Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1908-06-02
A BILLION DOLLAR CONGRESS

The session of congress that has just
closed has been the most extravagant in
the history of the country. The schemes
for filching money from the treasury
have been numerous and varied. Public
buildings, intended to save the senator's
and representatives from defeat, have
been authorized with II lavish hand.
The party in power, ever watchful of
it's own, has attempted to bride Nevada
to retain Senator Nixon in his seat, the
bride being in the shape of public build
ings, one at Elko and the other at Gold
field
The appropriations made by this con-
gress exceed one billion dollars, q sum
so vast that the human intellect fails to
comprehend it. In order that the peo-
pie may get some idea of the amount of
gold it will take to pay these appropria
tions, we quote the following from IL
speech made by Congressman Hamlin
of Missouri the other day. After stat
ing that the appropriations would reach
IL round billion dollars, Mr.. Hamin
said:
We can not comprehend how much
that is. We are so accustomed to talk
ing of millions and billions that We fail
to comprehend the magnitude of these
appropriations. This morning | con
cluded to try to put it in little differ
cnt form in order that we might have
some little comprehension of the mag
nitudc Of the amount of money that has
been appropriated by this congress- and
in doing that l called up the treasury
department over the phone and asked
them to give me the number of twenty
dollar gold pieces that is required to
weigh one pound. | figured this ont
on Il gold basis out Of consideration for
the feelings of my republican friends, as
they want everything figured on gold
basis | was told, after they said they
would have to weigh it, and they did
weigh it, that thirteen twenty dollar
gold piece weighed l5I ounces avoir-
dupois Figuring on that. basis, i'm
round numbers l,3OO twcnty-dollar
pieces weigh 100 pounds. Twenty-si
Thousand pieces would weigh 1000
pounds. or ton, and figuring 21.O0O
pieces TO make up the odd fraction of
ounces would be ton of twenty dollar
gold pieces. Twcnty-srven thousand
twenty-dollar gold pieces, or ton,
wonld be equivalent to $5lO.OOO.
In ii, III
of this appropriation, divided by $40,
oOO, or the ton, makes the stupcndous
amount OF 1851 tons of gold appropri-
hted by this congress at this one
session.
Iaklng the average wagOnlOad as 1
trn, ii would take 1.S5l wagons to haul
it, and if you put ton of gold in each
wagon and string them out. touching
each other, allowing I yards to the
wagon and team, they would stretch
over an approximate distance of u
miles.
Let us figure it in u different way,
The average freight carload is 90 tons.
Therefore, loading 20 tons in car, it
would require 025 freight cars to haul
it, which would br equal to nearly five
train loads of gold. IF you were to try
to carry it off ON your backs and each
man carry $50 pounds, it would require
the services Of 24,OG3 men to carry it.
BY consulting the congressional direct.
ory see that there were 22.SO4 votes
cast for the sneaker of tbis Louoo ,+ ~, n
last election. 1t would therefore re-
quire every man who voted for the
speaker Of this hOnsc at tho last election