Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-04-17
NONSENSE RUNNING RIOT
While One Political Party Keeps
Even With Its Opponents.
THE EMPTINESS OF THE TREASURY
And Some Peculiar Schemes Worked to
Avoid Paying Debts.
A CABINET OFFICER BIG As CONGRESS
ESPECIAL TELEGRAPHIC LETTER.
BUREAU OF The DISPATCH,
MIeuINcrnN II q nril Il

BUREAU OF The DIsPArcH,
WASHINGTON, ID. c., April l6.
The Congressional Record of this morning
was sight to delight the eyes of those
members who are violently opposed to any
curtailment of the privilege of extending"
remarks in that most extraordinary daily
newspaper of the world. The Republicans
were true to their threat, made on Thurs
day, that if the chapters of Henry Georges
free trade work, Protection and Free
Trade" were not e1punged, they would
print in the Record whole books in favor of
protection.
The Record of this morning accordingly
came out containing the entire contents of
n pamphlet issued by the Protective Tariff
League, entitled From Plymouth Rock to
Mckinley" making 13 closely printed
pages Another protection efusion was
made up of extracts from the New York
T5-ib0r'e in answer to letter Of Roswell G.
Horr, and on the free trade side there ap-
peared The three concluding chapters of
Henry Georges book which had not before
been printed Each of these innovations
was attached to speech supposed to have
been delivered about two weeks ago, and
which the speakers, Milliken, of Maine,
Dolliver, of Iowa, and Simpson, of Kansas,
had the privilege of extending.
Only One Result Possible.
OF course, an abuse of the Record in this
manner can have but one result. 1t was
begun by young members, who claimed they
could not get recognition for the speeches
they desired to make. 1t will be continued
BY old members, who can get all the time
they want, for the purpose of bringing
about reform of the expensive abuse of
leading up the Record with speeches that
were never made, epic poems which could
secure publication in no other way, anG
whole volumes containing opinions in SYM
rathy with those of members who have not
The brains to originate those opinions or the
gift to put them into words.
Protection ard Free Trade is now COM
rleted by serial publication, and with
From Plymouth Rock to Mckinley" CON-
plete in one issue, the opposing works
will be sent, at the cost of the Government,
in franked wrappers, to hundreds of thou
sands of voters during the campaign.
Cheap Political Educ alton.
National committees can have them set
up and stereotyped and so printed at trifling
cost, wrapped by Government employees,
and ranked to swindle the mails, and whole
tons of the matter distributed at a trifling
portion of what the cost would be if the
wrapping and postage we're not paid for by
Uncle Sam. u
played no one can tell. Each morning the
Record will be scanned eagerly for scientific,
philosophical, economical, social, poetic
and dramatic publications, and it would not
be at all surprising if young novelists,
daughters of members, possibly, devoted to
the very latest erratic STYLES, were to sue
ceed in having their works, rejected else
where, immortalized in the Record Already
one very radical member, who is opposed to
any extension of the remarks in the form of
matter spoken, threatens to publish CON-
plete in one issue Tolstoi's "Kreutzer
Sonata"
1t hardly seems possible that the impetus
given TO this abuse of the Record can re-
suit in anything else than a prohibition of
all matter not spoken on the floor. The
pity is that all matter except the official
record of finished business cannot be ex-
cluded.
The Bankruptcy of th. Treasury.
Inc TeDldTk Ol DeDaIOr 1Oar q UaV OF TWO
ago, that the United States Treasury is now
bankrupt, is, as the Senator hastened to ex-
plain, not to be taken in literal sense
He merely meant that it was to all intents |
and purposes bankrupt, when it withheld
the payment of honest claims in an unwar-
ranted manner. Just what claims the Sen
ator referred 20 do not know, but it is
fact well known here, though no special e1
position of it has been made, that for two |
years past desperate effort mas been made |
by treasury officials to avoid paving out |
anv money except that which was unavoid- |
able.
This has extended to matters so trivial as |
10 be astounding. In making up his esti- |
mates for expenses of the many and various |
bureaus that are controlled by the depart |
ment for the next fiscal year the Secretary |
refused to recommend an increase Of force in |
many instances where such increase was ab- |
Bolutely necessary for the proper transac
ton of business simply because be was de- |
termined that no increase of expenses |
should be made. In the bureau where the |
tobacco rebates and sugar bounties must be |
settled the CLERKS have been overworked in |
the most scandalous manner that the small /
sum necessary TO pay for additional clerks |
might not go with other things to con-
tribute to possible deficit in the Treasury.
Honest Claims That Are Not Paid.
Add to this the delay of work upon
public structures, the influences brought to
bear upon Republicans in Congress to SUBJ
scribe to and assist the petty sixpenny
policy of the majority in the House, and
the honest claims adjudicated and undis-
puted, lying in the Treasury unsettled,
upon one pretext or another, and one gets a
faint idea of the desperate condition of the
Il, 1r-d n -
pt the statements of the condition of the
Treasury, and the niggardly policy of public
.ypenditure rendered imperative to avoid q
new issue OF bonds to meet the expenses of
government.
Probably the extraordinary shifts to
avoid Ia vments of claims which have been
Dassed upon and which have reached the
treasury Department for payment may best
be illustrated by brief outline of the
curious history of the claim of Ex-Governor
Rodman B. Price, of New jersey. In 1S49,
ne having been purser in the navy for
nearly ten wears, Mr.. Price was ordered to
vas detached from the navy and turned his
accounts and money to his successor
Out of Pocket Many Thousands.
Tn addition to the money of the Govern
nept he turned over large sum, about
I'd. 900, of his private funds, to meet pay
n.nts which it was necessary to make at
noe and for which there were not funds.
lie successor defaulted in his Office, left his
,aners in confusion, and no record could be
onnd there of a large portion of the
-ansactions between Price and his success
or
While returning to Washington on the
teamer Orline st. John, the vessel was
nrped in the Alabama river, and most of
orice's vouchers destroyed. On account of
he malteasance of his successor at San
francisco the duplicates of the vouchers