,sl5,753 for the Ala
bama claims, besides sl,929,sl9 for
other British clalma The Geneva
Tribunal cost rs 1924, 900, and the
American and British Claims Com
mission $295,00O. while the Commits
SION that distributed the Alabama
claims cost $3.50, 900 more. The war
itself lett a heavy legacy in pensions,
the cost OF conducting the pension
ofhce being st millions, 4074 millions
having been paid for Army pensions
and 81 millions for Navy pensions.
II cost q millions to take care of the
prisoners of war, and $97 900 for the
capture of Jefferson Davis, this being
rewards chiefly. There were 81 mil
hons spent in maintaining gunboats
on the Western rivers and elsewhere.
and Il millions for steam rams.
There have oeen ST millions expend-
ed on cemeteries, and III millions in
the support of the freedmen by the
celebrated "Freedmen's Bureau'that
once caused so much talk. Cooking
stoves cost a half million. Southern
reconstruction over millions secret
service and police nearly l million,
the military telegraph and signal
service nearly millions, naval hos.
pitfalls and magazines nearly million,
and indemnity for lost clothing
S389,00o. To buy Ford's Theatre
IN Washington, where Abraham Lin
coin was assassnated, cost SIS, 5000,
while temporary scares for fear of
invasion caused $4,000 to be ex.
pended in completing the defenses of
Washington, and 1888 900 for fortifi
cations on the northern frontier to
repel forays from Canada.
Any nation that contemplates 90.
ing to war will do well to ponder
these figures. The American war is
10 years gone by, yet we are still
paying huge sums for it, Out of 267
millions of expenditure during the
last fiscal year that entered into the
above computation, it is estimated
that more than half, or 1404 millions,
: were expenses for debt, interest, and
pensions, the direct legacies of the
war; The prodigious exertions to
raise money for the support of the
war are shown by an examination OF
The tables of revenue in those years.
In the year before the war, 1860, the
revenue of the country was about Sc
{ millions of dollars, and its expendi.
3 lures SO millions In the 6rst fiscal
. year of the war, its paralyzation OF
business reduced the revenue to Al ]
millions, sill of which but 2 millions
the country got from the Customs.
When the war opened it was looked
e upon as a small affair to be speedily
I ended. and in the fiscal year ending
July l. 1861, there were 66a millions
spent for all purposes. This included
9 the opening three months OF the war
S before the Bull Run defeat showed
+, what earnest work was necessary.
and the money not raised from reye.