Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 June 1896 — HOW THE CASH WENT. [ARTICLE]

HOW THE CASH WENT.

THE FINANCIAL LEGISLATION OF CONGRESS REVIEWED. Hr* Cannon Bays the Appropriations Were Small and Economical, While Hr. Sayrea Says They Were Knormone and Profligate. Aa Viewed by Both Bidea. Chairman Cannon, of the House Appropriations Committee, and ex-Chairman Sayres Thursday made public a joint Statement concerning the expenditures authorised by this Congress, discussing them troea the Republican and Democratic *andpoints respectively The total appropriations for the session, Including permanent annual appropriations, is $515,759320.49. Mr. Cannon's statement begins: “The appropriations charged to this session include $119,054,100 under the permanent laws, of which amount $50,000,000 is for sinking fund and $30,600,000 for interest on public debts, or $3,855,614.40 more than was included at the last session of Congress in the statements of appropriations, and is on account of the increase of $162,315,400 in the bonded indebtedness of the country by the present administration np to February, 1895, the interest and sinking fund charge on account of the later bond issue of SIOO,000,000 in February, 1896, amounting to $4,400,000, not being included in the estimates of permanent appropriations. Iscrea»e in Public Debt. “The increase in the principal and interest beefing debt of the country under the present administration amounts to $262,316,400, which entails annual interest change of $11,492,616, and to meet the sinking Ynnd obligations the further sum of $2,628,154. “During the administration of Mr. Harrison the principal of the interest bearing debt was reduced $258,192,900 and the annual interest charges $10,327,716. “The regular annual bills, including deficiencies, as passed by the House made a reduction in the total estimates submitted by the executive of $26,083,191.67;

they we/e increased by the Senate $22,920,442.30, and as they became laws they appropriate $10,636,624.06 less than as passed by the Senate, $12,283,818.24 more than as they passed the House, and $13,374,373.48 less than the estimated requirements of the administration. Excluding River* and Harbors. “The regular annual appropriations, including deficiencies, made at the last session, of Congress amounted to $383,630,896.97, and included river and harbor bill. Excluding the river and harbor act passed at this session, the regular annual bills as passed by the House appropriated only $373,505,052.25, or more than $lO,000,000 less than was appropriated by the last Democratic Congress.” Mr. Cannon criticises the Treasury Department because it has expended $7,377,440 for the present year in c#llecting the revenue from customs estimated at $105,000,000; whereas for the last fiscal year, 1892, under President Harrison’s administration there was collected under the •McKinley tariff act $177,452,000 of customs revenue at a total cost of only $6,607,517. The bills establishing salaries, instead of the fee system, for Officers of tjie United States courts, he says, will save sl,000,000 annually and minimize frivolous and malicious prosecution, and special attention is called to the fact that Congress made no increases of salaries or employes In the Government department.

Table of Appropriation*. The following table of appropriations is given: Fifty-first Congress ... $988,417,183 34 Fifty-second Congress. 1,027,104,547 92 Fifty-third Congress... 989,239,205 69 Fifty-fourth Cougress—first session 515,759,820 49 The revenues tor three fiscal years of the Harrison administration ending June 30, 1892, are given as $1,150,631,214; expenditures, $998,132,501; for the two complete fiscal years of Cleveland’s administration, revenues, $611,112,094; expenditures, $723,720,578. Mr. Ssyres, in his statement, says of the total appropriations for the session: “This sum exceeds the appropriations made during the last session of the Fiftythird Congress by $18,751,299.83, and those of the first regular session of that Congress by $23,529,135.46. It is less than 1 the appropriations by the second session of the Fifty-second Congress by only $3,744,538.72, although at the latter session $39,352,494.85 more was appropriated for pensions than at this session. It is more than those by the first session of the Fifty-first Congress by $21,303,571.84, and $25,464,040.80 less than the appropriations at the second session of the Fifty-first. “The Senate, organized this session by a combination of Republican and Populist votes, placing the control of committees in the hands of Republicans, by its amendments to appropriation bills as they passed the House, proposed to increase the total $22,920,442.30: By conferences between the two Houses this aggregate Increase was reduced to $12,283,818.24. ,“The appropriations made at the second session of the Fifty-first Congress exceeded those made at the first session of the same. Congress by $46,767,612.64, or nearly 10 ser cent. If the same proportionate increase should be made at the next session, then the appropriations will not be less than $565,000,000.” Contracts authorized by this session he estimates as follows: Rivers and harbors, $59,616,404; public buildings, lighthouses and revenue cutters, $1,400,000; defenses and armament, $4,195,076; new warships, $12,900,bu0; District of Columbia, $125,000. Total, $78,241,480. In conclusion Mr. Sayres says: “If the present Congress had rigidly refused authority for additional contracts and had appropriated only to meet the immediate or fiscal-year requirements under existing ones, the next Congress and administration would have been in a position to largely reduce appropriations and expenditures, and the administration of the government could easily have returned to an economical method of expenditure. This, however, has not been done, and the majority in Congress must be held responsible for this grave dereliction in public duty.”