The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1866-12-07

100000. June 80, 1866, it was 81, $50, :
100000; showing net decline of
$31, 100000 for the year. But four
months after, that is, on October 81,
i 1866, the debt was $3.50, 600, 600,
| showing 4 decrease during these four
months of $99,000,000. With the
present vast income of the Govern
ment. the debt would necessarily con-
tinue to decrease more rapidly, be-
cause nearly all of the claims for war
expenses have been paid But the
Secretary says, 1t is not expected,
nor is it, desirab bic, perhaps, that the
same rate of reduction should be con-
i tinuedo gnen me-. .s.iega 90. 919H
7 He proposes to diminish the inter-
4 nal taxes, and a modification of the
Ftarif. which will reduce the duties on
lamentations. He thinks the tariff
SHOULD be, so revised as to remove the
burdens, on industry, randn especially
on, that which weighs upon the pro-
duction of raw materials He is de-
cidedly opposed to taxing raw materi =
ais. The, amount of revenue he wants
is onlyeenough for an economical adj
ministration of the Government and
for reducing gradually The, principalOf
the national debt. He thinks four or
FIVE millions aomonth should be ap-
piled in extinguishingl the debit But
he says there must be economy, and, i
above all, there must be no conditional
donations to railroads and other com
painless 1.-The debt he urges, s. can
and should be paid by the generation
ithat created it.p He wisely maintains
that" anational debt is q burden aud 4
a severe strain on republican institu-
tions.p ngEn 10 .8G aaO3 WA Il
Isl He proposes to issue twenty years
five per cent. bonds, payable in Eng
land or Germany. to absorb the six
per cents now held in Europe. This
is very well as far as it goes; but it
would be much better to consolidate
the whole debt into five per cents and
for a longer period This would rem
der the debt uniform and less expen-
Isive, as, well as more simple to man
age. The longer period would give a
greater value In the transformation of
one stock for another, and would not |
prevent the government buying the
debt up at any time with its sinking
fund. rde9tiaD .Gl40eJ 8aad0aa "a
IL Some of otheseI views are sound
enough; but when Mr. McCulloch
gets on his old hobby of forcing spe-
Gle payments he shows that in this re-ol
spect he is man of one idea. Q Here
grets that Congress did not give him
more power to contract the currency
He has done all he could by with
drawing legal tenders, but the in
crease of the national bank currency
has kept the amount of circulation |
much as it was when he made his last
report. He regards "a redundantle-
gal tender currency as the prime
cause of our financial difficulties. n
What financial difficulties? Where
are they? Are they found in his over
flowing Treasury or in the universal |
prosperity and active industry of the |
country? They are nowhere i
but in his r. imagination. The
truth is Mr., Il McCullochsI appears
to be incapable of learning either
from the actual condition of things
or, the lessons of history. He says
specie payments ought to be resumed
and could be by the first day of July,
1868, and he. hopes the legislation of /
Congress will be such as to bring it
about earlier. There are no financial
difficulties now, nor are there likely |
to be, under our present gradually
progressive movement toward specie
payments; but if an attempt should
be made to carry out his theory, the |
whole country would be plunged into
reyulsion and bankruptcy. 7aes9Tq /
e Strongly as we object oathis part of
the Secretaryis report, there are other
portions which call for commenda-s
ton. s'Some of. these we have referred
to; but we cannot close our remarks
withoutexpressing the hope that Con-
gress may act upon his recommends
ton to pass laws for the government
of our mercantile marine, so that
such disaster as that of the Evening
Star may not occur again. ii5i a. II