The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1897-07-29
MILLIONS ARE WASTED.
How the Peoples Treasury Is
Robbed Right and Left.
Abuses IL ofartai Life which Need
Iurrrcttnu-fupcy salaries Paid
10 Persons " hp DO Not
Earn Them.
Ispcelal WASHINGTON r%.et,erl

@f''"'
This is Il true story OF the greatest
highway robbery that ever occurred:
The singular point of the whole story
is that the robbers have never been ar
rested nor even suspected,
The amount Of booty secured is nj
most fabulous and the number Of peo-
ple who suffered by the robbery is mp
pniling. II seems very strange that
this story should have to he written,
when SO many people Of intelligence are
interested aud should have discovered
the eulprita long ago.
The people of the United States have
been crying and whining about hard
times for the past three years, when
they should be the richest people in the
world. They are intelligent and cdu-
Gated and certainly ought 20 kno" the
rause Of the hard times of which they
have been complaining. They should
study current events and make note Of
the fat that all men in public life are
not honest, and that very few Will have
tAsir names placed npon the calendar of
saints. They ought also to note that
some men in public life are dishonest,
and ,hnt those who have remained in
public life longest have been most
often tempted to better their condt-
tl0ns, no matter how,
| think it is time for the men who
run the government of the United
States TO come to Judgment. 1t is time
| to tell AT least enough OF the truth to
sci the people to thinking III right lines.
| They DO no need II revision of the tariff
| every four years, They do rot need to
disturb a monetary system which has
been stable for more than a generation.
There was nothing the matter with the
monetary system of this country until
men high in public life began dclibcr-
ately TO rob the treasury right before
the eyes of d patient people.
If the people Of the United States
had now in their possession the total
sum OF, $500, 900 900 or more, of which
| they have been ~plundered, they would
not be crying about hard times. Nc
one who studies the annual approprin.
ton bills which are passed by both
houses of congress, and approved by
the president: no one who takes th,
Blue Book and studies the list of sal
aries which are paid for clerical serv'
ices, no one who can be sufficiently non
partisan to make comparison between
| the appropriations and expenditures OF
the government, aud who Will contrast
the official salaries Of men with those
of the business world, will fail to SEE
that the extravaganza of the govern
ment of the United States Is simply APP
pailing.
lie will be n very narrow minded mar
who will view these things from 4
partisan standpoint, and seek TO place
the blame upon the political party IL
which he does not belong. While tn,
politicians are inducing the people II
"blame 1t OH tho other fellow" they
are the most successful in %plnndering
their deluded hearers.
To be practical, let instances be cited
Well, there are six auditors Of the treas
ury, each Of whom receives Il SALARY o
$1,000. You have right in your owl
town several bright young men whf
are well educated, aud perfectly emp
able of performing the functions Of
treasury authorship as. well as any
ward politician on earth; and any on
Of those young men would be glad tt
fiji the position Of an auditor, and hav'
four years of residence in Washington