The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1862-07-12
THE MOUNTAIN DEMOCRAT.
Cost Of Negro EmRnciPatiOn-Ken-
lucky UntOnists' View oft.


-
The Louisville Democrat has taken the
trouble to iLdite a mathematical response
to Mr.. Lincoln's scheme Of negro cmanci-
patton, by compensation on the part of
the Federal Government The plain,
practical people Of the country will attach
some importance to the Democratic fig.
ures, although, Of course, they will be
considered nothing by the ideal philan-
thropiStS, who are seeking this great
change in our social and industrial system,
and who arc resolved to tram1le upon all
Vhe obstacles that oppose their design.
The Democrat figures, or, to use the
Yankee phrase, Calculates the matter
thus:
"A calculation of the expense Of an
emancipation scheme would certainly as
tonish the minds of the people and show
its utter impracticability. There are in
this country, upon rough estimate, o.
100000 Of slaves, The value Of each OF
these, according to the price put upon
them in the late act purchasing and free
ing the negroes Of the District Of COlun-
biS, is $500. Suppose the price paid
down was only two hundred. This would
draw from 1ds pgoQ&<: tie Saeu Of one
thousand million dollars at single draft
The real value Of negroes to the master
would be, according to prices before the
war, about $500 apiece. At that time a
man vas worth, Oh an average, $500,
woman 5000, ara a. 81, @>4>. .-.,.- p. =. -.--
that the value Of younger negroes, less
than this, would be made up by the ex.
cess Of the price Of the men and women
This additional 5000, taken from the
owner, is as clearly 5000 To be lost, as the
price, $500, paid down. The cost, then,
Of emancipation, provided colonization
was not attempted, and provided the negro
labor was as valuable after emancipation,
would be the round sum of 81, 900, 100000
Let US be within bOunds-put it at only
81, 100000, 900.
1.-The negro labor after emancipation is
clearly nothing. We want no stronger
proof Of this than the stringent laws of
the Northern States excluding them from
their borders II the ncys4 laboy Is- .a'
an prOnt2ue IN tnose Su,lt :, IL Is hut fair
20 presume that they would be admitted,
ii not invited, to them, as the white labor
is
"Then we are to estimate emancipa.
ton as removing four millions of lahorcrS
from population in the southern States
of thirteen millions, ar nearly one-third Of
the whole population, and at least four
tiiths Of the " hole aboring force. Is it
an the bounds of human calculation to cS.
innate what such a measure would be:
We believe it inclculablc; we believe it
infinite; the measure would he utterly
Tuinou& But, in order to make some
possible estimate, We can place it at an
other $1,000, 0UO. 900 This places our
debt al g, 4UU, 0nU,Vn0. New, suppusc
We place the sum required to colonze
these negroes at 800 per head. This
Eiyes an additional sum Of 500, 100000,
Md the sum total becomes &, eOp, 0nu,.
900. These men, when they are removed,
InUst be supported for the first two or
three years. just for food, clothing and
the mere shelter Of a tent, the tovrrn.
ment pays $l5l per annuu. This does
not include pay, bounty or transportation.
All Of these necessary articles Of clothing
aud food would have for two Years to be
forwarded TO the colony. suppose, to
come under the mark, We were To place
this at only SlUO per head for two years.
This would he $500, Uuo, 900 muie The
cost NJ protection world probably be
$2U,0V0,O00 To recapilu.at-:
For the purchase Of freedom StyO UjO,OOO
To additional loss 10 the master pro
Vlded equally good labor was tlp-
pled........ ............... Con-, N1,,O0
To loss Of the Lahore r, ......l 2IbJ. LHpI UUd
EEp Of TsnrJ,a al 4,H. trE, 800
To supper for two !ears............... eDO,UiD,ah
TO projection ..... ............... 2u.NN,ND
Total debt So t2U, OU0,u1O
This is three thousand SlX hundred
and twenty millions to lac paid for Mr.l.in
coins scheme of emancipation. We have
not included the cost Of the territory TO
which they were sent. That would he
trn millions mo-c, but when We run into
she thousand millions We are quite willing
10 throw in to Mr.. Lincoln such tribe
as that.
Suppose this 10 he in perpetual stock,
as in England. The interest to be paid
annually, ut fcnr-rer cent, would be
Sl44, SOU, 600. To collect this would take
all additional ten per cent, increasing the
cost OF Mr.. Linc"Iu's scheme to the neat
sum Of Sl59. 2S0, 900. paid directly out OF
pocket by the people Ot the nitcd States,
and from which they receive no benefit,
but positive injury. If the war debt is
placed at six hundred million, aud made
perpetual, we have four per cent. more
interest on it, amounting to $24 900, 900.
The anihual expenses Of the Government
We can safely estimate at hundred and
fifty millions more. Thus We would be-
gin the world at the commencement Of
immediate emancipation at about S325,-
600, 900 per annum. This SupposeS a
national debt never to be paid, which is
essentially contrary to American policy.
1t also suppoSes perpetual peace and pros
perity, events not likely to follow. The
annual tax upon a country greatly ex-
hausted, one year with another, would be
about $500, 900, 900 per annum. Oh! but
We bear that in the midst of war, says
one; but We suppose no man Is fool
enough to suppose We could keep up a
perpetual war at that expense. We bear
it now because We know it will be short,
and a0DytESa ,!e s,4s, lSslead II TT1SrrS
the debt perpetual, gradually pay it oil.
We want future years of prosperity to
share our burden Of the present. The
Government could no more pay it than it
can now pay down the sum of 100000
900 in gold, and that would be required
of it every year.
TIE DEMOCRATIC ADDRESS. docu-
ment, says the Hartford Comm Times,
meets with the general approval of the
Democratic press While the sectional
journals squirm under its forcible truths,
the Democracy everywhere hail it with
enthusiasm, as the very thing demanded
by the exigences Of the country. The
Harrisburg Patriot and Union, the old