, 1864-04-04
FROM -WASHINGTON.


WAkz18GrdS. March 81, 1874
SEcEss1r1 OF TAXATION REVENUE AND
Your. correspondent from the first has
dwelt On the necessity Of taxation proper
TONED to the debt with which the wzr has
necessarily burdened the county. We Will
| within the next twelve months haye piled up
debt Of two Thousand five hundred millions
Of dollars, while our revenue has not as vet
been large enough 1T any time to meet the
interest upon it. Senators and members at
length begin to appreciate the position OF
the country financially. and 7 learn that the
meet the realities Of or situation. In this
| matter Of taxStion ne must bo guided to a
great extent By the history Of other nations.
That Of Great Britain presents the nearest
parallel to our present position. But even
IN LUIS as IN eEer5 other instance In which
We lave copied the mother country, it has
been on seals proportioned to the magnitude
Of our territory, md Of the ideas to which that
magnitude gives birth. Thus while it took
Great Britain century and q half to pile up
her debt Of about four Thousand millions Of
third as much In less. than three years,
And during this century md 3 half, while
Great Britain was negotiating enormous
loans, she was also laying enormous taxes
upon the profits Of her industry In the
Jears from 1873 to 1915, inclusive, while en-
gagaged in the Napoleonic wars and the war
with these United States. she borrowed but
$598, ,794, 40, while she raised by taxation
1864, ,9B. SO. Thus she raised bytaxation
over three times as much as BY loans. Now,
take the United States. In 1863 and 1868, we
raised BY loans Qncluding Treasury notes,
81 $1,So6, ,S7A, 81, and BY ta1es but $l6s,-
3s5, ,4o6. Adding the estimated expenditures
a $Ad
revenue respectiVely-$1149, rs, 800 and $780,:
2s9, z5o-aud TIE hare In three years raised as
1o4oWs:; - r.. =
By loans, 05f 106 Isl
bJ fdUHon ..-.... .........--...-. 8l9,6Na6
The contrast between our financial position
and that Of Great Britain, then, is very stri~
king; for while with us the proportion of
taxes to loans is about one to five or SIX;
with her the proportion Of taxes to loans was
about three to one. Thus our loans are five
times In excess of our taxation; with her the |
taxes were three ttmes greater than the loans.
Now, In order to preserve the credit Of o1r I
bonds, Keep down the price Of gold, enaoleus
taxes to some sort Of proportion; to our |
loans. Is not this selfevident prop position: |
It certainly is, unless finance in the United |
States is totally different science and gov /
erned by entirely different laws from finance
IN Great Britain. I learn that Mr.. Chase Is
EULuG1} SHl1hut0 LuEA h4E Vut5 way U3 WHICH +
10 keep down the price Of gold is by taxation,
md also by the displacement Of the Issues Of
he State .ty those OF the national bsnks' :
But why not tax State bank issues : Are
members of Congress too timid to grspp1e
with this question as it should be gFappled
Eiths It is the question Of qnes-
Laons. General Grant, may whip the
l,.,st tousta N many pitched battles; but he
Innst, mnst have the sinews of war. with l.
wn nlen ha 10 follow up his victories. And after
.nles, We still will have tho task Of retaining
posseesio1 Of the conquered ferritnr~ an3
se-o1ga1izing 1t on an enduring basSs hefnra
US; and this requires good. i, cred;,+ ovagfo "ag
constantly @ replenished treasury also ''1% W.
aave at length gotten Lieutenant Go,.ra9 M
ol onf armies, In whom the nation ha. asasu
:1onndence, 4 but he makes If siqe 0ua .saa
hat all bis orders ehall be ohevod ~
VT. Chase is the Lieutenant Gonera1 T1Su. oT nn.
inancea. Bis orders should also b. obeved vdt
r good Tcasons given why they shonl5 MT
ae asks Congress to come mp TO eomet,,tnc
lkc The magnitude Of the crisis In tbis maf.
er- lit docs not do SO, be can yetT iustiv
ay: ''Tben, gentlemen, On your own hesis
ct the responsibility rest haYe done nv
(uty to my God and my country on subtect
which l. consider essential to the existsnce
4 ths nation"