Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1869-08-18
WHOLE NUMBER 38l.

er required by law nor warranted by the
truth, and it must evidently lead to
wrong conclusions.
The cash in the Treasury is not an
available resource for the payment of
the written debt, unless, indeed, the Gov
eTnment has no other indebtness to Iiuui-
date, which is not the case. On the
contrary, there is outstanding at the
present time probably a much larger
amOut of debt than the cash balance
amounts to, for which neither bonds,
certificates nor paper money have been
given; but which is nevertheless, Just as
much portion of the public debt as a
five-tWenty bond or a Treasury note.
Moreover, if I am not mistaken, some
of this cash in the Treasury-a small
portion, it is true-is Trust Funds, and
does not belong to the United States at
all.
Nor is it shown whether the IS, $751;, ,2S2
of Sinking Fund bonds and accrued in
teTest, counted as part of the "amOunt
in the Treasury" " was previously inclu-
ded in the body of the statement. If it
was not, its inclusion in the 'tamOunt in
the Treasury would deserve q very
harsh name; even if it was, itisnO more
correctly to be accounted as part of the
"amOUnt in the Treasury" than is the
value of the Treasury building, or any
other property, other than money, be-
longing to the Government.
The Treasury Department appears to
labor under the delusiOn that the month
ly statement of the public debt, called
for by law, is to be a balance sheet Ofthe
National finances, which shall exhibit
on the one side the public debt, diminish
ed by construction to mean the written
debt, and on the other the public resOur-
ces, distorted as well as diminished by
construction to mean all the cash in the
Treasury, nOmatter to whom it belongs,
as well as the Sinking Fund bonds,
whether the same are first counted as
part of the debt or not! Surely it needs
but to call attention to such extraordi-
nary impTOpTieties to cause them to be
remedied.
Again, the amount of the public debt,
less accrued interest (which formerly
was not counted as part of the debt, and
should, therefore, be omitted in making
antecedent comparisons is stated atS2,-
597, ,722, 1888. But from this amount is
omitted S58, ,638, $50, the sum Ofthe bonds
issued to the various Pacific Railroads.
It is not only quite obvious that these
bonds form a portion of the public debt,
and that there is, therefore, no sound
reason for their omission from this state
ment; but as they were included in all
the statements issued by your predeces-
sOrs in office, no correct comparison can
be made of the progress Of the public
debt unless, the sum of these bonds is
either omitted from all, or included in
all.
Finally, the statement contains q
comparison of the public debt on the 1st
Trr1vv vu-stl, vrrloot # ic p&o p, Lo-
been on the previous Ist of June and 1st
of March, and the conclusion drawn that
it had decreased as against one date over
sixteen million dollars, and against the
other over thirty six million dollars.
| Sanctioned by the authority of your
/ official signature, these conclusions lead
to the inference whatever the value
such inference may POssess) that the
public debt has been diminished since
your accession to Office. But this is moi
the fact. On the 1st of ApI4l-according
to the first monthly statement over YOU
signature-the public debt (ineluding
the Pacific Railroad bonds, and omit
ing the accrued interest) amounted Il
2,053, $50, ,S58, while on the 1st Of July il
was 81, $50, ,361, ,302, which shows an in
crease Of something over two and hall
million dollars. These comparisons
however, amount to nothing. lido not
believe that you desire to claim credit
for results, the merit of which, if any
there be, belongs to others. You have
been, as yet, but four months in office,
and had there been any reduction in the
public debt it could not possibly have
been the effect Of any measure intrOduc-
ed by you, or, indeed, any member of
this administration.
If any comparison at all is valuable or
significant, it is the condition of the
public debt at the termination of each
successive fiscal year. Such a compare
son if made now, would show an increase
mot decrease) of the debt since last
year of over twenty million dollars
Thus: