Rensselaer Union, Volume 5, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 October 1872 — Expenditures of the Government. [ARTICLE]

Expenditures of the Government.

Washinutox, October 3. General “Tabnsworth, of Illinois, having stated on the stump that the cost of administering the Government for the past year was $160,000,C00, Judge Richardson has, in reply to the inquiry as to the correctness of the statement, furnished a detailed exhibit of the annual expense. The net expenditures fortlie year 1872, as shown by the books of tlie department, were $277,518,000, concerning which Judge Richardson says : ‘ The expenditures as here given should not be considered as showing the cost of administering the Government. They represent disbursements made by tlie Treasury, and' include ainounts which are not expenditures in the true meaning of the word, asthey involve no outlay of money by the Treasury, and are no burden- upon taxpayers, being merely entries on both the debit and credit side of the books—one entry as receipts and, another as expenditures—made necessary by the system ,of bookkeeping in practice, of money received from persons, and subsequently returned to them, or expended in their behalf, Or in other cases treated as revenue and expenditure. In this amount are included the expenses, of the Patent Office,which is more than teTßii«fmningf7many expenses of the Land Office, which are more than covered by the receipts;' the wdißle cost of the ninth census; pay, mentto the States rm account Df war expenses, and many similar items —all of which are sei forth in detailTn the statement.” The amount to. be deducted, as Judge Richarßs&!UshQ.ws, is $183,565,600, leaving the ordinary annual expenses $91952.000. A ' An approximate estimate at the Treasury shows that,even this -sum includes about $90,000 which are directly chargeable as expenses growing out of the war of the rebellion. L. ’’