Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1882-01-19
Retrenchme1t and Reform
From the American Register.

lively demanded by the public IN
terests. AS the object of govern
ment is the protection Of the citizen
in his rights of personal security,
personal liberty and private prop
erty, the burdens imposed in its ad-
ministration shonld be made as light
upon the people as practicable.
Profigacy land extravaganza in the
public expenditures may bring bur-
dens upon the people destructive of
the primary purposes OF govern
ment itself. The most inexorable
of robbers is the Government itself
when SO administered as to enable
few to live in extravaganza, lux
ury and voluptuousness at the ex-
pense of the toiling millions.
That the salaries and compensa-
ton of our public officers are too
high is incontestibly proven by the
extraordinary struggles for office,
disturbing all ranks of the people.
At the Presidential election every
four years the wnole nation is con-
vulsed by disgraceful squabbles for
the distributions of the offices and
emoluments of the Government.
Look back twenty years, and
trace the course Of this corrupting
tide of proaigacy and extravaganza
in the administration of the Gov
ernment alone. In 1850, under Mr.
Buchanan's administration, the to-
ia ret ordinary expenditures, ex-
elusive OF interest of the Federal
Government was S60,056,75+.71.
In 1870 it reached the sum OF $I64,-
421, ,5O7.1O; and in 1880 the sum
of Sl71, ,SS5,302 81, exclusive of in
terest and all war debt. And now
the estimate of this net annual cost
of the Federal Government to the
people has actually reached S194,-
945. .26O61 for the year 1882, being
i. about or near five millions less than
two hundred millions Of dollars.
| Thus, exclusive of the interest and
war debt has the net annual cost of
the Federal Government to the
people increased under the admin
istration OF the Republican party
about $135, 100000 a year, O, over
fifteen millions more than double
what it was under the last Demo-
cratic administration.
We have space here only for a
few Of the facts showing how this
profiigacy and extravaganza in the
: public expenditures came about
: The increase of the salaries of Fed
eral officers commenced III 1866
aud 1867. The salaries of member:
of Congress previously fixed at So,
l 900 year were raised to s., 1000
t those of the judges of the Supreme
Court, which had been S+,5OO g
, year previously, were raised to $6,
+ 900. In 1871 the salaries of the
r judges were raised to $4,000 year
and in 1873 the salaries of member
cf Congress were increased to ST.
500 a year each, and the salaries o
; the judges Of the Supreme Court t
$4,000. And at the same time
proportionate increase in the sala-
ries of other Federal officers wa
made, and the salary OF the Presi
t dent If the United States was rails
e ed to $50, 900 a year. The salar,
e Of the President had been perm
5 nently fixed at s25,O00 a year iron
4 an early period. And without in
q creasing the salary, the expenses 0
e the Executive Mansion, paid by tn
: Government had been increases
/ until, in 1878. they had reache,
= the sum of S57, 600. And no abate
ment was made in the expenses c
, the Executive Mansion when tn
T salary was raised to $4,000. In
, asmuch as the Government pay
!, the expenses of the Executive Mar
. sion, the President would be til
best paid officer in the country a
8 a salary of $4,000.
THIS spirit of extravaganza ha
been extended until it has more c
. less pervaded all departments of tn
public service and increased tn
a expenditures of the Government t
near S2OO,O00,0O0 a year. B,
this is rot all. The profigacy
S squandering the public domain i
d land grants to corporations and m
e nopolies is perfectly amazing. Frol
}, schedule taken from the Tecor(
of the Interior Department it ap
'r pears, that the total amount {
IS these land grants in acres comes
296,O00,0G0, and in square miles
y 294,75S. The areas in square mil
at of the SIX New England State
'e New York, New Jersey, Pehnsy
= vania, Delaware, Maryland, Oh
:. and Indiana comes to 256,2O0, b.
~ ing 3S,55S square miles less ths
be the total amount of the public d
IT. main squandered by the Republ
i'm can party since it came into pow
ce upon corporations and monopolie
ch Besides all this the Credit Nj
ut bilier frauds, the Sanborn fraue
the District of Colum bia ring franc
the Whisky-ring frauds, the Mo
n fswindle, the Pacific Mail steal, t
ro- Western Trading-station frauds,
Gtor ro,t4 f,o,,.1c o.,A ~