The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-01-08

VIC ISflc candI, TIC bott revenues OF the c0Dal
have exceeded the interest paid upon their deb
by amounts rising from @I3475, the excess il
that year, (comTare tables 20 and rs Of the re
port last nentioned) to $l.794,5l8, the excess
in l849. This excess is the amount paid b,
those works over and above six per cent. div
bends. II wiped cut tho whole Erie canal deb
by 1886, and il now cutting down the debt in
CURED BY the enlargement now in progress, a
the ratc Of s. per annum. Alas for Mr.
Fishers interest computation p
Ii the Enquirer will refer to any merchant il
Richmond, or any man Of common sense, it vii
find that in estimating the cost of any thing, The
interest is to be added, on all the money paio
for it, and not merely on that part of the money
aohich ras borrowed 10 pay for H. If the Engui
rer will turn again to Mr.. KErTELL, it will find
that merely from 1877 to 1886 the State of New
York paid other own uIborowcd money towards
the construction of the canals, nearly six millions
Of dollars. Ought no interest on that sum tobe
charged to the canals! The Enquirer evidently
thinks not, assumes not, and on the basis Of as
suming' such silly blunder as that, deduces, that
we we're mistaken, and actually puts on an air OF
triumph, when every counting room clerk must
be laughing at its stupidity.
The SUN Of $33,2l4,l41 was expended on the
New York canals from 1917 to l842--a period
oftweDty five years. Assuming the expenditure
to have been on an average about the same in
each year, it is equivalent to an expenditure Of
the whole amount, the year that stands midway
between the commencement and close of the
work, and from that time interest is to be cal
culated-intercst on the money actually ex-
pended, and not merely on that borrowed, by
the State. For if New York had lent out her
money instead of SO applying it, she would have
received interest. There is interest, therefore,
for twelve years on the total sum, and this IN
terest amounts to $24,O0O,O0O, and that makes
the cost Of the works S57,OOO,oO0, up to 1872
subject to the deduction ofincomc with interest
in the interval. So that there is no mistake of
ten millions, nor ofany millions whatever, ex-
cept in that funny calculating machine, the brain
Of the Richmond Enquirer. 1t is Of no conse-
quence, whether the income of the canals, or Of
tho Erie canal, paid off in 1928, or at any other
time, the interest on the money borrowed. The
question is, whether it paid off the interest on
the money expended for the canals. Nor is it of
any consequence when, or whether, it ever paid
off the principal of the money borrowed--the
question is, how much of the interest or princi-
pal it has ever paid off, Of the money expended.
But let the Enquirer proceed:
Mt "a r~onooJ NJ E;.Lo- ,,,:u Ga = AZ
document already mentioned, that the total in
terest that has been actually paid upon the cost
Of the New York canals up to l849, is Bl6,58l,-
lot, which added to that cost, namely $32,2l4,-
l48, makes the total amount up to lS49, accord
ing to his principles, $40 ,795,255. (IIis first
estimate was 100000, for l849, which we al
lowed. But in his second dissertation, he main
tains that it was S57,0OO,O0O, MS far back as
1912; and we doubt not that in his third, if he
is not too sick Of the subject to undertake third,
he will find that it was $75.OOO,OOO in 1855
The nett product of the canals up to 1849 we
have shown to have been, SS2S.S53,l33. Mr.. F.
claims credit for the salt, auction and steam
boat duties, which were applied to the canal
debt, and are embraced in .he $33,2l4,I4S of
cost that has been mentioned. We will credit
him with this amount again, by claiming no in
terest upon the above twenty-eight millions of
nett revenues. These nett revenues deducted
from the above mentioned $49,795, 255 of ag-
gregate cost, would leave $2O,942 1922 for the
present canal debt, according to Mr. Fishers
principles of calculation. Well, the nett revenue
of the canals for lS49, was 2,757,lO2 which is
l3 per cent of $2O,942,l22, instead of Mr.
Fishers .Gre and half per cent. But the cost
of the Erie enlargement, which yet pays nothing,
is included in the above S20942,l22. The ac-
tua expenditure upon that work was, up to l849,
$l4,62474& almost the whole of this sum was
laid out previously to 1912, and has cost interest
for the eight years intervening. Upon Mr.. F's
principles, therefore, that work makes present
debt of upwards Of twenty millions, which wipes
out the $20,942,l22, above mentioned; and
leaves the present debt of the operating canals,
which produce the nett revenue of $2,757, lO2,
according to Mr.. F.'s notwithstanding. As
to these operating canals, therefore, their nett
revenue, so far from being but five and half per
cent, upon their cost is clear surplus income
Our first estimate was forty-ninc millions, but
it was mol based on the omission of the income
For VIC calculated interest for only half the
time, and on half The amount Of The cost, and we
did this to allow for the offset of tn, revenue.
Otherwise, since the expenditure was $32,-
2l4,l4S, and had been made between 1877,
and 1912, the interest would have been from
1929, the medium year, until l847, or eigh-
teen years on the sohoLe amount, which would
have made over sixty five millions. But we al
lowed for the revenue, without going into the
details of its receipt, and the interest on it, and
the result shows we were almost exactly cor
rect, And thus pershes the pretence of dis
ere ancy between our first and second estimates,
made with different methods. We did not make
an estimate Of the cost of the canals up to
ls49 at fifty mliens, and up to 1912 at fifty
seven. Both our estimates are made up to
lS49-both are alike, and the difference is that
one made an allowance for the revenue, the par
ticulars Of which we had not then examined,
whilst the other specified the particulars. So
that there is no probability of our making diff
ferent result in third calculation. But there
is no knowing what the Enquirer's next calcu-