Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1847-12-29
From the New York Express.
The Cost OF the War with Mexico.


was S45, $50 ,659; and on the 18th of March, 1S4t
including Treasury notes, the public debt was $l7
I7SS,794 land consequently the addition made
the public debt since that time is $27, $40, $50"
Thus the President, without positively assertinl
it, evidently wishes TO convey the impression tina
tue actual cost of the War with Mexico to the ls
instant, is less than Twenty Eight Millions o
Dollars
To counteract this false impression Of the cost oil
the unnecessary and unjustifiable war with Mexi-
CO. into which the nation was plunged by tho aci
OF the Executive, we present few facts and f.
cures, avaing ourselves OF some OF the statements
in an able article in the n. o. Commercial Bulle-
tin, of Nov. 30th, in reply to statement similar
to that in the Presidents Message. which appear
ed IN the Union (the Government Organ) of No
yember 18Th.
The first point to be noticed in these two Gov
eminent statements,-made by the Union and tnu
PIesident--ls their omission of the fact that tho
surplus in the Treasury, when the war commend
cd, was upwards of ttrelrc millions Of dollars, all
OF which has evaporated by the war expenditure.
This sum was the surplus that had accumulated in
abSnt eighieen months, from the ordinary rcventes
"a. lho country. over the Ordinary peGc: erpendi-
./66s, ana as nc var has existed about eighteen
months, It follows :bat an equal additional surplus
would have accumulated up to the present time,
I These two sums, be it observed, would have
paid of the National debt, incurred previous to the
coming into power of the Polk administration and
"
Secondly. This surplus in the Treasury would
have been farther increased by the excess Of reye-
nue. Produced by the receipts for duties under the
new lar,lf over the amount which accrued under
| the Tariff of 1912: and the President states tho
increase for the year i'll which the new Tariff has
! been In operation at more than eight millions OF
dollars.
thirdly. Since this war commenced, the whole
5U,OOU volunteers authorized by Congress have
been called into service each Of whom is entitled
to lou acres of land, which at the minimum price
OF one dollar and quarter, is equal to 5000; as
the government, however, is quibbiinw as to tho
right Of some of tile early volunteers to this boun-
ty land, we will throw Off 10 900 on that account.
which will leave 10000 entitled to it, making tho
sum of $4,000, 900.
fourthly. ii the war Were to cease tomorrow,
there would be very heavy arrearages of all kinds
Tor supplies, contracts, damages, pay, Sc, Sc, to
settle up. We have not the record to refer TO- but
II our memory serves us. the odds ah1 ends of the
last war with Great Britain required, after the
peace about $40 ,O00 GOO to S25 600 600 to square
up. to say nothing of The claims constantly brought
before Congress for twenty years afterwards. We
/ will, however, make the very moderate estimate
that Sl2OO0.O00 win settle up the present arrears
and unpaid demands of this war, up TO the present
| time.
! Filthy. Thirty years of peace had filled our
aTSenais to overflow, with every material of war,
on which the present hostiIities have made most
]
rect estimate of the amount that will be required
to replenish them, but we should think four to five
mliions would be 4 low figure for the purpose
we will say only the former.
| SXthly. Not less than ten thousand 1--WE have
! heard of much larger estmates) have fallen by
battle or disease, or been wounded in the progress
| OF this war. The families Of ali those who are
dead, and the surviving wounded, are all entitled
to pensions. What the amount of this pension
list VIII bo 1t is impossible to say but that fox the
revolutionary army, though passed jorty years at.
ter Tic toei', and embracing only the then living
Survivors, or surviving members of officers OF SOL
diers' families amounted, at one period, to three
millions OF dollars per annum. We do not believe
the pension list for the Mexican war, if it were
7Oto to be closed, would be less than two millions
! per annum considerable portion of which will
be payable for forty or fifty years to come and ON
an average of the whole, for at least twenty wears.
making an aggregate prospective payment Of forty
millions of dollars.
We will not say anything of the amount thus
lar collected at the custom houses in Mexico, and
by military contributions, which, tie President
says, exceeds 5000 900, as we shall probably be
told that is not furnished by TIE people Of the u
nlted States, but comes from the pockets of the en-
envy, though 1t would not be difficult TO prove that
large portion of it has been paid by our yn citi
zens and army in Mexico who have been the great
consumers OF the most heavily taxed articles
Besides, thus fund seems to be a kind of sspriyy
purse" which the Administration, so fer as we
can Judge, does not intend Congress shall NEEDLE
with, nor have any control over and il is what
may be called private pocket money, though we
presume 1t has been expended towards the objects
or the war. The amount so far rs can be indeed
from the outgivings of the Union is probsbiv
not far from 81 100000
Neither shall we include the value and conse-
queht loss 10 the nation Of the labor of % TO 30
UOU citizens for Is months, which even at a lower
rate OF day wages, would be some IL or sl5 600.
000
10 give some idea of the cost of the war IN to
,ho present time, we make the following recapitu
lation of the preceding statements:
The increase OF the public debt a.
greeab!y TO the statement Of the
President, has been Ao7 $40 s5o
The surplus in the Treasury, at the 0'0'o
~, commencement of hostilies, was 100000
The additional surplus that would
have accumulated up 10 this time,
under peace establishment and
,,,, expenditure, 100000
! ihetuTther extra surplus that would
| have also accumulated under the
| operation of the Tariff Of 1916,
| agreeably to the Presidents state
~, me =, OF more than. 100000
/ The Bounty Lands to the volunteers. Soon 0O0
The arrea!ages for pay due the ar
| my and volunteers, ard for sup
~, plies, contracts and damages, sc. 100000
The sum required to replensh our
,rt aTS9 p 100000
| average duration of twenty years
of life to the wounded and fami-
! lies Of the dead, t,co millions per
"""u'"' 100000
Maxine total oP zl1o Szo ord