The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-19
Smoking Out the sarnacles.

out the barnacles in some of the depart
ments Of the government. A few days ago,
through the efforts of Senator Casey, Of
Wyoming, the amount reported by the
committee for the geological survey bureau
was reduced s240, 900, and resolution was
adopted calling for the names Of all the en-
ployes of the bureau, together with astate-
ment of the duties performed by them and
the salaries paid them. For long time
there has been an impression that the
bureau is a comparatively worthless insti-
tuition, and that it is pretty well filed with
barnacles When the director OF the bureau
complies with this resolution it will be
found whether or not the impression is we'll
founded.
The charge is made that a great many
congressman have SONS or other relatives in
the bureau and that, therefore, it has not
been a difficult matter for it TO get large
annual appropriations Senator Wolcott
stated in speech on the Carey resolution
that the geological bureau came into exist
ence without direct authority Of law. II
seems that an amendment to an appropria-
ton bill is the only foundation upon which
it rests, and since 1t got a foothold and
began drawing money from the treasury, it
has distributed nearly 100000
Senator Woloott is authority for the
statement that in 1885 the director OF the
bureau assured joint congressional COM
mittee that he would complete the geolog-
ical map upon which the bureau is engaged
in twenty years, and that its cost would not
exceed s1S,000,000. According to his re-
port filed in 1890, at the then rate of prog
ress, it would not be completed inside of
one hundred years and its COST would not be
less than 500, 900 900. Senator Wolcott
quoted Prof. Agassiz as saying that the map
was valueless and expensive and that the
appropriations for 1t were useless
Senator Wolcott and other western sena-
tors think thai the reports of the bureau are
worthless. As an illustration supporting
his opinion Of the bureau and its work,
Senator Wolcott in bis speech said: zone
of the scientific men Of the bureau was in
structed to report upon a mining district
fourteen years ago. There have been thou
sands and thousands Of dollars expended
upon that survey. Meanwhile the district
was discovered, was prospected. was
ars taken out of it aad the camp aban-
doned, but the report is not yet furnished.
The reports Of the bureau, it is claimed,
convey no valuable information They
contain, as q rule, facts already known.
There is not one OF Them" said Senator
Wolcott, that guides the prospeosor. After
you have discovered your ore and taken it
out these very intelligent and cultivated
gentlemen come along and say: That is
beautiful find here marvellous geOlog-
Teal descriptions showing just what hap
pened-it is always just after the fact. 1t
is beautiful knowledge, but IL is not the
knowledge that this government should be
called upon to pay every year from $780,
600 to 81, 900, 00O."
There are other bureaus of the govern
ment that ought to be looked into. 1t is
pretty safe TO say that millions of dollars
are appropriated annually for which the
people get no benefit. The departments
make up their estimates, and, as a rule,
they are extravaganza estimates. On these
the appropriations are based. A commit
tee Of congress ought to be appointed to 90
through all the departments and find out
"hOAO A4AOhOJ oSAAN 10 c0NC4 W bnC RON6In-
ment' There is wide room for reform 10
the spending of the public money. A few
genuine reforms are needed in congress.
The malice and meanness OF the Atlanta
Constitution are particularly noticeable in
paragraph relating to the MORNING
NEWS that 1t published day or two ago.
Il said "the SAVANNAH NBws has a strange
idea Of enterprise Its latest feat is to
write TO certain news centers in Atlanta
begging them TO suppress the news from
Atlanta papers until the slow course OF
mail can take It to Savannah The fore
going shows clearly that the Con stitutioh
sought to create the false impression that
the MORNING NEWS wrote to a number of
news oenters to get them to suppress news
until the MORNING News could get it by
mail The truth is this: The MORNING
NEWS wrote a private letter to the acting
director OF the Georgia weather service
asking him IL he could not fix day for the
publication Of the Georgia crop report SO
that all the daily papers Of the state could
publish It on the same day. The report is q
rather lengthy one to telegraph in full.
On this private letter the Constitution based
It's assertion. No self-respecting journal,
even if it had thought it decent to make
use of the letter. would have pade it the
basis of an attempt TO create false impress
sion, even though anxious to do a con-
temporary an injury. The declining in
fluence of the Constitution, as clearly
shown by its failure 10 carry its own county
for Hill, seems TO have SO embittered it as
to make it Indifferent to fairness and truth.
The United States steamer Vesuvius,
drawing about s feet of water, went
ashore at He'll Gate, New York harbor, two
or three days ago because of the incom-
potency of the pilot. The government had
saved a pilots fee but was the saving
economy 2 The incident is an uuaus werable
argument against the abolition of the splen-
did pilot system Of the southern ports by
the enactment of the Frye bill abolishing
compulsory pilotage. The pilots on the
eesuvius are constantly running up and
down the coast on semi-excursion trips,
with not much else to do but study their
charts, and if these pilots are not oompe-
tent to take a little S-fooe craft into New
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