New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-12-06

again into coin with all practicable Celerly'
This dOuble-shuffle employs large amount
of currency to no good purpose whatever.
Call in your bonds and pay them In coin at
par-that is the square, manly way OF dong
business; and resort to 1t ought not TO DO
postponed another hour. We are sickened by
the Secrctary's proposal to sell coin for green
backs whcrcwith to buy bonds throughout the
current month. The process was excusaDe
when something WAS gained by 1t to the Treas
ury-a, least, it was trihe better than that
known as sweating" gold cOn-bnt, now
that all that we gain in premiums on go'd We
lose in premiums on bonds, II sho"'" Nv
stopped at once.
We have fondly hoped to learn from TINS
Report that the Secretary had resolved to clear
his sub-treasuries OF surplus gold by Dny'"H
bonds with it, and thus save several MILLIONS
per annum that no has persisted in iool'ng
away throughout these last weary thir'y
months. We regret to find no indication OF
sucb q pnrpose. His offer to pay OIL u spcr'-
fed 1900 100000 of Five-Twcnties has reslllte"
in their conversion into the new bonds, WIN
tho cxceptiOn of some Twenty or Thirty Mil
lions for which coin has been demanded ana
maid. We do wish the Secretary would oii'r
70 redeem Five-Twcntics at par III gold conn.,
50 fast IA they should be presented, until no
had reduced his gold to Five or at most to
Ten Millions. Such an offer would at once
stif1rn onr National credit and relieve the
money market. 1t would liberate Millions
from the sleep of death, and increase the val'l"
of all good securities by constraining many 10
seek new Investments for their capital now
locked m in Government bonds. Is it not
possible to induce the Secretary to mako some
use of that dead gold that will save tho
$4,000 per day of interest on bonds which
might be stopped Ivy it
Mr. Boutwell, states tho National EXpcndi-
lures (othcr than for the payment OF prln-
cpal of the Debit at nearly Eighty-fonr
Millions for the quarter ending with Septcm-
Der last and estimates those of the three re-
manning quarters of the Gu, rent fiscal year at
over Two Hundred and Nine Millions, making
for the year Two Hundred and Nmcty-three
Millions, whereof interest takes One Hundred
and Twelve Millions and Pensions Thlrty-twO
Millions This leaves the cost of running the
Government One Hundred and Fifty Millions
per annum very nearly, or something like One
Hundred and Thiny-six Millions in gold. 1t
does seem to us that Congress might and
sllonld reduce this amount without impaliDg
the efficiency of the public service. Gen. Gar
field! here is your chance! Lrt lis see the
best that you can do for us
We shall very gladly be assured that the
poymcnt of "moioties" Of seizures to customs
house officers may be discontinued without
impaiiing the efficiency of the service. AS
yet, we are nat convinced of it. IOnr Collcc-
tor, Surveyor. &C., like to stand well with the
impn-trrs-tO enjoy the popularity secured hy
their favor. Are they likely to be keen on the
scent of suspected underwriters Of known
wealth and high mercantile and social stand
ing when it makes no pcnny's difference to
them whether goods are undervalurd or not
We perceive and admit the faults OF the
"moicty" system: we do not yet SEC how the
requisite vigilance and fearlessncss are to be
secured without 1t.
Mr.. Boutwell, comes down quietly with re-
gard to the Income Tax, for which we thank
him. We thank him still more for his wise
caution against tearing the Tariff into shreds
under the cheating cries of production OF
"Taxcs" and Revenue Reform" Congress
will DO flooded with BuncOmbe resolves and
speeches, but the Tariff is not to he over
thrown by these. There are many things to
be considered before sweeping reductions can
wisely or safely be made When the hour
shall have struck. the SeCrctary's plan Of re-
ducton seems in the main discreet and .ri-
dciOus.
There are minor points on which we mus!
dissent from his inculcatiOns. We hold that it
should not have cost SC,937,l37 to collect the
Revenue from Customs in the fiscal year which
closed with June, 1870; still less should it have
cost SG,56O,G72 for the last fiscal year. True,
the receipts were greater for this year, owing
to large increase of imports; but the Tariff
had meantime been simpliicd and the free
list much enlarged by Gen. Schcnck's bill, 80
that fewer revenue officers should have suf
feed; and the number should have been re-
duced accordingly.
As to Ships, Ship-building, and Ocean Navi-
cation, the Secretary seems to us about right.
As to the Syndicate and the funding of
$500, 100000 in Elves, we await more explicit
information. If the fore gn bankers who took
the larger part of this loan were paid COM
missions, or interest, or anything else, on the
$4,000, 900 taken by our own National Banks,
we decidedly demur; but that, we believe and
trust, was not the case. At all events, if mis-
takes were made in placing this loan, we shall
know how to avoid them in placing the next.
GOCERNNEhT TELEGRAPHY-CIIIL SER
VICE REFORM
The transfer of the entire Telegraphy of
this country from private ownership and coll