New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-08-03
TIE NATIONAL DEBT.

The country is again gratifed and its
enemies, domestic and foreign, afflicted with
an official statement that the National Debt
was reduced Seren Millions -Four Hundred
Thousand Dollars during the last month, and
would have been reduced by more than Nine
| Millions but for the necessity of paying over
| One Million and Half of interest on bonds
advanced to the Pacific Road (or roads, which
they are under obligation, but not yet
| able, to pay. The total reduction of the Debt
since Gen. Grant assumed the Presidency
five months falls little short of Forty four
Millions Of Dollars.
We are reaping the bitter fruits of Mr. Nc
Culloch's persistent violation of an imperative
law of the land. That law peremptorily re-
quired him to buy up and hold as a Sinking
Fund one per cent. per annum (between Twenty
and Twenty eight MilliOns) Of the entire Ma
tional Debt. Had he Obeyed this law, he could
have bought Twenty-Five Millions per annum
of the Debt for less than Twenty Millions of
Cold and saved over Ten Millions in interest
which we have been paying on bonds which
should have been long since snug in the Sink
ing Fund By violating the law, he depre-
ciated the National Credit and cost the country
at least Twenty Millions of Doars-Ten
Millions that would have been saved by buy
ing when the bonds were cheaper, and Ten
Millions of interest that would have gone into
the Sinking Fund instead of the pockets of
the bOndhOlders.
Mr. Boutwell, seems to be doing his best to
regain the ground so wantonly thrown away.
He announces that he will buy Ten Millions
more of bonds in the course of this month:
and we infer that he will keep buying so long
as he has the means, unless Congress should
stop him. He would doubtless buy faster
perhaps Fifty Millions fOrthwth-but for the
fact that this would raise the price of bonds
exOrbitantly. He is buying, we presume, as
fast as he thinks he can and. avoid this rock
in his course.
The end plainly in'view is the funding Of our
Debt at loWer rate Of interest. Over Sixteen
Hundred Millions of it is in the form of Five
Twenties, whereOn we are paying six per cent.
interest when most of them are, and the resi-
due soon will be- subject to redemption at the
pleasure of the Government. 1t is a shame
that one bond should be outstanding on which
this right of redemption has accrued If we
could fund these Sixteen Hundred Mil
lions at four per cent (and we hope a long
bond, untaxable, and paying interest wherever
the borrowers shall prefer, may be foated at
or near that rate it would save to the country
no less than Thirty-two Millions per annum-a
sum that, invested in the Sinking Fund, would
of itself pay off the entire Debt within forty
years. To fund the Debt at low rate of in
terest is to be the great triumph of Gen.
Grants Administration, unless his enemies, by
their projects Of direct or indirect Green.
back Reputation, shall succeed in preventing
it, They are working to this end with unscru-
pulous desperation. Hence the swindling re-
solves of their Western State Conventions;
hence the various knaveries in our dealings
with our public creditors proposed in their
journals and speeches. They must be met and
beaten.
To the funding of the Debt at a low rate it
is an indispensable prerequisite that we shall
go on steadily and vigorously paying it. TO
reduce the Revenue to the current needs of
the Government and stop paying Debt, is
to postpone indefinitely the prospect of
funding at four per cent, and thus main
tain the present exOrbtant rate of interest
Let no friend of the Administration consent to
purchase present ease at the cost of a perma-
nent burden. Let us keep the Revenue up to
the present standard, economic Expenditures