Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-05-17
"a PabIls DsbI "a Ihe- pnIlsa sIaIes.

I1e ltato4eAt a mdQe LEOm N&dnluEt ION
that the public debt Of tie country on The
l4th of May ha attained the sum Of
Sl,7SO, ,s79,lz0 80. Although this is q
great sun, it fAIls short Of the amount
which the people have been ed 70 sup
pose through the mis1epresentstions Of IN
scrupulous partizans,ssa 5s
The question Which directly con-
Germs every American citizen Of the North
is, are We able to sustain such burthen2
viii the weight press SO heavily as to be-
eome inspferable 10 the paople2 Has the
young Republic only 3 mushroom g Owth
or has it the elements Of greater material
prosperity than hal any other nation. Ten
years ago, wheE the annual expenditures
Of the Nstisnal Government had resehed
$75 0O0, 900, " iters on finance began to
deprecste SO large an expenditure, and
ask what tbs nation would come to if such
unparalleled extravaganza should con-
tinue2 Saa
The history Of political parties in this
country teaches also how restive the PeO-
pie were under the imposition of small
additional tax. The battle cry Of too much
taxation served often to overVhelm q party
in utter defeat. Since then there his been
revolution Of feeling. The people have
been reYOlutionized morally. The bitter
cup Of civil war has developed herOism
not only 81 The battlefield, but one in civil
life no less important 1t has not been
because our people have been pursued by q
giddy unosIculsting frenzy, ,as is alleged BY
English Tory journals, that they have been
willing to inour the grievous burthen Of a
great public debt 1t has been, however,
the deliberate choice Of a people wrought
up to 3 high moral enthusiasm; who
would rather incur the burthen than sac
riHoe National honor and National unity.
Whether the National debt can be paid
is q problem whose solution is cOmpara-
lively unaided BY our financial experien-
ces prior to the rebellion. It is to be con-
sidered In the light Of the experiences
passed through by European nations. A
few facts may, however, be stated showing
the capacity Of the nation to bear debt.
Suppose ths debt to attain the sum Of four
billions before the war is closed. From
1850 to 1850 the amount Of proper y to
each inha5itant Of the free States in.
creased from S8Oz SO to S4ls H. In 1860
the income to. each inhsbitant from The
mining, manufacturing, and mechanissl
industry Of those States was Ss4 As. This
was mora than the entire income to esch
inhabitant Of England and Wales in ls4O.
1t was 70 per cent. more than the entire
income Obthe people Of France during
that year. These facts alone, viewed in
the light Of that experience in msintain-
ing 3 great debt through which England
and France have passed, are sufficient to
vindioste the sbitity Of this alton to sus-
tain deFt Of four billiors, which is less
by five hundred millions than the present
debt Of England. II, in addition to these
the immense commercial and agricultural
advantages of the nation are considered,
the demonstration becomes still more pos
tive. The increase Of horses, mules, cat.
Gle, sheep, and swine from 1910 to 1850,
was immense. witbout going into details
Of figures, it is sufficient to say that the
census report establishes an immense in
crease in the Valus Of al agricultural pro-
ducts. 'tI
Mr.. stsbbins, Of New York, in a vfry
able speech on the National finances, toek
the ratio Of inorsAse in the value Of the
property Of the entire Union, excluding
the assessed value Of the slaves, from 1850
to1s60, and calculated that in 1870 we
shall have thirty i've billions Of National
wealth; in 1880 we shall have eighty bill
lions.
The great increase Of our National
wealth is largely dneto the multiplication
Of railroads throughout the country,
progress in internal improvement which
must continue to advance indefinitely.
A careful, not bOsstfuI, analysis Of the
great matsrisI prosperity awaiting US in
the future, demonstrates permsnency in
our growth that will enable the Nation to
carry its debt with ease. The danger is
not in our inability it lies in the psrti,
sAn recklessness which counts National in
tsgrity and honor as small thing, pre-
fsrFing repudistion to an honest discharge
Of obligations incurred in noble and pa
triOtic cause.
"The Weundsd are Wen Cured For''
While grim war is desolstiDg the land
and clothing it in the sad gsrmenis Of
mourning, it is a great relief to know that
the wounded are well cared for. These
few words, tslegrsphed from Washington,
bring joy and peace to many troubled
hearts. All that experience in caring for
the wounded has taught us, all that Chris
tisn sympathy and civilization can do,
viii be done for the brave men who come
from the CORY battlefield with scars re-
oeived in The Nations service. Our peo-
pie, however, should not forget that this
duty belongs to them also, A thousand
things can Jet be done. Washington is
sOneOr to the wounded Of the Potomac
Army thsl every thing will be done in he
East for them.
But the sons Of Ohio are chiefly with
Sherman. They are pushing on to the
very heart Of the Gulf States. They are
thousand miles away. They must be cared
fOs, If wounded, by the people Of the west