The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1892-11-22
THE LOOTED TREASURY.
Its Deficit Will Amount to
$lO0,OOO,OOO.

The financial condition of the gov
eminent is causing a good deal of at
tention. The belief is now very gen.
eral that the deficit will be greater
than was outlined in these dispatches
a few evenings ago. In fact, good
many students of the appropriations
and revenues assert that when Cleve-
land assumes the presidency def
cheney of fully 500, 600, 900 will con-
front him. How to provide for this
deficiency, caused by the reckless
squandering of public moneys by the
republican party for the benefit of IA
vOred classes, will be the first thing
that will confront the democratic party
when it assumes the responsibility of
government.
There must be an increase Of the
revenues at once to meet this defici-
ency, and how to increase the revenues
will be the question. 1t is not at all
unlikely that As soon as democrats OBJ
tain control of both branches of con-
gress bills will be passed repeating the
steamship subsidy and the sugar
bounty law. but this will only 30 a
short way TO compensate for the short
age. The pension expenditures is the
largest item the government has 10
contend with. 1t is believed that fully
half of the amount paid for pensions
is fraudulent. AT any rate the chances
are that the ensuing session of con-
gress will be called upon Ia provide
for deficiency of S:t6. 000. 600 for the
bureau presided over by Raum. The
chances are that the pension eXpendi-
lures for the next fiscal year, which
must be appropriated for at the com
ing session, will amount close 10 5000
600, 900. If this amount is not appro-
priated there will be another deficiency
at the beginning of the new congress.
The predictions made by Mes>rs.
Dockery and Savers at the adjourn
ment of the last congress are being
verified with a vengeance.
NEW COMPLICATIONS.
To add to the complications of the
situation, and there are many, it is EN-
tirely likely that importations will fall
off now in anticipation of reduction
of the tariff. This will further reduce
the revenues, and. notwithstanding
all that can be said in opposition to an
extra session, conditions NAV exist by
March to make it expedient for Presi-
dent Cleveland to summon Congress
together Immediately. There is no
doubt at all that the Treasury Depart
ment will pay out money to the fav-
Ored characters and leave a great
many legitimate creditors of the Gov
eminent in the lurch.
The enormous pension .appropria-
ton is causing alarm. The bureau
has been worked for all it is worth as
a political machine during the recent
contest, and, as stated before, experts
are already figuring that the next an
nual appropriation for pensions will
about come up to 5000, 600, 900. This
is a bureau that no party can be indie
pendent with as long As it remains in
the hands of the politicians, conse-
quently the democrats are thinking
most seriously Of transferring the
Pension Bureau where it belongs, to
the War Department, and making
army officers the chiefs of the bureau.
Experts in the pension business de-
clare that capable man at the head
of that institution for couple of
years could lop off about s50.0O0,OOO
in fraudulent pensions and within six
years cut the present immense appro-
priation one-half.
NO POLITICS IN PENSIONS.
1t is useless to talk of reform in the
Pension Bureau so long as the pension
system is administered by politicians.
The best man in the United States
put at the head of the Pension Blu
reaut under the present system would
be failure As an economist and an
administrator. The only logical and
sensible way to dispose of the pension
business is to make il an annex of the
war department and put re- ular army
officers in charge of it. They can
defy the politicians. They Will put
army methods and regulations to the
qualifications for pension and they
will not he afraid to tell the pension
sharks and attorneys TO take them
selves away when they become too
obstreperous.
But the necessity of increasing the
revenue Is apparent unless the gov
eminent is ready to go into bank
ruptcy. \ good many of the more
prominent and thoughtful democrats
believe that an income tax should be