Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-05-07

recognition in some degree Of the val
uaDle services rendered by that great
body OF civilians who entered our army
IN 1861 for purposes of the preserva.
ton OF the union. So when we leave
pensions out of that calculation,
amounting, In round numbers, to $l51,-
100000, we have, including every ex-
penditure in the appropriations for
the army and the navy, only $189,OOO,-
900.
ut has been said that notwithstand-
ing the total expenditures for pensions
nave been reduced yearly in the last
TOUR years there has been an enormous
increase IN the military establishment,
showing that the increase is not affect
ed by the increase in the pension list
at all, but 1t is on account of the war
and navy departments alone.
THE fact Is not disputed that we
have Increased our army. Who in
creased it? It was not increased as a
partisan measure. The measure was
brought into the senate and carefully
considered without regard to party
lines: Nearly every democrat voted
for that increase Of the army upon
conservative lines. Not every demo
crat voted for that army bill; there
were thirteen senators, if l recollect
rightly, who voted against it; but this
army of ours was regarded as neces-
sary army at the time by all parties,
and it was increased to 100000 men.
"As the extgency passed away our ar
my was reduced from 100000 men to
$4,000 men, where it now remains. SO
| it is that in the bill for the current
year, the regular appropriation for the
army is less than it was last year, and
the appropriation for last year. was
less than for the year before.
81 want to call the attention to the
general cost Of maintaining the govern
ment of the United States as compared
with the cost of maintaining the gov.
ernments of other countries.
"a table recently published by the
Bureau of Statistics. which discloses
that the expenditures per capita of the
United Kingdom for last year were
$3.50, the expenditures per capita fol
| per capita for the German empire vert
s9.45, and the expenditures for the
United States Were s797 per capita
So it appears that the appropriations
for the maintenance Of our government
compared with similar appropriations
| of other governments, are the lowest o.
all the governments of which I have
knowledge who maintain armies ant
1 navies, and who have large civil list
Senator German seems to think
| that these appropriations and these ex.
| penditures are extravagant, and thai
the several departments Of the govern.
ment ought to be investigated. I an
not opposed to proper Investigation oil
any department Of the government but
the investigation itself has investigated
the irregularities and corruption in the
postotfice department, whatever they
were. AS respects the postoffice de.
partment, which has been especially
attacked, considering the great amour
of labor accomplished in that service
and the vast number of people who arr
employed in it, I do not believe Their
| is or has been a more judicious, econo
mical and honest administration of an.
| other department OF the government
than that OF the postoffice department
appropriated this year for the posta
service think that you will find tina
the great body of expenditures under
are wisely made. There is no brancl
Of the public service that has increases
in cost so rapidly as the postal branch
That increase discloses more than any
one thing the immense and rapi'
/ period OF 1893 to 1904. If I recollec
correctly the appropriations for tn
postal service this year are twice wha
they were in 1893 only ten years age
This is not because of extravaganza
but because of the Increased efffcienc
of our postal service and its rapi
growth with the growth of the country
II think that IL the entire appropria
lions Of 1881 100000 are carefully ex
amined it will be found that they hav
been wisely and efficiently distribute
for the good Of the nation"