The Portland daily press., 1894-05-19
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OUR COSTLY SENATE.


The House of Representatives in this re-
publican country costs very much more
than any similar legislative body under any
other government in the world, Enormous
however, as its outlay, it is moderate indeed
when compared with the lavish waste of
public funds by the Senate. The House,
with 356 members, costs the people of the
United States considerable more than $4,000,
900 per annum. Most of the lower houses of
the legislative bodies of Europe have two
and three times as many members as belong
to the lower branch of our national Legisla-
ture, yet they cost the people for whom they
leglslate scarcely fraction of what we
pay for the honor of being governed.
But 1t is the Senate. the American House
OF Lords, which bears the palm for expen-
diture in its own behalf expenditures
which grow year by year in volume; expen-
d1tures SO outrageous and indefensible
that it seems almost incredible for the men
who are plunging their hand so deep in the
public pocket to show themselves with IN
covered faces. The British House of Lords,
composed of nearly 700 men, about eight
times as many as are in the Senate of the
United States, draws from the British
treasury for its entire expenses not so much
money as our Senate throws away in the
unconsidered trifes which may be denom-
mated as extras. But no British nobleman
who has seat in the House of Lords would
dare for one moment to saddle his private
expenses upon the public. The English public
would not submit to such an imposition
for day. The House of Representatives
of the United States, with its $3.50 members,
takes S415, 900 per annum to pay its employ
s. The Senate, with eight-eight members,
has taken $4le, 900 for this year for the same
purpose, and. as it constantly increases it's
filching next year it will no doubt take
more. 1t requires $130,0OO to pay the mileage
of members of the House, but the Senate
cannot get along with less than $45,000 an
nually for the same purpose. In all prob
ability there are not more than half-a-dozen
of it's members Gf so many)who do not trav-
ell on railroad passes and cody drop the
money which belongs to the people into
their wallets. The House contents itself
with ffty-seven committees, one-third at
least of which are of no use. but the Senate
cannot get along with less than sixty.
The innocent reader will ask why, then,
do they want to bother with so many COM
mittees? Simply because the chairman has
then private room for his use and that
of his friends and clerk to attend to his
private business without any cost to him
self The titles of some of these commit
tees are highly amusing. When ingenuity
was finally exhausted in devising means
for committees and it's list had grown to
sixty for body of lightweight men, it
might have been supposed there would
come halt. But oh no. The bull was taken
by the horns. and the Senators for whom no
| oor,noitta narnaS could he f0und yyera voted
clerks any way. And so it is that every
member of the Senate has clerk of his
own at his individual beck and call, with
no drain upon his private purse therefor.
The clerks, messengers, and employees
of one kind and another around the Senate
wing of the capitol are as thick as flies a.
round a sugar barrel. Each Senator does
not cost the country less than $4,000 per
annum. In other words. each one gets IS,
900 for wages, and it is much higher wages
than the majority of them worth, and
in addition some $1,000 more to provide him
clerks and walters to minister to his COM
fort generally while he lives and pay his
funeral expenses when he dies.
You must know it takes great deal of
public money to bury a Senator. Fancy
what howl would come from all England
the bills for the burial of a deceased mem
Der of the House of Lords. A Senator who
dies must, like an Egyptian king, be en-
balned at an expense ranging from fifty
to hundred dollars. He must have casket
to cost $35, kid gloves in quantities must be
provided; attendants and hangers-on of
various kinds are paid a per diem from the
time breath leaves his body until he is put
in the ground. Carriages must be provided
for all who wish to ride. If he is to be
taken home. Pullman cars must be had for
the funeral party at an expense of one or
two thousand or more. 1t matters not, as
the cost is to be loaded upon the broad back
of Uncle Sam. Meals and lunches for the
trip, with the liquors to wash them down,
run up to hundreds more. The government
is even called upon to pay the minister who
says prayers.-B Baltimore Sun.