revenue cutters, fortifications and their armament, and certain municipal public works in the District of Columbia are embraced within the system. In addition to the contracts authorized at this session, and which must be met by appropriations hereafter, there are other contract liabilities, made by previous Congresses and yet to be met, on account of river and harbor works, amounting to $4,800,436; on account of armament of fortifications, amounting to $2,730,131, and on account of public buildings, amounting to about $10,000,000; and also on account of the completion of war ships, beyond the amount of appropriations carried on the naval act this session, in the sum of $6,515,575; or in all, $24,046,142. Referring to the apparent excess of $5,493,330.50 for deficiencies appropriated at this session over the deficiencies provided for at the last session, Mr. Speaker, I call attention to the fact that of the whole sum of $15,326,503.05 appropriated for, deficiencies, $1,496,679.56 stands for works and objects that are in no wise deficiencies, and $3,614,133.77 represents judgments and audited claims, which have no relation whatever to current or recent annual appropriations, the two sums making an aggregate of $5,110,813.33, which, deducted from the sum total of deficiencies, leaves but $10,215,689.72, or a sum equal to about the sum of normal deficiencies in the annual appropriations of Congress year by year. This explanation of the apparently large deficiencies provided for at this session I deem to be fitting and proper, in order to show that there was no undue reduction in the appropriations made at the last session, and no unusual lack of provision for the public service thereunder. As compared with deficiencies in previous years, the deficiencies at the former and present sessions appear as follows: 15,326,503.05 Iresent session, Fifty-fourth Congress. Mr. Speaker, the present Congress had a splendid opportunity for the future reduction of expenses, but it has completely failed in this particular. Upon all outstanding contracts authorized previous to the present Congress only the following sums had to be appropriated in order to complete them, to wit: If the present Congress had rigidly refused authority for additional contracts, and had appropriated only to meet the immediate or fiscal year re quirements 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 governmental expenditure. This, however, has not been done; and the majority in Congress must be held responsible for this grave dereliction in public duty. In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, it will be seen from the tables herewith that the appropriations made by the past three Congresses and at the present session have been as follows: Fifty-first Congress, both sessions. Fifty-fourth Congress, first session. .$1,035,680,109.94 1,027,104,547.92 989,239,205.69 515,759,820.49 TABLE B-Appropriations made by the Fifty-first, Fifty-second, and Fifty-third Congresses, and first session of the Fifty-fourth Congress, fiscal years 1891 to 1897, inclusive. coum of 1893, $14.149,721.85. a Deficiencies included as follows: 1891, on account of 1890, $25.321,907.25; 1892, on account of 1891, $29,335,598,34: 1893, on account of 1892, $7,674,332; 1894, on ac b This amount includes $1.362.059.16 actual expenditures under indefinite appropriations for pay and bounty claims. c This amount includes $978.188.74 actual expenditures under indefinite ap ropriations for pay and bounty claims. d This amount includes $15 227,000 for refund of direct taxes in addition to the specific sum of $500,000 appropriated for that purpose. e This is the amount originally submitted to Congress by the Scretary of the Treasury as estimated to be necessary under permanent specific and permanent in- f. This sum is exclusive of $1,66,000 for second installment on account of purchase of Cherokee Outlet, which has been paid under " Monongahela Navigation Company. accounting officers for 1893 and prior fiscal years; in all, $5,110,813.33. k Estimated. j This sum includes $1,496,679.56 for objects that are in no sense deficiencies; $3,614.133.77 to pay judgments of the courts and audited accounts certified by the Dockery's Comments. On this subject Mr. Dockery, of Missouri, made the following concise state. ment: The appropriation for the Fifty-first (Reed) Congress amounted to $1.035.680,109.94; the appropriations of the Fifty-second Congress aggregated $1,C27,104,547.92; while the appropriations of the Fifty-third Congress (Democratic in both branches) amounted to but $989,239,205.69. The direct appropriations of this session of the present Congress reach the enormous total of $515,759,820.49, being $23,529,135.46 more than the appropriations of the first session of the last Congress. It is probable, therefore, that at the close of the next session the entire appropriations of this Congress will be found to exceed $1,080,000,000 if the same ratio of increase is made at the next session over the present that was made between the sessions of the Fiftyfirst Congress. |