Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 September 1910 — CONDEMNS EXTRAVAGANCE. [ARTICLE]

CONDEMNS EXTRAVAGANCE.

Congressman Cullop Shows How Republicans Throw Away People’s Money. Extravagance is a theme that will not down with Congressman W. A. Cullop of Vincennes. While in Indianapolis recently he called attention to the waste of money in the post office and army departments of the national government. He said: “The liberality with which the railroads have bden paid to carry the United States mails is an abuse and an example of Republican extravagance that merits the severest condemnation. “Take the postoffice department for example. The apporpriations for the years; from 1905 to June 30, 1911, total >306,696,000, or $43,000,000 yearly. “This does not include the amount paid the railroad companies for the rental of the postoffice cars. The government faces a rental each year for each of the cars used, of $3,575.10. The appropriation for this purpose for the year ending June 30, 1909 was $4,800,000; The appropriation for the year ending June 30, 1910, was $4,800,00 and the appropriation for the year ending June 30, 1911, is $5,470,000. The Cost of these cars is $7,000. equipped complete for service. The average life time is ten years, so that one of these cars earns for the railroad company during its life time, by this rental, $35,751 or a net return of 50 per cent, per year on the investment. The rental paid by the government for these cars would purchase one of them in two years. The companies are also paid for carrying the malls in these cars at a contract price in addition to this enormous rental. “Another flagrant example of extravagance is found in the appropriations for the army. The appropriations for a period of eleven years from and including the year 1899 to the year ending June 30, 1909, were $125,799,234 for salaries and $260,186,271 for transportation. “In the year ending June 30, 1899. there were 95,426 enlisted men. Their pay amounted to $4,961,172 and the government paid the railroads for the transportation of the army and its supplies, $61,301,474.98. or twelve times as much as was paid the men who carried the guns and faced the dangers of Rattle Ruling the entire pe;io<l of this time? The figures show that the government paid the railroads for carrying the men and their supplies s2.Qft for every SI.OO it paid tne enlisted men.” . -- "What k true of the army is also true of the navy department, and the appropriations for it are evidences of the greatest extravagance and waste during the administration of the Republican party. Tlfe total appropriation for maintaining the navy from the year ending and including Juno 30, 1899, to and including the year ending June 30, 1910, was $1,218,803,092. of which $226,356,654 was for sal-/ aries. “Of this enormous sum which the Republican party has appropriated and expended for the maintenance of the navy, a large part was graft to the great shipbuilding Interests of the United States. This sum could have been reduced one-half and the same navy could have been maintained equally as well”