The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-09-24
THE FINANCEs.
senator HOrton's Views.
when and How the national Debt
should be Paid.

" lNuOuG w AllNAhe~ ma aaAN
questions connected with our finances,
such as taxation of the bonds, retire
ment of the National Bank currency,
&c, l beg leave to call the attention OF
your readers 10 the subject Of the time
of payment of the national debt.
The total debt on the first of the pres
enL month, less the amount of cash IN
the Treasury, was s2,492, 7S3, ,665, and in-
cludes $3Gj, l65, ,S4I OF greenbacks or
legal tender notes, and SO, ,392, l12 i'll
fractional currency. Tie total bonded
debt, at the same time, including old
bonds, issued before 1861, WAS 81,
36l $40 4S.
OF this amount one hundred and
ninety eight millions four hundred and
thirty one thousand three hundred dol
lars (Sl9S, ,43l ,300) draw five per cent. in
terest and fall due in 1904, and are what
are commonly called n-Forties."
Two hundred and eighty-three millions
six hundred and seventy thousand
one hundred dollars (S2SS, ,676, 100, draw
ing six Der cent. interest, TALL due i'll
1851. Twelve hundred and tive millions
seven hundred and ten Thousand five
hundred dollars (Sl, ,205, ,Tl0,G0O) draw
six per cent. interest aud fall due in
lSS2. 'S4, 50 and 'S7, and are what are
commonly called ''FiHe-Twenties."
The interest on all these bonds Is pay
able in coin. There were outstanding
on the tirst OF the present month IouI
hundred millions seven hundred and
eighty.six thousand and twenty -tive
dollars (SIOO, 1856 .025) of three years
"Seven-Thirty" notes due in June and
July, 1868.
The law creating the "Ten- Forty"
bonds provides that the Government
shall have the right TO redeem Them at
any lime after ten years from the date
of their issue, and this right of redemp-
tion will accrue in 1874. The law ere
atIng the "Eive-Tweuues" provides
that the Government may redeem
them Ht any time after tive years from
the date OF issue, and this right of re-
demption will accrue In regard to
those already issued III 1867, go, 20
and ~.
The right 10 redeem these different
bonds at the expiration of five and ten
years, AS above stated. IL Al mere prlYtl-
eye reserved by the Government to be
exercised or not according 10 its con-
Venicnce, aud there is no moral or legal
obligation 10 pay oH one of them an
were passed, it was supposed 1t might
be TO the interest OF the Government to
pay of the debt, or some portion of II,
before il was due, and the right to do
so was accordingly reserved.
1t is now proposed by Democratic
poiiiiciuns that the Government shall
at once pay off in greenDacks all the
bonds which il has IA right TO redeem,
aud shall continue to do SO from year
to year, as the right to redeem shall nc
crue, until the whole is paid, which
would thus be done in seven years:
and the more violent are insisting on
the immediate discharge of the whole
debt by compelling our creditors Il
take an equal amount of greenbncks TO
be issued Tor that purpose.
The latter proposition would require
the immediate issue OF more than Two
L. =. L
the issue of IL like sum within seven
wears, and either would be clearly fatal
10 the credit and prosperity of the
county.
OF the "Five-Twenties," five hum
dred and fourteen millions and eighty
thousand and fifty dollars were issued
in 1862, and are not due until 1852; but
the Government has the privilege of
redeemiug them in 1867.
According to the last monthly state
msnt of the Treasury Department, there
are now absolutely due and must be
paid on presentment, various notes.
bonds and certificates of Indebtedness
amounting to nineteen million four
hundred and forty thousand three hun
dred and seventy-tive dollars and eigh-
ty-seven cents, (Sl9, ,44O, ,375.S7). There
are six per cent. bonds falling due in
1867 6S, and must then be paid, amount
ing to fourteen millions eight hundred
ana iNly-nlub luOuSduu seven nun
dred and ninety-one dollars and eighty
cents.
There are of three years compound
interest notes, which Will fall due in
1868, and must then be paid, seventy
eight millions eight hundred and thirty
nine thousand six hundred dollars.
How shall the Government get the
Greenbacks to pay the debts that are
due, and that will be due neg year. and
to redeem the Eve hundred and four
Teen millions of Five-TwenliesH
There are three ways:
l.. BY issuing new bonds and re-
deeming with the proceeds of their
sale; but this would only make new
debt of like amount, as the lime has
not come when u new bond bearing IA
lower rate Of Interest can be sold at
par. N ~
2. BY levyiug tax more than don-
Bile that of the present; but this the
country cannot and will not bear. Or,
8. BY issuing within the next twelve
months not less than six hundred mil
lions of greenbacks, and this operation
| must be repeated from year to year
until after 1874.
What effect this would have upon the
value OF the currency and the business
OF the country need not be discnssedI
for none are SO stupid as not TO under
stand it.
II this vast body ofcurreucy Is 10 bs
redeemed, then the debt Is not paid,
but hns only changed ills form. II 1t il
not TO hs redeemed, then. it will not be
worth the paper upon WHICH It Is
printed, and Reputation aud CONNER
cial ruin will be the result. The pres
ent value of greenbacks is chiefly due
| to the understanding that they are TO
be redeemed, and body OF currency
that is not TO be redeemed, and will die
| in the hands of the last holder, cannot
be sustained by making 1t a legal ten
der or by any other legislative con-
triyuuce. Not one dollar of the bonded
debt will fall due before fourteen years.
and It will then become dueat different
periods running down to l90i. Can any
good reason he given for paying II of
| so long In advance? The country has
not vel recovered from The war. Trade
aud commerce still languish through
out the land. Nine States are dlsor-
ganiled and desolate, and can scarce
pay anything for years to come. The
rebelIious South caused the debt TO lie
created, but whatever is paid In the
next five or six years must come
almost entirely from the North.
Why not walt at least until the South
can pay part2 Why not wait until the
country bas recovered from the shock
and waste of warE has not this gen,
GRAFTON put down the rebellion and
done It's part, and may 1t not justly
! leave the payment OF part OF the debt
! 10 the next9 This generation has 10
discharge large State, county and
municipal indebtedness growing out
of the war, and within the next ten
years will have to pay not lesS than
800, 900 600 for pensions and hountles,
besides extraordinary expenses for In
dian wars and other causes, In ten
wears our population will have inpreas
ed fan millions and our taxable pro-