New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1867-12-02
GEN UTILITIES LOGIC.

We have waited to find In me GtOOc an al-
tholizcd report of Cen Buffers speech on The
Finances before making the comments that 1t
seemed to provoke. And now, we are con
strained by press of matter TO speak only to
a single paragraph of that speech, which we
quote as follows:
"The next class OF arguments that the gentleman from
Maine puts forward on this question Is me PlOGsasi9
the adNcrttoiuehts 3l u''c ne Inns tio .t -,
AGENTS Of tie United States Who disposed ol lu' iV"t
Allow me here say that for contracting national de't
/ know other authorized agent 1l tue nation nut
thc Congress Of the United States Know no U"hcf
whether he is u the Treasury once or out q" IT, lha MY
right TO hN tEc terms al thc ioi 'cD' I.I H. 80 ~,
States No man Is authorized To pay uoiiAI % ,u'
and tHcrrior clunot contract dollar. debt unless
thorizcd directly and distinctly by an act o the congress
trd after some sort when cndcnyOring TO sell IT, that
Inc principal Of s loan payable ina coin but in The
Intended aso to sell the loan that national debt ia
national blessing Are we bound 10y c"hiia to t tal'
ine,S ~ ,lS fruo n.f ai Sr ia, cooke ls bound
tLc country 10 the proposition that national Cc't lsa
national blessing 90 anybody except hlnhen'
Rcmdris BY The Tribune.
That Mr.. Jay Cooke ever issued IN "adycr-
"tiscmcnt," arguing that "a National Debt Is
"a National blessing" We believe untrue He
did once publish an essay which took that
ground but he did not offer to pay Us for
printing it.; and we therefore presume he paid
no one. We dissent pointcdly from thc doc
trine. A National Debt proilcrs some incidcn-
tai advantagcs-so does a hurricane. or an in
undation-but they are largely oyerbalanccd.
Hence, we have been. and are, urging the pay
ment of the Debt not its preservation. We
would raise by tax Five Hundred Millions per
annum till the last cent was paid Oft, as 1t
would he within the next ten years. And we
hold this though severe, decidedly preferable
TO paying interest throughout tie next century.
Aud yet. we very cheoriully gave MIR. Cooke
hearing, though his views were antagonist 20
ours.
Aud now to Gen. Butler Mr.. Cooke was en-
poyod and authorized by successive Secretaries
of the Treasury TO sell the Fiye-Tweuty loan.
He paid us for several advertisements OF that
loan, aud we wrote and printed without paymaDy
editorials urging every one who could raise 800
or more to invest il in that loan. u was indis
pensablc 10 the successful prosecution Of the
War for the Union that hundreds of thousands
should do this; and we, in our celebrations
to subscribe 10 the loan. were helping the War
as truly and zcalously-though of course not 80
cffcctivcy-as Gen. Butler was IN digging the
Dutch Gap canal. We did our best: he
did better, mainly because he had more
ability Day after day, we commended
the loan and expatatcd on its advantages rs
an investment, setting forth that the War
would soon Lc cudcd-that we should then re-
turn to specie paymcntS-and that these bonds
would anyhow be- paid principal as well "a in
tercsi. IN gold. Had we said instcad-"Thcy
"wIll be paid oily in Hcenhacks when the Gov
eminent gets ready; and you must take the
" risk OF those grecnbacks being worth ten
cents or seventy cents per dollar in gold'-
the loans must have failed, and Gen. Buffers
soldiers gone hungry, ragged, and unpaid like
those they were confronting.
Bat our services were volunteered; those
of Jay Cooke were purchased and paid for.
He was officially recognized and advertised
as Tie Governments agent for this purpose
and Gen. Butler admits that, as such agent,
he asserted aud reiterated that the Five
Twcntics were payable, principal and interest,
in gold. The bonds were negotiated and taken
on the faith Of those assurances as they would
not have been taken in their absence they
were sent forth from under the shadow of
the Treasury without whisper of dcmur
on It's part to its agents positive representa-
tiOns. Nobody pretended, nobody imagined, that
Mr.. Cookies essay against paying of the Debt
was officially authorized or even instigated; it
was ayowcdy and notoriousls his individual
view of the matter Yet Gen. Butler asserts
that the Government is "a much bound by that
rs by Mr.. Cookies advertisements as its
agent, or the strength of which farms were
sold debts collected at sacrifice, and the
money gathered up from every quarter, whereby
bis cannon were shotted and his soldiers paid
This country is now subjected to an ordeal
whereby the sagacity no less than the integrity
OF ITS people will be tested. We confidently
trust that they will not prove themselves at
once lnaycs and fools