Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1868-03-05
THE NATIONAL DEBT.

satisfaction. especially among the
Western people, with reference to
that grinding scheme Of taxation re-
sorted to by the Government for
paying off the national deht-"a
blessing in Disguise" SO designated
by E. Jay Cooke, and. in reality a
blessing to the bondbolders, whose
investments, as such, are All easy
source of enrichment to themselves
and exempt from the incubus of
taxation which SO generally afflicis
! aud Expresses the people.
The corrupt and proAigate man
ner in which the party in power is
managing the financial resources of
the nation tends powerfully to in
crease the dissatisfaction alluded to-.
So long as that party is perpetuated
in its reign of misrule, so long may
we expect to see the national debt
increased instead of diminished.
That debt, according to the monthly
statement Of the Secretary of the
Treasury, made in January last had
Increased twenty millions of dollars !!
just think Of itl-Twenty mil
lions in one month Besides this,
at every session of Congress, the
old Radical routine is INDUCED OF
presenting and passing "dehclen"y
bills" lavishint. at one dash, more
than one hundred millions of dol
lars upon objects for which previous
appropriations had been made and
expended under the pretence that
those appropriations were all sufii-
Gent to meet the expenditures re-
CURED during the year for the pur
pose or purposes contemplated or
intended.
It is not to be wondered at, in
! view of. all this, that the people are
chatting, fretting and indignant under
the infections OF an oppressive and
abused scheme of taxation taxa
ton which goes to provide for end
less .squandering and extravaganza
and to meet the gold bearing interest
Of the paper bonds held principally
by greedy and soulless land-sbalks
and spectators.
Various prominent politicians have
come out iu advocacy of certain plans
for Kidding the nation of its load Of
debt. Mr.. Pendleton, Of Ohio, pro-
| poses to pay off the debt in green
backs, by taxation. Gen. Singleton,
OF Illinois, proposes paying it, prin-
cipal aud interest, in greenbacks, as
it falls due. Senator Henderson goes
in for reducing the six per centum
interest to three and a half, and
Senator Sherman for reducing il from
six to five per centum. Even Ihad.
Stevens and Ben. Butler propose to
liquidate the debt in greenbacks. All
Of these propositions are tincturtl
with the principle of reputation, but
meet with many warm supporters,
nevertheless, who descry fraud and
corruption in the operations of the
monster which is sapping the life
blood of the people and crushing
them to the earth. Among the most
fearless and outspcken upon this
subject, is The Rppudiator," a jour
nal recently established at St. Louis.
To acquaint our readers more fully
with the views and object of said
journal, we copy as follows from its
Prospectus:
The object of this journal will be
to accomplish the reputation Of the
so-called national debt, except that
portion of it represented by leg j
tender notes. These notes, popularity
known as green. backs" having
been received by the people in good
faith, must be in good faith redeemed ];
and with a view to this end must 10
made receivable by the Government
in all its pecuniary transactions. But
that norton of the debit renreseutpd