Litchfield enquirer., 1840-12-31

req o1rlng the war Dy tne StatSS tOI tuo Pua- pose of carrying on the war. Provision was
 made for diScharging these debts as the cost os our Revolution can any body object to debt like this! Ofthe same character were the loans made by government to carry on
 the late war with Great Britain. These are the principal national debts we have ever contracted, and cannot but think 1t stngu-
 IarlV unfortunate that what looks so much
 like an impuiation on those who authorized
 these, loans should come from the head of an
 administration which, SD far as know, IS he
 frSt tbai has eUer commenced q national debt in c
 time ef prYou"d peoce.
 And now to proceed to the actual state ot
 the finances.
 The Message, though it does not call the
 obligation of the government a national debt,
 but, on the contrary, speaks in the strongest
 terms against national debt, yet admits that there ure treasury notes outstanding, and
 bearing interest, to the amount Of four and half millions and see, connected with this, other important aud leading truths, very necessary to be considered by those who
 would look out beforehand that they may
 provide for future revenue.
 Of these, the first in importance is, that the
 Expenditures of the government during the
 term of the present administration have greatly exceeded it's income. l shall not now argue the question whether these eXpen- citures have been reasonable or unreasona-
 ble, necessary or unnecessary. am looK- ing at the facts in a financial view purely and say that our experience of the action ot Congress during the last four years, nas
 been, that the public expenditure has ecceeded the public income at the rate of SEVEN MILLIONS OF DOLLARS PER ANNUM. This is easily de- monstrated.
 At the commencement of the first year Of this Presidential term, in January, l6S7, there
 was in the Treasury balance of SIX mll- lions of dollars, which was reserved from distribution by what has usually been called the Deposite act. The intention of Congress was to reserve five millions only; but, in consequence of an uncertainty which attend ed the mode of efFecting this result, the Se- cretary, in his calculations, wishing to be, at least, on the safe side, it turned out that the sum actually reserved was six millions Here, then, was this amount in the Treasury on the lst of January, 1887. Events occur red during that year which induced Con- gress to modify the Deposite Act so as to bring back again into the Treasury the fourth instalment of the sum to be deposited with the states, which amounted to nine mill lions. find, further, from the communica. kBOH1S OA su0 0CSbOe0Ay VI eNS 3ASSs~eV esO" submitted to the Senate, that, of the stock of the United States in the Bank of the United States for which bonds had been given to the Treasury by the Bank of the United States of Pennsy lvania, which bonds are now paid, there have been received eight millions Now, sir, these are all items of a pre-existing fund, some of which have accrued since Jan- uary, 1887.
 snry notes running on interest, -four and a half millions ) and the whole forms an az. gregate of t,oenty. .seuen and hdy millions 0f dollars of surplus, in addition to the current revenue, which have been expended in three and h0y or four years-excepting, of course, what may remain in the Treasury at the end of that term. Here, then, has the government been expending money at the rate of nearly eight millions per annum be- yond it's income. What state of things is that Suppose it should go on. Does not every mnn see that we have vast debs iIIi. mediaAely before us? 5.-.-
 But is this all? is this all! lam inclinedN to think that, in one respect at least, 1t is not all. The Treasury, think, has not duly in reference to one important branch of it's administration, between Trea- sury funds proper and trust fund, set apart by treaty stipulation, to be invested for the benefit of certain Indian tribes. say the Treasury has taken, as belonging to the go- that which properly belongs to trust fund which the government engaged 10 invest in permanent stocks for the benefit of certain Indian tribes. This makes it neces- sary, MT. w. said, to look little into these trust funds. He referred to public docu- ments to show that these trust funds had been invested in different state stocks, upon some of which purchases considerable preneinms had been paid. These trust funds, according to the statement of the Secretary of the Treasury, had been mixed up in account with the general funds of the Treasury, in- stead of being invested, according to the in- tent of treaty stipulations, in permanent stock to be held perpetually for the use of the In- dians. The fact appears to be that. instead of keeping separate account of these trust funds, the amount purchased has been pas- sed to the general credit of the Treasury ac- counts, and the cost of stocks for their in- vestmcnt has been charged on the other side. As a matter of account and bookkeeping, this might be thought correct, or it might not; but Mir. w. said he thought it would have been better to keep separate account for funds thus held in trust, as every private in- dividual does who is made trustee for the interests of others. If the facts were as he had gathered from the report submitted to Congress, here were three or four hundred dollars of the trust fund not invest. cd, and which remain yet to be invested for the benefit of these Indian tribes. As to the rates at which the stocks had been purchas- ed, MT. w. said he found that certain Alaba- ma stocks had been bought at various and rates of premiums. [These were stated with some parliculariiy by Mr. w. but in this nasty sketch, the reporter cannot to give them.l
 We have treaties with number of tribes