The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-06-05
THE LAST MONTHLY STATEMENT OF
THE PUBLIC DEBT.
From the ". y. Herald.

From the " y. Herald
Mr.. Boutwell, has promptly furnished to the
country the statement of the public debt for
the last month, ending May 30, which shows
that he keeps the machinery of the Treasury
Department in good working order and under
control. Nearly all the debt bears coin inte-
rest, and that amounts now to 50, 107, SS2. 100.
The debt bearing coin interest has been in
creased during the last year SS7 O54, 259 The
debt bearing currency interest has been re-
duced down to $67 075, 900. The debt bear
ing interest, then, without reckoning the
Pacific Railroad bonds, is s., ia, 957, 100.
The bonds issued to the Pacific Railroad
amount to 500, $50, 32O: which, added to the
interest-bearing debt, makes total of
81, 231, SO9, ,42O, on which the government has
to pay annually, with but an insignificant ex-
ception, six per cent. interest in gold or be-
tween eight and nine per cent. in currency
From these stupendous figures andsthis extra
ordinary high rate of interest the people may
form an idea of the burden they have to bear,
and the perpetual incubus it will be upon
them unless means be taken to reduce the
interest and to hquidate the principal.
The debt bearing no interest-that is, the
greenback and fractional currency and the
gold Embellishments to $412 052, ,2S7.
This, of course, is no burden at all But tn
sapient fnanciers of the McCulloch school
and the crazy on-to-specie-pa theorists
are in a hurry to convert this non-interest
bearing debt into that bearing interest and
thus increase the burdens of the people thirty
millions year or so. The whole tendency of
Mr.. McCullochs policy while he was Secretary
of the Treasury was to that end and it is not
90 much to say that the incr eased weight of
the interest on the debt amounts to thirty or
forty millions a year or more than it need
have been or would have been under differ
ent policy.
The whole debt interest-bearing and non
interest bearing, including the Pacific Rail
road bonds, is 81, $50, OS3, 81. As set-off
to this there is in the Treasury $12S, 25S, ,O39.
The debt, therefore, less cash in the Trea-
sury, is So, 521, ,S25, 532. On the 1st of June,
| 1868, it was 81, $40, 245, ,SS6. This shows an
increase of the national debt for the last year
of $11, $40, 646. The annual exhibit, there
fore, is not fattering one. With the enor-
nous revenue of the Government in time OF
peace, and long after all war expenses have
ceased, there ought to have been no increase
| of the debt. Indeed, there ought to have
| been large decrease. But we are not with.
out hope, since the Treasury Department is
| in other hands, and as the last months state
ment, as well as the previous months state
ment, of Mr.. Secretary Boutwell,, shows
better statement of things and a considerable
reduction of the debt. Still, we must wai
for the returns of longer period before we
can Judge of the general result In the
meantime we urge Mr.. Boutwell, to pursue
his policy of using the surplus gold in the
| Treasury to buy up the interest-bearing deb
and cancel it, That is the way to decrease
the debt and relieve the people of thei
burdens.