Democratic Sentinel, Volume 6, Number 33, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 September 1882 — POLITICS IN OHIO. [ARTICLE]

POLITICS IN OHIO.

Extracts from Senator Pendleton’s Opening Campaign Speech at Mt. Gilead, Ohio. I hold in my hand a carefully prepared speech made by the Chairman of the Committee of Appropriations of the Senate (Senator Allison, of Iowa), on the last night of the session. It shows that the grand total of appropriations for the current year is $294,243,097, and that the excess of the appropriations over the last year is $77,532,621.24. This is more than onefourth more than the annual interest on the public debt. And yet. while Mr. Allison was felicitating himself that the increase of appropriations was only so much, a Republican Senator reminded him that there would certainly be a deficiency in one item alone of $20,000,000 at least, probably of $25,000,000. And another Senator, a fellow member of the committee, and well advised on the subI ject, declared that, notwithstanding the unusual amount of the appropriations, j there would be the usual deficiencies everywhere. If that should be true, the expenditures for this year would be at least $50,000,000 more than stated by Mr. Allison, and the excess over last year would be more than $127,000,000. This is fairly appalling. In time of peace, with an army of less than 25,000 men, with almost no navy afloat, an annual drain on the industries of the country of $350,000,000! And, as ii this were not enough, Senator Sherman ] took up the tale, and showed that in addition to these amounts t here are certain permanent appropriations established by law, not renewed every year, making a total of $126,202,934.22. Now, add these sums together.. Appropriations, according to Allison, $294,000,000; estimated deficiencies, $50,000,000; permanent appropriations, $126,000,000, and you find they reach the enormous sum of $470,000,000—59.40 apiece for every man, woman and child in the United States. Ido not care to characterize such extravagance. In the presence of such figures the language ' appropriate to public discussion would seem tame and meaningless. The River and Harbor bill appropriated $18,743,875. Seven millions more than were ever appropriated before in one year. There are many very proper and reasonable items in it, but there are many more which are absolutely indefensible. I will venture to say that there are more than fifty rivers and creeks of which not one man in this audience ever heard the name, which cannot be found on any public map, and very many more whose .improvement can in no sense be called of general or national importance. In speaking of the Hubbell “voluntary” campaign fund, Mr. Pendleton said: An immense sum has been collected in this way this year. It is to be used for a corruption fund in the Congressional districts. You will meet and feel and fight some of it in every Congressional district in Ohio this year.' It is used for the organization of train-bands and office-holders, who, having thus bought and paid for their offices, intend to keep them by fair means or foul. It is the source of demoralization to every man to handle it—to him who exacts and collects it, to him who is forced to ’ pay it, to him who receives it as the wages of political prostitution. Gen- j tiemen, that money came out of the public treasury, and is as much filched . from it as if it had never j the hands of the employes. ' cratspay one-half of it; for they pay ! their proportion to supply the treasury. | There is something pathetic in this tele- j gram from the Cincinnati Gazette, from i its well-informed correspondent, which | I read, notwithstanding its length: “The Hubbell Campaign Fund Com- I mittee has put into operation a new I scheme for extracting .* voluntary’ contributions from the pockets of Government employes. Agents of the committee have been detailed to visit each.of the several departments and personally solicit the required amount. This forces an answer from every individual, and has brought many to terms who have heretofore quietly ignored the invitation in the Hubbell circulars. “The Star says the collectors of the Republican Congressional Committee were working the Army and Navy Departments to-day. They had all who had not responded to the request for ‘voluntary contributions’ down in their books, and the delinquents w ere seen. Nothing less than 2 per cent, of their salary is received.” Are you willing this should continue ? This amazing fact was developed in debate last session: that there are in the Treasury Departmen tjat Washington 3,400 employes and only 1,300 are authorized and paid by law—l,Boo are put on and off at the sole pleasure of the Secretary and are paid out of funds and balances not appropriated for that purpose. You see whence comes that innumerable horde employed in the work I of setting up Presidential conventions and carrying elections for the party in power at the public expense. You pay the expense —are you willing this state of things should continue? It has been stated and never denied that in the Bureau of Engraving and Printing it was found that, out of 958 persons, 539 had been appointed to please political “bosses,” and could be and were dismissed without regarding the bureau. ‘ , You pay the expenses. Are you grilling this-should continue, and the system on which it rests should have your approval? A Secretary went to the Committee on Appropriations at the last session and said: “There are nineteen ladies in my department, and I can find nothing for them to do. If you will give me one competent clerk and make no appropriation, I can dispense with them all; but if you make the appropriation J shall be constrained to keep them on the rolls.” You pay the expenses. Are you willing tliis should continue ? Certain dress reformers "are suggesting’ the advisability of discarding the vest entirely; us they consider it a usesports who wear their watch chains across the outside of their coats.