The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1893-11-24
The TREASURY pEEicir.
Result 81 Four Years es Republican lss~h-
Essences

iessnes~-
The man who stole a sawmill aud
Then went back after the dam has AL
WAYS been regarded heretofore as hav-
ing achieved one OF the sublinents
nights OF impudence. But i'm the light
OF what the republican organs are
doing to-day in condernning the dem
ocraiic administration for a possible
deficit In the treasury the impudence
OF the sawmill thief becomes tame and
commonplace lie might have stood
some show of comparison il when he
came back for the dam he had abused
the owner for not having had il fastened
To the mill. so that he could have stolen
both together
Ii there should be a deficit in the
United States treasury for the current
year IL will be distinctly and plainly Of
republican creation The emptiness of
the treasury is directly due TO the re.
publican administration of affairs under
President Harrison When Harrison
was inaugurated there was "A surplus
In the treasury of about 500. 600, 900 and
the surplus revenue Of the government
was about the same amount There
was reserve in the treasury of gold to
the amount of &i00. OO0, 900 and gold in
excess To the amount Of s9s, 900. 900.
When President Cleveland was inaugu-
rated in March last the surplus had dis
appeared and of the e9s, 900. 600 excess
of gold only $1,000. 600 was left. IL
was struggle during the last three
months of Ilarrison's administration
for the secretary Of the treasury to
keep his head above water This WAS
a patent fact, though the most extraor-
binary cxertions were made To keep it
secret and enable the administration to
finish its term without actual confess
sion of bankruptcy.
This condition Of things was the d.
rect result Of republican extravaganza
and recklessnes> During the first
half OF the four-year period referred to
the republican party had entire and
absolute control Of the government.
During the last two years il had con-
troll of the presidency and the senate
and was able to exercise full control
over all legislation. And while the APP
preparations of the democratic con-
ministration were inexcusably large,
the republican party can no more es-
cape responsibility for them than it
can for the work of its own billion dol
lar congress
There is abundant republican au-
thority on this point Only few days
since the Pittsburgh Dispatch, one of
the leading republican papers OF the
country. referring to the looting of the
treasury as the Legitimate result Of
four years violation of every principle
of treasury management by which the
credit of the country was built up and
lis finances made prosperous" went on
to say: Five years ago the policy of
twenty years reached its extreme in
the Inconvenience of too much money
in the treasury. The treasury had a
double surplus That of cash in the
treasury was nearly 500. ZOO. 0o0. and
tina, of revenue over expenditures
nearly as much more. There has rare
Iy been a more monumental exhibition
of political incapacity and fiscal ig-
norancc than is comprised in the fact
that four years reversal of the tradi-
tions of the treasury have dlssipated
its surplus; have brought Us to a point
where outgo exceeds income at the rate
OF 800. 600. 900 annually. and confronts
us with the necessity of increasing the
debt which il has been the declared
purpose OF all administrations 10 re-
ducc. All this in period of profound
peace. with not an excuse for the dissi-
patton of the public funds. except what
Is found in the wanton extravaganza of
our politicians"
The mere emptying of the treasury.
however. would NOT create n deficit
such as Is threatened il the revenue
producing machinery of the govern
ment were equal to the demands upon
it. Unfortunately it is not. and here
again the republican party is directly
and wholly responsible. The devices
by which revenue is raised for the ex-
penses of the government are wholly
Of republican creation: and foremost
among them is the much-laudcd Nc
kinley act If one were 10 judge from
the glib utterances of the republican
leaders and organs one would suppose
that the democratic administration had
during the six months it has been in
power devised some new methods of
raising revenue. and that il is the fail
ure OF these which threatens a deficit
But the fact is that we are still living.
SO far as revenue raising IS concerned.
under the republican dispensation.
The democratic administration has not
vet had time to make any change In
that regard; and one of the remarkable
features of the situation is that while
the republican critics of the admins
tration are proclaiming the failure of
existing legislation to provide revenue
for the country's needs they are de-
clarin- in the same breath that moth
ing must be done To change that lcgis-
lation. At one moment they jecr the
administration because it cannot raise
sufficient revenue i'm spite OF the Nc
Kinley act. and the cxtravagant pen
sion appropriations; and at the next
they are shouting ''hands off," and de-
claring that the Mckinley act must
not be touched. and that not only the
pension laws but the corrupt pension
rulings must be left intact.
II is worthy of note that the rcpub-
re,n critics az the administration offer