The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1871-05-17
VIM COnstIlutes National Wealth.

What Constitutes National Wealth.
From the PhIl'a, Record.
In the course of controversy between
the New York E'Nning Post and the Ma.
ton, involving the question of what con.
sttutes our national wealth, the Post as.
serted that II the public debt was ten
times as great as II is, but all held by our
own citizens, the country, rs a whole,
would not be directly u cent poorer for 1t;
that It's wealth would simply be different.
ly distributed, and all the property in tho
country would still belong 10 tho people
Of the country; to which the Nation re.
plies that the origin OF this delusion-
Tor delusiOn II isis TO he found in tho
fact that many people have fallen into the
habit OF looking on government bonds as
many look on grcenbaCks and on gold,
not as an evidence of claim TO a certain
amount Of wealth, but as wealth ITSELF"
The real truth Of the matter, which seems
plain enough when stated, but which, in
practice, Is hard TO comprehend, Is that
whether the country Is or Is not
the poorer by the amount Of the ma.
ional debt depends entirely on what
has been done with the money for which
the debt was contracted. II that money
was used in making railroads or canals,
draining swamps, erecting manufactures,
or for any other productive purpose, the
bonds issued TO those who loaned the
money undoubtedly are not evidence that
the country Is any poorer by having con.
traCed the debt But, unfortunately, this
Is not true account of the origin Of our
national debt, or Of any of the great M.
tiOnal debts of the world. They have all
Or nearly all been contracted for military
purposes, and for the prosecution OF wars,
defensive or offensive, md the money has
been spent In the destruction of life and
property. In other words, as has been
before said IN the columns Of the Public
Record, our national debt represents not
accumulated wealth, but destroyed prop.
erty II Is very important 10 the future
prosperity Of the country that this point
should he clearly understood. The Nation
states II thus; "From the standpoint Of
the economist, the $4,000 100000 which
we owed when the late war closed, show.
ed that the nation had been impoverished
10 the same extent and In the same
manner rs II goods Of that value had
been collected and burnt up The
individuals from whom they were taken
have moi been made any poorer by IT, be.
cause the nation at large has promised to
reimburse them, and they are able to ne.
gotae It's promises in the market but the
nation itself, rs II whole, has been made
poorer by Just that amount ut least In
other words, It Is the converse Of the
Posts proposition, which Is true, and not
the proposition itself. A government
bond, It cannot he too distinctly remem.
bered, is not wealth. il Is simply an evi.
dCnCe Of debt. II Is an acknowledgment
by the nation ut large that It has taken
from A one thousand dollars worth Of his
property, and lin our casC) fired II away
in brOadsidcs, or used 1t In feeding and
clothing fighting men, and that It will ono
day repay hint lie is no worse Off in
having parted with his property, but the
persons who took II, and who agreed to
give 1t back, undoubtedly arc, Gov.
eminent bonds arc, consequently, not
real capital. You cannot employ
bonds in making II railroad, for Instance;
they do not represent wealth actually in
existence; they represent wealth destroy.
ed II the holder wishes to Use bond In
the work Of production, what he does Is
10 go TO another man and say, The Gov.
eminent owes me 81 600, and cannot pay
Inc now, but will do so out of the future
earnings Of the people twenty years
hence I cannot wait so long; will you
let me have the money, and take my
place MS It's creditorg In other words
the operation Is simply transfer Of II
claim from one hand To another"
Now, while the government bonds held
by our own citizens are counted ns part
Of their personal property in the census
returns, they are not true property in the
sense of the nations wealth, but are really
the representatives Of 81 much wealth de.
stroyctl. II they were all paid off to.mor.
low the payment would neither increase
nor diminish the true wealth Of the cOnn.
Try by one single dollar; but It would TN.
doubtedly diminish the census returns OF
personal property by the amount paid OIL.
The whole of our bonds hive been ere.
aled since 1900. Whatever amount Is
held by our own citizens Is an apparent,
but not real, increase OF national wealth.