The dollar weekly bulletin. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1862-1864, 1863-02-05
From the New York World, January 2stn'

From the New York World, January 2sth.
Danger Of National Insolvency.. 4
There is no subject SO fitted to inspire
anxiety as the national bankruptcy and re-
pudation which loom up in colossal proper
tions if the II ouse. shall bill pass the Senate
and become law. Weshould be sorry to see
the country put to any such hard alternative
as choice between Reputation and dis
union, for of the two all honest men would
consider disunion, direful as the very thought
of it is, the lesser evil. IF this bill passes,
the premium on gold, which is now upward
of fifty per cent, will before the end of the
fsca! wear be least one hundred and fifty
per cent the consequence of which will be
that the government will have TO pay two
hundred and fifty millions of dollars for
every hundred millions, worth of army sup
plies, and the pay of the soldiers will be
| reduced from thirteen dollars month to
three dollars and twenty cents. Before
matters reach this pass discent ent in the
! army and universal panic aud convulsion in
the business community will take out of our
hands the decision of the question whether
the Union is to be restored. The only way
10 avert these threatened evils is by gradual
and judicious contraction of the currency un--
| til its value approximates to that of gold.
! The government would indeed, in that case,
have to sell its DO nds at large discount, but
| their purch asers would feel more secure than
they possibly can under the present system.
The public debt would not accumulate with
the same frightful rapidity, and the public
securities would not so rapidly depreciste il
consequence of the enormous amount of
them put on the market, and also in conse-
1uence of the depreciation of the currency
| by which their value is to be measured.
/ The amount Of interest to be paid by the
! government would be proportionably small
er, and the debt to be extinguished after the
return of peace be within tho ability of the
nation. r..,..I.- Eli. ---,.
It is important for the people to under
stand the enormous liabilities they are &C
cumulatlng under the present system. The
following figures, which we believe to be
sn bstautially accurate, are taken from a
speech made in the House by the chairman
| Of the Com mittee Of Ways aud Means. The
present Indebtedness of the nation stands
about as follows: .. -..-
| Old debt falling due within a few
| years from this time, at different
periods, about 1000 900
| Loan under acts of this Congress $50, 900 900
| Certificates of indebtedness, about 100 ,000 900
4 Loans on ten days deposit, about 100 zoo, 900
! The unliquidated debts due the army ALI.
/ contractors, and others cannot be
less than besides pOstnl currency 200 900 900
Total s7aO,oOO, 900
The bill just passed the House proposes
ia increase it as follows:
1t leaves the authority, already ex-
listing by the act of last session,
to issue tiye twenty bonds to the
amount of 800 900 900
And by this bill 900 1000
Making our debt when all are
issued s2,l2O ,OOc 900
The interest on this enormous sum is pay
able in gold, large part of which will have
to be bought by the government at a pre-
MUM of certainly not less than one hundred
per cent. after this bill is fully in opera ton.
But even at a premium of fifty per cent,
which is less than the present price of gold,
the six per cent. interest which the govern
ment promises 10 pay would become nine
per cent, or three times the rate of the pub
lie debt of Great Britain. The interest on
S2,120000.C0O, at the nominal rate of six
per cent. would make an annual charge on
the resources of the country of 5 l27 100000,
all of which is payable in gold, which must
be purchased at a premium, except what is
receiv in duties on imports. The esti-
mated receipts from this source for the pre-
sent year are, according to Mr.. Chase's re-
port, S68 ,0O0,O0 The permanent rev enue
from this source probably will not exceed
that sum; the charm an OF the Committee oil
Ways and Means estimates it as low as
$50, 100000. Assuming that it will be the
larger of these sums at least So DOC, 600 OF
it will be requ ired for expenditure abroad in
, government purchases, and for the support
Of the navy and the dploUa attic service,
leaving S60,OOO.O00 to be applied toward the
interest of the public debt.
From the total interest 1927 200 900
Deduct 10000 ,OGO
And here remains $67 200 900
On which the premium for gold, at
so por cent, will be IS 900 900
Making the charge for interest not
paid by import duties 500 500 900
This sum will have to be paid out of the
internal revenue, which will probably
amount to no more than $50, 100000, leav-
ing only fifty millions for the current ex-
peDses of the government, which. before the
war, amounted to nearly S7O,OOO,OOO, and
after its close cannot fall short of S 100 900,
600. There will accordingly be an annual
deficit of 1000, 900, the interest on which
may possibly be kept up by the increase of
the revenue, while the principal goes to swell
the volume of the public debt, adding ST.
OOO.OO0,O00 to it in the twenty years at the
expiration of which the whole debt falls due
Within the space of couple Of years at the
end OF the twenty, the government will be
called to pay the enormous sum of three bill
lions; which it can more do than it can
lift up the Rocky Mountains from their ever
lasting base and put them in the Pacific
ocean. Such debt could never be paid ex-
cept by the sponge; it would remain per-
petual Incubus on the industry and resources
of the country. The stream of emigration
which has so built US up in the past would
be diverted to countries less heavily taxed !,
and mighty check be given to our growth
and prosperity. s ..-