Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-03-09
End of a Remarkable congress.

End OF RenlHrkable Congress.
The Fifty fifth Congress, which OK
PRED by constitutional limitation on
| Saturday, was in many respects a re-
markable body, according to reviews
of its proceedings made by Washington
correspondents. Called prematurely
| into existence to consider revenue
measure deemed necessary to moet the
ordinary expenditures of the govern
ment in q time of profound peace, it
| authorized a war with Il foreign nation,
| provided tho means for successfully
prosecuting it and concluded peace
| West Indies to the national domain
passed an act for the increase of tho
army to 100, 900 men: practically re-
organized the navy. and provided for
adding thirty.six vessels, of all classes,
| to Its offensive force, of which twenty
four arc now under contract; provided
| for taking national census; author
| lied a survey of q route for the Nicar-
aqua Canal, which may have the effect
OF committing the government to that
enterprise; provided tho construction
Of vast number of public buildings
and authorized expenditures from the
public Treasury which will aggregate
IN round numbers $1,000, 900, 900.
Whether the prodigality exhibited was
wise is debatable question, and ca9
be definitely determined only when all
the itoms in the budget have under
gone close examination or when the re-
suits aimed at shall have been attained.
| The financial features of the session
arc of amazing extent, and in general
statement covering the work of the en-
tire session in this line, Chairman
Joseph G. Cannon of the House appro-
| preparations committee said:
appropriations made at the session
of Congress just closed amount approx
mately to 1878, 65s, 400, and show an
apparent reduction OF S2l9, 5T3, 900
under the appropriations made ut the
preceding session. This is attribute
Bile to tho large expenses occasinned
by the war with Spain that were pro-
vided for during the preceding session.
| Tho entire appropriations made by
| the Fifty-fifth Congress aggregate
81, 566, S90,016. 90. OF this sum, 1882,
562, 0S3. AZ is directly chargeable TO our
late war with Spain or incident
thereto. Deducting this charge from
| the whole amount of the appropria-
tions, the remainder, 81, 1854, 1927, 632. 81,
represents the ordinary or normal APP
| prupridtiunS MAUI ny tho + my nun
| Congress.
"The appropriations made by the
preceding Congress, the Fifty. fourth,
amounted to 81, 0i4, $50, 273. 81. A COM
| parison shows an increase in ordinary
| appropriations made by this Congress
| over those made by that Congress,
Fifty fourth, OF $50, Ti7, 200, but this
| apparent increase is more than ac-
counted for by increases under eight
| items alone, namely, for pensions,
| $1,000, 000 for the postal service,
SIG, 900, 600; for rivers and harbors, in
Guiding work under contracts pre-
viously authorized, $1,000, 600; for new
ships for the navy, $1,000, 600; for be-
| ginning the work of the twelfth census,
| 81, 600, 600; for the Paris Exposition,
| 81, 900, 600; for new public buildings,
! including the building for the Depart
ment of Justice and for site and partial
construction of tho new government
printing office, about 5000, 600, and
for the payment of judgments rendered
| against the government on account Of
| the French spoliations and under the
Bowman act, s3, 100000. These very
natural and necessary increases in
public expenditures on account of tho
pension list, the growth Of the postal
service in response to the demands of
commerce, the improvement of the
waterways of the country, and for in
crease of the navy, the construction of
needed buildings to accommodate the
government service in the cities of the
country, the taking of census, partici-
patton of the nation in the great expo
sition to be held at Paris next year,
and the payment of the French spolia-
tion judgments and Bowman act cases,
so long considered and pressed upon
Congress, aggregatiug 500, 800, 600, more
than dissipating the entire apparent in
crease in the ordinary appropriations
by this Congress over those made by
the Fifty-fourth Congress.
Sin addition to tho direct appropria-
tions made at this session contracts
we're authorized, subject TO future APP
preparations to be made by Congress,
amounting to about S70,000,000. OF
this amount S44,000,000 is for addi-
tonal ships of the navy, s22, 500, 900 is
for work ON rivers and harbors, and
something over S3,000,000 is for public
buildings. The contract system is Of
necessity applied to the construction of
new war ships which require periods
of years for their construction. In the
case OF river aud harbor improvements
and the construction of public build
ings, experience has shown that the
authorization of contracts tends materi-