Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1886-10-16
CAMPAIGN UNTRUTHS.

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. ga
Washington special to the Press
says: Mr.. Edward Mcpherson,
Secretary of the Republican Con
gressional Committee, has written
the following letter in regard to
the recently issued statement of bal
ances due to and from the United
States, showing their nature and
value, and Democratic misrepreSen-
tation and perversion of them.
WASHINGTON, ID. O., Sept. q.
My DEAR SIR: | have yours of
Goth INST, mentioning that the Dem
Gratis of Long Island are gloating
over "the recent disclosures of the
Register OF the Treasury showing
that "vast sums" of money have
been stolen by Republican officials.
The Democrats of Long Island take
a party view of the case. If the
Registers disclosures show that
"vast sums" of money have been
stolen by Republican officials, they
also show that other "vast sumsn
have been stolen by Democratic of
ticials. The total sum of the "bal-
ances" due the United States is Civ,
ell on page 204 of the Registers
statement, S25, 300, 194,4 40. OF this
sum the Democratic campaign book,
for 1886 page AL states that S12,-
S93,476,4S accrued since the year
1861. This leaves s12,915,717,92 as
having accrued before 1861.
So that the Democratic "default-
ers" are proved, on this showing, to
have been equally expert with the
Republican; but, in point of fact,
they were thirteen times as expert"
The statement of the Registers
balances Goes not include the bus
mess Of the Postoffice Department,
or of certain bureaus of the Treas.
ury Department. 1t is, therefore,
incomplete. Supplying the omis
sions and including all operations of
all the branches of the Government
of the United States, this is the net
result:
PERCENTAGE OF LOSSES.
OF all losses, both in the receipt
and in the disbursement of public
moneys, as ascertained by the Treas
ury Department down to June 80,
1888, and officially printed August
ID, 1884, the percentage for the per
iod prior to June 80, 1861, was s5.31
for every $1,000, and the percentage
for the period from June 80, 1861,
to June 80, 1863, was 80 cents for
every $1,000. During the latter per-
| iod the total receipts and disburse-
ments were $50, 767, Sj1, 731,4S, and
the total losses were S14,497, 1874,
or 80 cents per $1,000. So that the
rate OF losses prior to 1861 compared
with the rate of losses since 1861
was the proportion which 1921 bears
to 80 cents, or over thirteen times
as great. In other words, to use
the Democratic phrase, Democratic
deiaultersn have been thirteen
times as agile and successful as Re-
publican g defaulters,n or, to put it
/ in another form, the Democratic of
ficials prior to 1861 managed to
/ (" lose" out of a sum total about one
eighth as large, nearly twice as
much as the Republican officials,
since 1861 were able to do. The
claim of loss of s25,S09.1 94,40 in
balances" is made on the theory
that every balance" carried on the
books of the Register is an actual
loss and defalcation, but that is
not true. There are balances on
the books against the names OF John
Adams, President of the United
States John Quincy Adams, minis
ter to Russia Daniel ID. Tompklns,
Vice President ofthe United States !;
Andrew G. Curtin, minister to Rms
STA; Caleb Cushing, attorney for the
United States; John Lathrop Mot
ley, minister to Great Britain, and
many others of like grade of char
acter. No one believes that these
gentlemen were or are deiaulters,r
but all are alike pilloried III the