The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1892-04-23
q NEGATIVE sEcRETARY.



Over Pinch.
Secretary Foster, formerly a calico
trader in Ohio and now repudiator in
ordinary for the federal administrators,
scouts the proposition that the national
treasury is bankrupt. The secretary is
success as q negative statesman, but
he fails when attempting to justify
facts with assertions made for party
advantage. He knows that the con-
dition of the treasury since the adjourn
ment of the billion-dollar congress has
been such as to call for serious advice
from men and journals supposed to be
especially fitted for the task. He knows
that for nearly year he has been adj
vised by prominent organs of his party
that he could ''tide over a pinch" in the
treasury by Just such practices as are
now proved against him and denied. He
was told to postpone payment Of claims
by the device of delaying the auditing
of bills and tricks that in the business
world always subject the perpetrator to
the suspicion of bankruptcy.
But the secretary believed he had a
better plan. He laughed at the propo-
sition that he could have difficulty in
meeting the demands on the treasury
while there remained in its vaults any
part of the S1OO, ,O0O, 600 of gold held for
many years as basis for the green
back circulation. He knew that his
party had made the precedent of using
trust funds for ordinary purposes with
out regard to the law under which they
! had been deposited in the treasury.
For the first time in the history of the
government there had been specific
| fund covered into the treasury and not
accounted liability. If such things
could be done by direct legislation the
calico dealer would not hesitate to
avoid an exposure of his party's extrav-
agance by using the gold basis for the
paper circulation whenever empty
vaults made such course necessary.
Relying on this plan, the secretary
has allowed his cash balance TO run
| low, and the departments have been en-
couraged to use all the money at hand
| in the furtherance of schemes which
might have been postponed without
detriment. The pressure is now great
from all sides. The Cramps are not
democrats making war upon the adj
/
builders engaged in the loyal effort to
upbuild the American navy and Incl
dentally in making money thereby.
They are Philadelphians and fellow cit
izens Of the patriots Quay and Wanna
maker They are republicans in whom
there is no guile. In their hearts no
ignoble sentiment is cherished. They
are always for the old flag and an ap-
preparation. But if that appropriation
be delayed by even so much as day
their patriotism finds vent in denuncia-
tion of the scoundrel in the treasury
department who violates the public
faith by refusing payment to self-sacri-
ficing contractors.
These are the men for Secretary Fos-
ter TO meet. They declare in terms
that their bills are not paid at maturity
and that they are suffering severe dam
age thereby. They had no other rea-
son for building the government war
ships than the glory of the country, but
they see danger to the nation in the in.
jury of their credit caused by the post
ponement of their claims. They have
in mind the terrible collapse of another
shipbuilding patriot when the door OF
the peoples strong box was closed
against his rapacity. When he was
held even to q strict accountability hG
failed and demonstrated how great
boon republican favor had been. The
Cramps do not propose 10 be thus hum
bugged. They win allow the secretar.
to tide over the pinch by withholding
pensions But the patriots who ar,
building warships must not be ruined
They are too important as political fac
tors, and a campaign approaches. Chi
, cago Times.