St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-03-28
TROUBLE WITH FIGURES.

The president has not been quite able
as yet to impress all the Republican
leaders with his opinion that there
should be no more attempts to apologize
for any of the acts of the late congress,
but bold defense made of all it did.
There was policy of this kind asserted
last year, after the passage of the Nc
kINLEY act. When those who passed it
came into the canvass they tried to as
sure the people that they had been faith
full and wise lawmakers. The popular
response was heard somewhat distinctly
in November. The enormous sum of
the appropriations made by the congress
is now the annoyance. Senator ALL
son, the chairman of the appropriation
committee i'll the senate, and. ex-
Congressman CANNON, who had
the same position in the house,
have been torturing the figures to get
them into smaller compass. Their task
was to reduce the totals below the bill
ion alleged by the opposition. After a
struggle with the obdurate figures, they
sent out statement that the appropria-
tons footed but 1888. 40, 100, an increase
of S170, 446, 800 in place of the $500, 0OO, 600
alleged. But Mr.. DoCKERY, who was a
member of the house committee on ap-
preparations, has been looking over their
figures. and finds that they have failed
TO include, perhaps from oversight, three
important items. These are the direct
tax refunding appropriations, the pro-
vision for back pay and bounty to SOL
diers and the sugar bounty. The first
of these is definite amount, exceeding
S15,000,000. The bounty and back pay
are necessarily estimates, but the figures
computed by Secretary WINDOW must
be taken as exceedingly moderate. Mr.
DOCKERY takes these and the estimate
of the internal revenue commissioner of
the sugar bounty. 1t is found, then, bv
these Republican data that the state
ment put out by the apologists, whom
the president perhaps sagaciously dep
recateS, leaves out $40, 463, 600. and that
the billion statement stands at 81 .OOS,-
S73, 1919 at the minimum. The sugar
bounty will. it is believed, absorb not
less than $4,000, 900, and all experience
shows that auticipatlons in connection
with pension matters never reach the
real figures. 1t is not surprising, in
view of the discipline of the past year.
that prudent Republicans should shrink
from the array of profigate eXpend-
iture presented by the figures. An ad-
ADMINISTRATION that was to set an example
in economy and retrenchment spends
more money than the entire corn and
oats crops of the country were valued
at i'll 1890, or 10 per cent of the value of
all the farms and improvements in the
United States, as shown in the census
of 1880. Gen. j. B. HENDERSON. of
Missouri, has been in the senate and in
close relations to President HARRISON.
He does not apparently quite share the
glow OF enthusiasm the president is
trying TO klndle. In recent public ey-
preston he says:
AS Republican, think the extrayapance
OF the congress just adjourned was an ont
rage upon the party and the people. How
ever me appropriations may be justified. the
appalling. No such enormity of aDnronria-
- tons has been voted since the war and oc.
curing III time of profound peace as this
IS, ana when The greatest economy was de.
travagance. The Republicans in congress
must have proceeded upon the theory thai
they were not coming into power again for
about 4O0 years. Their closing days reminded
me very toacloiy OF the closing days of the
4, loOl. AS republican, feel that the com
parlson IS odious, but IN most respects in is
just. - -
No doubt the general thinks the ma.
jority in the last congress deserves tc
be kept out of reach of the treasury fol
400years.