Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1830-08-03
THE PUBLIC DEBT.

| washington IcogTaph.l
The People Of the United Sta'es owe large debt Of
gratitude TO that worthy and incorrup,be Statesman
WI IAN II; Crawford Undsr his auspices, Secreta-
ry OF the treasury the wise Dlan Of reducing and of
hnaly ex'ingustiog the public d.bt, was successfully
put IN operation in 1917, plan that has already sue.
| ce-ded- beyond the most sangune expect,tions and
which must and will accomplish this great obsc by the
hme that able fnancier calculated upon III must IA 90
uuiess me jstem is repealed by OF Congress
and tbs Is an event ikeiv take place for
are out lew members in the Senate, or House Of Rem
natives, tha' could vote for such measure: bur
even II bill for that purpo'e should pass toh bran
shee' There is every reason to believe that the Pre
dent wonlt refuse TO approve H. and thirds of Con-
sress WIN never be found who. regardless OF heir
counrys good and their conntry's credit wcuL risk
'he fatal consequences which the passage of such an
| act would pro luce. "
And it looking forwari 20 those consemanc.s
hat cau'ed Andrew Jackson 10 put a stop to the nos,
OF apr opriaton bills which had bean rero-ed in Con.
stes', and which hearing the alluing and pleasing
name OF "lnernal Improvement" found advocates in
almost every State Of the Union because each STATE
was more or less Interested in scme ono or more o the
o snd had one or two passed, the others must SOON
maze followed One or two pass; but the refusal Of
Jackson 10 approve them has put stop to thc res and
by this course OF conduct the President has coucl i've
~ fixed ii as certain, that the public debt will he final
W exunsnisbed as soon as it cal ,niaed upon bv
William H. Crawford; and for thi. bold and d. ci.ive
course Jackson deserves. AMI will receive the sincere
thanks oil the American people.
Eve' those who have hitherto been onnoscd N him.
even those who are the most jealous, and tn, besi
friends oil internal Improvement when they view the
suhJsct IN dislnterese ghi when they view il calm
iy, cooly, and impsrlialy. will be aimed To nd
mir the prudence aud foresight of the "Mary Chief
tSin and If they do praise they will moi ceps,,e
bin-they will not condemn him
Ii mas been stated officially and stated often through
the medium OF The public papers that during the fur
years oil Mr. Adams administration, upwards of forty
five millions of dollars of the national debt has been
paid; but were this so, how it padi Who provid-
ed the means, who formed the system? Was this the
act oil the Adams administration? No.-The means
were provided by the Treasury, the money was raised
from the People by indirect taxation, tho system was
formed long, long before Mr.. Adams into power,
raft nxyor r.1.r ~
amount appropriated by law towards the extnguishment
of the public debt
An act was passed by Congress on The 3d of March,
lsl!, entitled can act for the redemption of the pub.
lie debt, which appropriated ten millions of dollars an
nmay Tor The purpose of gradually sinking or paving
of the public debt of the nation; AMI the fourth
of this act provided, that whenever there should b, NJ
any time, after the year 1917, surplus of money in the
treasury above the appropriated for the service Of
such year, leayin" also two millions Of dollars in the
treasury such surplus was TO he applied, by the Com
missoners of the Sinking Fund 10 the purchase or re-
dcmption of the public debt.
These, therefore, were the funds provided by Con.
Rress This the act of Congress which has stood
the test Of time and of actual experiment.; which ena-
bed the administration of James Monroe, under the
gdance OF the able Secretary of tho Treasury William
H. Crawford, to pay, account OF principal and inter
est OF the public debt, than hundred millions.
OF dollars; this system found in full operation when
Johh quincy Adams came into power; and under the
auspices of Andrew Jackson there now every proa
bty that all, or nearly all Of the public debt both
principal and interest," will be paid off by the wear 1875
the time calculated upon by Mr.. Crawford
But il Is not the fact that forty live lions of the
public debt was "paid eft" during the administration Of
! Mr. Adams. Whatever amount may have been paid,
the debt itself has only been reduced about twentyve
millions OF dollars (253is,i35 s2) will appear bv
reference TO the Treasury Reports Of Mr.. Rush. in De.
cenbcr, 1925, aud December, 1928 ~ these reports
| IL appears that the public debt was IS follows:
Isi January, 1925, So. 40 572 GO
- lsl January, 1920, 5s,362I35 IS
| Total reduction during the four years
Of Mr.. Adams administration
S25, 37s. 1856 80
| W may be sad hat more han forty FIVE miiiors 81
oosrs vas eertanly pail on account Of he public debt
during Mr.. Adams adnin;sirsii n ne appsars nv The
Treasury Reports referred TO- Granting that ht sa,o.
ncnt il correct. let u he remembered that five mil
lions Of dollars of this anornt vyis bOrro,oed o,onev
Il which came into ihe Treasury In 1926 ard that al
most fifteen millions of dollars 493) f5l 25J was for
interest due the debt II viii not he cooended ,a,
paying infcrsd due, IL payiar or isbf much Iess
can u he ssih. thaf paYing off dill ,uii mn.