The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1870-02-10
THE NATIoNAL DEBr.

In the telegraph summary of the
proceedings of Congress on the, 2Sth
ult., we find the following synopsis of
speech delivered in the House of
Representatives by Hon. d. W. Voor-
hees, of Indiana: .--'.....
In discussing the origin and exist
ence of the national debt, he solemnly
asserted that,a vast proportion of the
public debt, as stated on paper, had no
existence in reality that it was tic
ton created by unjust and scandalous
legislation, or still more unjust and
scandalous perversion of the true con-
tract /; that it was fraud fastened up
on the labor of the. nation utterly
without consideration, either legal or
moral; that it was clear and naked
extortion from the wants, necessities
and helplessness of the. people and
armies when they were wholly at the
mercy of capital. He had made his
calculations, and made them safely.
He had underestimate the wrongs of
the people and the enormous adEan-
tages of the bondholders rather than
overestimated them. In 1862 there
were issued bonds to the amount of
$50, ,992, ,452 at six per cent. ;the average
price of gold was then 1881 in cur
rency. At that rate the purchasers OF
the first issue of over $60,000,000 paid
for those bonds $44000,000. in gold.
IF those bonds were to be paid back
in gold the holders would receive $16-
951 ,S01 more than they paid to the
Government. This was bonus. As
a Gift on this bonus interest to the
amount of Sc, ,l02, ,654 was already paid
and the interest yet to accrue on it
would reach the sum of $14,239, ,526.
The account, therefore, in 1852, stood
as follows: Amount of bonds sold,
S60,982, ,450 amount paid for them,
4,040, $3.50 amount of bonus, Sic, ,651-
SOL; interest already paid on bonus,
S6,102,6 !: interest yet.to be paid on
bonus, $14, ,239, ,526: amount of bonus
and interest thereon, $37,293,9Sl.
Thus it would be seen that on an in
vestment a little over $44OO0,000
the trafickers in national bonds had
obtained securities for over $780, ,000,-
600, not one dollar of which had left
their coffers,' or ever found its way to
the vaults of the Treasury. The same
system of calculation ON the bonds of
the issue of 1S63-S160,9 ,9S7. .550-with
gold averaging 159, showed that the
bondholders had paid only $101, $780,
S54, and that the bonus and interest on
the bonus amounted to S13,002, 1856 on
the transactions for that year. The
result for 1864, when gold averaged
201, was as follows: Amount of bonds
issued, 1881, ,292, ,25O; amount paid for
them, 1S9,697, 7,636; amount of bonus,
$191, ,594 ,614; interest already paid on
bonus, 45,992, ,709; interestto be paid
on bonus, $183,930,832; amount of
bonus and interest on bonus, $421, $685.
154. A like calculation for 1866, with
the average price of gold at 143,
showed an issue of$279, TAG, ,150; bonus
and interest thereon, to the amount of
$156, ,37O,24O. The result for 1866, on
an issue of $124,914, 400, with gold at
al, was bonus and interest thereon
of 79,907, ,78S. The result for 1867,
OH an issue Of $421, ASS, $50, with gold
at 139, was bonus and interest thereon
Of $3.50, ,15S,907. Result for 1868, an
issue of S425, 5,A3,S0O, with gold at 1876
was bonus and interest thereon of
/ $247,775,459 Like calculation on 5
per cent. bonds, S195, l39, $50; showsa
result of bonus and interest thereon
Of S216, SAC, 1874. The amount of bonus
and interest thereon on the whole
bonded debt he showed by this calcu-
lation to reach the stupendous total of
$1,550, ,558,956. The total amount paid
10 the Government for, the whole
bonded debt was 81, 81 ,424, ,23S. Who
had ever known parellel to this in
the history of constitutional Govern
ments And to sustain all this injus-
tice the people were taxed as no peo-
PIE ever were before. The amount
of Federal taxation was $3.50, ,923, ,4O2 !;
the amount of State and local taxation
was S25O,OOO,0OO, the total amounting
to $616,923, ,402: There was no Ian
tguage. within the scope of human
tongue that could exaggerate the over
whelming Significance of these figures.
Tn face of all this, how should he
characterize that policy which made
free. from all tax and tribute more
than one-tenth of the property of the
United States. The painting had been
feeble and unworthy of a great theme.
1t presented a sinister and shocking
aspect to the taxpayer: it stood re-
vea1ed as a baleful monster; the sight
Of it extorted a desperate cry for re-
lief; it could not, it would not be
borne. But should they, therefore at
tempt to build o city of. refuge from
this distress on shifting qnicksands of
Reputation. Mighty wrongs and
I calling sense of extreme injustice had
driven many honest minds to embrace
1 that fearful doctrine, and many moro
might yet follow with the same disas-
trous tendency. The issue was in the
hands of the party in power. He him
self was not for repudiatfon. He saw
in it neither safety nor honor. If re-
pudiation should hereafter come to
7 lishonor' the American name at home
and abroad, 1t would be because the
dominant party presistently enabled
creditors and class bondholding mo-
lnopolies to violate their part of the
icohtiact to plumber the people to an