New-York daily tribune., 1858-08-05

validity Of PubEc Debt q ressHcNo 70 'ne
time Of the generation which cont.ac.st I! a"
we msy do no injustice to any oue, We quo'e "e
biogr.pher. sccour. Of tie matter II FL. l''"
follows:
"Ir q Letter TO Mr.. hsdisor, be lJefsr.oo. -.
cusped at COZ sc e-sbls length, new question: r5
f.on reflections cn the elementary pntci2e 81
ETY.. sh;cn tie corre c. Affairs in t;soos nso Us
gsstsd. He brosche tie subject In tni Vse;
questicn whether one generation OF men D.s .aj
'to bird another, seems never 70 have pesn SIR
ether on to.s or our si5e Of the water. Lex
qrest;cn cf such Consequence a. rot only 70 Hoi'
decision, be. place also amo,g the funcaaen.A prL
'ciples Of every goverr-ne.t De arrived a. .ne
..iTe oorc'usion His Intellectual history woaa ny
be complete without full ana fair view OF ais rsdcs
pos.:oLs On tbs iubeot, eipecaLy a. thsy .a'
persistent Of hs Efe. They are too long or
ton here, sLd synopsis wcud not GO enue lu'.oe ~
ten. They viii therefore be presented entire II the
"Mr. Madison in tis reply, d;ssented from the.e
views with h;s hsbitusl force OF logic, but vic az
hsbius canaor AID ,nCdssty. TIE letter is gwen y
PJofe sor Tucker, and we pace before the 'ssi7r'
With Jeffersons, N the Appendix.
Ninety Zine out Of rearly every hundred vsI,-so.
csad persoIs in the United States, We doho, n9l'
would tave corcUlred with the conclusions OF M:
Msdiscr at the period when these letters were VIZ
ten Nay we csr readily farcy the hard names inst
would have beer showersd upon Jefferson then aad
h.s yeSs found publication. But 1t mas happened -
this instance, a. with most CT bis Pohncal ls1icsl-
isms But little over half century ass psss:d aEsy
srd they are row adopted ard p'acticed theories
amorg men, constantly spreacng over ahd contoAins
larger portions Of human socety-auo wnsre tney
hsve not been adopted BY tie majority, they ste 10
lorger met "a fngh.'ul Innovations, out ss oPen que
toss where men have srght 70 doubt snc dlsc lss'
Tie principal practical application which NJ. J.neE-
son propcfed TO make Of tte above t5eory-the nita
ton Of the power OF Goyermertsto De,
Jond the lite of generation and provision IN All
ur,tk fha aCrtr n
payueL Of annual irterest-has been eng afed with
the bsppest effects into the consttu.ion Of ssversl
American States. The Tsdicasm Of the eighteenth
century becomes conservatism II the nineteenth.
We incline to the belief that Mr. Randall. in
his blind dolatry, has here done Mr. Jefferson the
Injustice Of attrbuting TO him as well considered
aud settled conviction-" bis radical positions on
" this subject, the persistent ores Of his lie -
what were really hut speculations Of the moment
excited by the contemplation OF an obvious eTD,
but never intended to be laid down as the bases OF
practical statesn anshp. We may admit tha. this
notion was recurred to b. Mr. Jefferson, ard with
seeming favor; but We could not concede that be
really, deliberately sffirmed and would have scted
on the radical positions " assigned to him by his
bcgrspher. unless the evidence on this head were
Randall, lot only as to what were Mr. Jeferson's
views, but as to the general adoption oftho,e views
in our day, gives to the topic grave importance.
Is it true that public debt is no longer held to be
morally binding upon any but the generation which
contracted it Or-to state the case broadly
what are the grounds Of moral obligation TO pay q
Public Debt and what are the limits Of that obi.
gation1
We held the Public Debt Of Nation to be just
as obligatory on the existing inhabitants of that
Nation as is the subsisting mortgage on an estate
which any of us may have inherited from his ances-
tors. No matter though that mortgage be thou
sand years old-no matter if it were incurred to
discharge or cover prodigal or vicious expenditure
whoever takes the estate BY inheritance takes il
subject to the mortgage, and can only escape or
eschew that liability by suuendering or abandoning
the property. citizen OF Illinois or Of Mississippi
ceases to be responsible for the Public Debt of said
State when he ceases TO live or own property in
justly liable for its fair proportion Of tho States
debt. If, indeed said debt were knsvishy con
tracted by persons preterdiug to represent and to
bird tie State but having no authority TO do so,
then it is not public debt, but only debt Of the
contracting il and those sharing with
them in the proceeds; but public debt incurred
by competent authority can only cease 10 be debt
by being paid, and only ceases to be obligatory on
an Individual who ever was liable for any part Of il
by bis ceasipg to be citizen Of the State which
owes it.
Consider the opposite theory in the Light she'd
upon it BY practical examples; Our Country,
through Congress and the State Governments, con-
tractsd heavy obligations during the Revolutionary
War. Suppose the anarchy poverty and impo-
tence Of the old Confederation had continued down
to 1850, when Federal Constitution had been
adopted, and the Nation had thereupon vaulted at
bound into Industrial activity, thrift and opuence
ard now the public creditors come forward solicit
irg the satisfaction of their long deferred claims.
But No." says Mr.. Randalrs Jefferson, ''tbe
" generation which owed you is dead we repudiate
"your claims as outlawed and worthless" If
whoever ,hould set up that defense did not see
scoundrel every time he faced looking slas,, he
mu.t be stone blind.
Take smother instance; II is and has been claimed
for more than half century that France was justly
indebted to US to the amount Of several millions Of
dollars for the unjust and wrongful capture of
Anne rican merchant vessels throughout several
years prior to John Adamss Treaty Of l799,
whereby We for valuable consideration, surren-
dertd all claims growing out Of such sPoliations.
The plundered merchants have repeatedly, through
the last fifty years, petitioned in vain for payment
This year, the Treasury is too empty; next year,
the country is at war and can. afford TO pay old
debts; now the House passes bill and the Senate