The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1868-09-12
The Great Speech Of Edward
AtkiL son.
What the Republican Party has
done to Pay the National Debt.

What the Republican Party has
done to Pay the National Debt.
We published yesterday portion of the ad-
mirabie speech of Edward Atkinson at the
Massachusetts, Republican Convention, In
winch he showed that instead OF allowing
the national debt to increase the Republican
party has paid over eight hundred millions of
1t since the war. The concluding portion of
his speech is equally interesting and we give
1t below:
We have proved that the ordinary expens-
es OF the government ioI three years and a
quarter including the suppression OF Indian
hostilitles, and nearly Sl0000,O00 TOR river
and harbor improvements, have been at a
less tate than during the last fiscal year prior
to the war.
We have proved that to the alleged
MAXIM an debt, Aug. l, 1865. 757 $685. 71
there must lie added p, rLiun of
the labiiiy OF 1920, 77S,l52 which
existed ApIl 1, and OF which
there was slill unsettled on the $50
LIST August the sum OF. ............... 53OOio 100
and we then have the actual maxi nov -, ,oo
IN WHAT FORM WAS THIS DEBI
Ist. Due aoithia three years.
1st-The liability not then entered
upon the baoks was all ecognized
and settled within thee Yeas and
E.Js OF il was due AID PAID With
2dIThe uebt upon the books was 'S''''''''
mostly due at short uate and COLI
sisted OF the follow ng obligations:
Over e ON which interest had ceased 80 1503, O2O
Compound interest notes due in 1866
anu le6l Observation-Disclosures. 2E ,024, 100
$40 Treasury notes due in 1S6.-6S $50 000,OOO
Certifcai es of Indebtedness in 1866. So,O93O
Temporary loan due on Uday's no
tice and per cent. ................. l0I,l4S1l3
One anu two year notes al per cent. 80 954 $50
Suspended repuisitions. ............... 2,1il,OO0
per cent. bonds ISSUED before the
war and due III 1851 and 1868. .:..... 1923, 592
Total debt due within three years 81 s25, 473
Debt Due on Demand.
Notes known as legal tender
Notes or "gre nbacLs," which
The Republican party now
recognizes as "a debt due
demand, and has paid in
part or proposes to pay
bonds. .................s4 :3 l6O569
Fractional currency. ......... 26,G44,742
$4j9,5O5,3l
Less cash in the Treasury. S. 2IS U55 81 2S7, 256
Funded Je5t.
Old five per cents due in 1871
and 1914 ..................$ 27 ,O22, 600
5per cent 10 AZ bonds due i'll
1904. ...,....,,..:..........i 72, 10000
6per cent bonds due in 1880
and 1881. ............... .2Ss, G25 900
per cent. $40 bonds due in
1882 and 1884, ............. COG $3.50 SEQ
Bends issued to the Pacific
Railr0a, due 1895. ,25S 900 ,091 PA 500
$3.50
Maximum debt. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. S3,2S7, 733.329
Ii we analyze the form of our debt as it exis-
ted June 30, 1866, amounting net to only ST.
4S5 0O0OO0, we lind that it was all substan-
tally consolidated into long loans, the pay
ment OF more OF which can be demanded be-
tore 1880, except the currency debt represent
e by The legal tender demand notes, amount
ing now to only S356,O00,O00.
And tor the funding ot these notes the Re
publican party passed an act which failed to
become a law by the laches of Andrew John
son.
We then claim that the Republican party
has proved its intention to meet the liabilities
OF the country by honest payment, and to re-
move from the people at the earliest moment
the curse of an inconvertible paper cur
rency. have never been entirely convinced
otthe necessity tor the issue OF the legal ten
der notes as war measure until L entered
upon the leview of our finances, of which
am now giving you the results.
challenge any one to deny that this exhi-
bit proves that the finances of the country
have been managed by tie Republican party
with success never before known in the his
tory OF the world.
Would that bad the eloquence o&Glad-
stone, that might excite in you as much in
terest in thesedi details as their importance
demands.
From this review OF the finances of the last
three years it is manifest that if the nation
has submitted TO excessive taxation and has
made an extraordinary effort to free itself
from financial embarrassment. it has some
thing real ana substantial to show for if.
II has secured substantial relief from the
burthen of debt in SPITE OF that worst form of
taxation uDon consumers, that involved in
the use OF inconvertilre paper money forced
into circulation under the dire necessity of
war, and which the Republican patty propos-
es to remedy by doing Justice TO the note
holders and making their legal tender notes
as good as gold, while the Democratic party
propose to continue indefinitely this burtben
by issuing greenbacks until they become
worthless.
Here let me enforce rhe point o well made
by Governor Boutwell, in his speech upon the
funding bill. Congress should never author
ize loan even at low rate of interest upon
over ten years without retaining the right to
pay it at its option after that period We
seem to have lost our finantial courage since
the war ended. During the war we issued
$50 and 10-40 loans, assuming that we should
want 10 pay the whole or a portion at an ear
" date. he fraudulent proposition of the
Democratic party, st cOnded by few weak
Republicans, to substitute bonds bearing no
interest tor the $40 bonds, thus detraud,ne
our creditors without paying our DEBT, has.
Tor the time being, prevented us from avail
ing ourselves OF the privilege of real payment
and has kept our rate of interest very high,
but let US keep our ia In in the nation and
not give up the idea of paying the ,bt with
IN twenty or thirty years.
we nave paid SoO0,0U0,O00 OF our debt in
tne last three years and at least $200,0O0000
OF extra interest or guaranty, the latter paid
IN consequence of the dishonest purposes OF
the Democratic party. One Republican
member OF Congress in Maine, one in Mis-
souri, and know not how many more have
been or will be rejected by their constituents
solely because they were weak enough to be
misled by the false counses of false leaders.
We have collected this billion of dollars
under tax and tariff laws whose justification
is in the revenue they have yielded. Judged
upon their own merits they appear to have
49, $50 ~ naeIe, vi uetised ana calcu-
ia.ou " iiiaAe Tue ourCheil oi taxatlon much
nal revenue law has been ravsad and ,nodo
Sim la +bo tor;g ,,ood, -. 49, - '.
oil1 '"t,i ueeuo yee more 10 De SlmpN-
heu, IN oruer tnat as much or more revenue
may ne ueIlVeu from IL, with less injury to
the people who nav the fax imnosed hv tbo
tar;tf v;, ha 40, r. 49,
If t,'or une oon tuners ii " soreisn goods.
IL, Iuen, uhuer all tneSe dlfnculteS, we have
IN Ulfee years paid one Ouartar Of orr 1aht
shall we take fitty forty or AVA, +h;,t,, ,~oa,,5
10 now tho ot1.on IL ,, " 'Ihty years
listen to such a proposal-let us not put up.