Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-12-06
APPROPRIATION BILLS.
MIR. RANDALI1S OPPOSITION TO
THE NEW RULES.

In His Opinion Giving Each of the Com
mittees an ApprOpriating Power
Would Tend to Extravagance-This
View Sustained by Past Experience
Advantages Of the Present system.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5.--Hon. Samuel
j. Randall to-day gave to areporter of the
| Associated Prese his views respecting the
proposition to change the rules of the
House so as tC take from the Committee
on Appropriations jurisdiction over some
of the appropriation bills. 'The Demo-
cratic party came into control OF the Fed
eral government" be said, ''on distinct
understanding that it would adhere to an
economical administration. This cannot
be overlooked or evaded If it expects to
remain in power. In all governments the
! preparation of suitable bills to meet eX-
penses has been confded to one organiza-
| ton.
CAREFUL SCRUTINY URGED.
"Nothing can be certainly done until by
| careful and comprehensive scrutiny the
| amount OF the necessary expenditures has
! been determined. Taxation depends on
| the amount of expenditures, and an in
/ crease OF expenditures means an increase
/ Of taxation. To keep down extravaganza
|
/ heads OF departments have been subjected
| to question and examination item by
item. The Treasury has been protected
| by every safeguard which could be de-
vised. 1t is now proposed that nearly all
| these safeguards shall be broken down
and thrown open.
APPROPRIATIONS WOULD INCREASE.
| "Iucreased appropriations, judging
| from experience, will inevitably follow,
| as each of the many committees to be
| authorized by this change to consider ap-
| propriatiOns, and into which the apprO-
| priatiOn committee as now constituted is
to be divided, will naturally enhance its
own importance. Instead of one CON-
mittee having charge of expenditures and
! checking unnecessary appropriations
there will be many acting independently
Of each other, and nobody will know the
aggregate of the annual appropriations
until it is too late to avoid the disaster of
a deficient treasury, which may at any
time in the near future be precIpitated on
! the people.
THE PROPOSITION PLAIN ONE.
''The proposition is too plain to need
| argument, and there Is not a business
man in the country who will not appre-
ciate the correctness and force of this
| statement. The surplus revenue we now
have will not continue forever, and the
habit Ofexravgant appropriations cannot
| be changed at once. The agricultural
and river and harbor bills were taken from
the control of the Committee on Appro-
| priations, and here is an evidence of the
| failure of the venture. 1t is known that
| theexpenditures under the first have been
| wastefullV made, and 1t is notorious that
| much of the money appropriated in the
latter might as well have been thrown
away.
LESSON FROMEXPERIENCE.
F'The appropriations for the Agricultural
| Department from 1877 to 1880 inclusive,
when they were under the control of the
Committee on Appropriations, averaged
$780, SAT per annum. From 1881 to 1886
the agricultural appropriation bills being
Under control of the Committee on Agri-
culture the appropriations aver
age $439,6l6 per annum. The
appropriations for rivers and har-
bors from 1876 TO 1880, when this subject
| was controlled by the Committee on Ap-
| preparations, averaged $7,390,92S per an
mum. From 1881 to 1885 inclusive, during
which the Committees on Commerce and
| Rivers and Harbors have had the subject
in hand, the annual appropriations have
averaged $13,571, ,243.
WOULD INVITE CORRUPTION.
"If this enormous increase of expendi-
1
the withdrawal Of these two subjects
from the protecting safeguards heretofore
| enforced under existing rules, and gen.
| orally since the foundation of the govern
| ment, who can tell the devastation OF
| public finances when the treasury doors
| are thrown wide open to Unrestricted and
| unrestrained Vaccinations and cOmbina-
tions of every character. Such a cOmbina-
| tiOn might even enter Congress itself, and
the general government would then be-
come the hOt-bed TO start into existence
very dangerous policy.
Distribution OF THE BILLS.
'eThe same reasoning that would take
from the Committee on Appropriations
| some of the regular appropriation bills
! would likewise devOlve the functions Of
| an appropriation committee upon nearly
| every committee OF the House, as, for in
stance, the reasons that would turn the
naval bill over to the Committee on Naval
Affairs would Just as logically send the
estimates for public buildings to the Com
mittee on Public Buildings and Grounds,
for surveying and other expenses Of the
| public domain TO the Committee on Public
Lands, for expenses OF the United States
| courts 10 the Committee on judiciary,
for public printing, 10 the Committee on
| Printing; for lighthouse establishment,
revenue cutter service and life saving
.l |
for mints and assay Offices, TO the Com
mittee on Coinage, Weights and Meas
ures; for territorial expenses, TO the Com
mittee on Territories; for legislative ex-
penses CONGRESS to the Committee on
| Accounts; for the library Of Congress
and botanic garden, 10 the Committee on
Patents: for the bureau Of education, TO
the Committee on Education; for the bu-
reau of labor, 10 the Committee on Labor;
for the improvement Of the Mississippi
river. TO the Committee on Levees
and improvements Of the Mississippi
river: for audited claims certified by the
accounting officers Of the Treasury TO the
Committee on Cla ms; for pensions other
! than those growing out OF the late war TO
the Committee on Pensions.
WOULD MULTIPLY THE BILLS.
ssIn addition to preparing regular appro-
priation bills for the service OF each fiscal
| wear these committees would and should,
bv the same method OF reasoning, be
charged with providing for all dehcien-
cies in separate bills, making
two regular bills 10 come from
each committee, thus multiplying
the number OF regular appropriation bills
each session from the present number,
ia. 10 not less than 90. To commit the
power 70 control the appropriation bills
10 standing committees, coupled with
their present legitimate powers, would
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