C( )N(iRKSS. (APPROPRIATIONS.) 



Appropriations. Tho appropriations made at 



the >t ion wen- thr following: 



Agriculture... ..'32.00 



Army 23.27S.4i>2.73 



Diplomatic and consular 1.K42.558.76 



District < <( C. aumbiu &.'. 6,082. !- 



Kortitieat ions 7.3'.C.HSS.OO 



Indian * 7.390.496.79 



-lative. etc 21.518.fti4. 71 



Military Academy 449.525.61 



Navy 30.562.739.95 



Pension, including deficiencies * 141.328.680.00 



}< ..-t office 92.571,564.22 



River and harbor 1 12.621.SOO. 00 



Sundry civil 33.031.152.19 



Deficiencies, except for pensions J 15,326,503.05 



Total... ..$396,280.660.49 



Miscellaneous 425,000.00 



Total regular annual appropriations. 306,705.660:49 

 Permanent annual appropriations s 119,054,160.00 



Total $515.759,820.49 



* This sum is exclusive of $1.6<30.000 for second install- 

 ment on account of purchase of Cherokee Outlet, which 

 has been paid under permanent annual appropriations,'' 

 but is not included in the estimates thereunder for 1*H7. A 

 like sum was included in the Indian appropriation act 

 passed at the last session of the last Congress. 



This does not include S3.OW.OiK I estimated to be neces- 

 sary under indefinite appropriation made in river and har- 

 bor act of this session to purchase property of Monongahela 

 Navigation Company. 



t 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 accounting 

 officers for 1893 and prior fiscal years ; in all, $5,110,613.33. 



S Estimated. 



This is the amount originally submitted to Congress by 

 the Secretary of the Treasury a"s estimated to be necessarv 

 under permanent specific and permanent indefinite appro- 

 priations, except that to the amount thus submitted for 

 I 1 -'.!!. $101,628,453, there are added expenditures under per- 

 manent appropriations made by the Fifty-first Congress 

 subsequent to said estimate, as follows : Salaries diplomatic 

 and consular service. $27,756.79; redemption national bank 

 8.50; expenses of Treasury notes. S21S.- 

 .ige of silver bullion. $210,898.14; rebate tobacco 

 tax. S7rn.ns2.39 : and repayments to importers acd for de- 

 bentures and drawbacks, customs service. J4.yi5.2s5.J8 ; in 

 all, 29,695,678.70. 



Tli e river and harbor bill was vetoed in the fol- 

 lowing message : 



To the House of Representatives: 



I return herewith without approval House bill 

 No. ?fi?7. entitled "An Act making appropriations 

 for the construction, repair, and preservation of cer- 

 tain public works on rivers and harbors, and for 

 other purp< 



There are 417 items of appropriation contained 

 in this bill, and every part of the country is repre- 

 sented in the distribution of its favors. 



It directly appropriates or provides for the imme- 

 diate expenditure of nearly $14,000.000 for river 

 and harbor work. This sum is in addition to ap- 

 propriations contained in another bill for similar 

 purposes amounting to a little more than $3.000.- 

 000. which have already been favorably considered 

 at the present session of Congn-". 



The result is that the contemplated immediate 

 expenditures for the objects mentioned amount to 

 about $17.000.000. 



A more startling feature of this bill is its author- 

 ization of contracts for river and harbor work 

 amounting to more than $62.000.000. Though the 

 payments on these contracts are in most cases so dis- 

 tributed that they are to be met by future appropria- 

 tions, more than S3.OllO.000 on their account are in- 

 cluded in the direct appropriations above mentioned. 

 Of the remainder, nearly s20.000.000 will fall due 

 during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1898, and 

 amounts somewhat less in the years immediately 

 succeeding. A few contracts of a like character, 

 authorized under previous statutes, are still out- 

 standing, and to meet payments on these more than 



$4.000.000 must be appropriated in the immediate 

 future. 



If, therefore, this bill becomes a law, the obliga- 

 tions which will be imposed on the (iovrrnment. to- 

 gether with the appropriations made for immediate 

 expenditure on account of rivers and harbors, will 

 amount to about $80,000,00(1. Nor is this all. The 

 bill directs numerous surveys and examinations 

 which contemplate new work and further contracts, 

 and which portend largely increased expenditures 

 and obligations. 



There is no ground to hope that in the face of 

 persistent and growing demands the aggregate of 

 appropriations for the smaller schemes not covered 

 by contracts will be reduced or even remain sta- 

 tionary. For the fiscal year ending June 30. 1898, 

 such appropriations, together with the installments 

 on contracts which will fall due in that year, can 

 hardly be less than $30.000,000 ; and it may reason- 

 ably be apprehended that the prevalent tendency 

 toward increased expenditures of this sort and the 

 concealment which postponed payments afford for 

 extravagance will increase the burdens chargeable 

 to this account in succeeding years. 



In view of the obligation imposed upon me by 

 the Constitution, it seems to me quite clear that I 

 only discharge a duty to our people when I inter- 

 pose my disapproval of the legislation proposed. 



Many of the objects for which it appropriates 

 public money are not related to the public welfare, 

 and many of them are palpably for the benefit 

 of limited localities or in aid of individual in- 

 terests. 



On the face of the bill it appears that not a few 

 of these alleged improvements have been so improv- 

 idently planned and prosecuted that after an un- 

 wise expenditure of millions of dollars new experi- 

 ments for their accomplishment have been entered 

 upon. 



While those intrusted with the management of 



Eublic funds in the interest of all the people can 

 ardly justify questionable expenditures for public 

 work by pleading the opinions of engineers or 

 others as to the practibility of such work, it appears 

 that some of the projects for which appropriations 

 are proposed in this bill have been entered upon 

 without the approval or against the objections of 

 the examining engineers. 



I learn from official sources that there are appro- 

 priations contained in the bill to pay for work 

 which private parties have actually agreed with 

 the Government to do in consideration of their oc- 

 cupancy of public property. 



Whatever items of doubtful propriety may have 

 escaped observation or may have been tolerated in 

 previous executive approvals of similar bills, I am 

 convinced that the bill now under consideration 

 opens the way to insidious and increasing abuses, 

 and is in itself so extravagant as to be especially 

 unsuited to these times of depressed business and 

 resulting disappointment in Government revenue. 

 This consideration is emphasized by the prospect 

 that the public Treasury will be confronted with 

 other appropriations made at the present session of 

 Congress amounting to more than $500.000.000. 



Individual economy and careful expenditure are 

 sterling virtues which lead to thrift and comfort. 

 Economy and the exaction of clear justification for 

 the appropriation of public moneys by the servants 

 of the people are not only virtues but solemn obli- 

 gations. 



To the extent that the appropriations contained 

 in this bill are instigated by private interests and 

 promote local or individual projects, their allowance 

 can not fail to stimulate a vicious paternalism and 

 encourage a sentiment among our people, already 

 too prevalent, that their attachment to our Govern- 



