The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1872-02-17
RADICAL ECONOMY ILLUSTRATED.

RADICAL ECONOMY ILLUSTRATED!
STATE OF LOUISIANA FOR sALE!!
We introduce serious subject by re-
negro legislator i'll South Carolina,
named Tucker. The subject under de-
bate was the State debt. South Carroll
ma, our readers are aware, is heavily in
debt, and it is puzzling her people to
tell what to do to save their credit.
During the debate, Tucker made these
philosophical remarks upon the situa-
ton:
"Gent'men, how is we gOin' to pay
dis thing? Don't the members say we
are bankrupt: How ken bankrupt
pay debt? Say? say this. say
that every man in this chamber, AMI out
side Of it, Is q counterfeit 20
The pungency of this illustration is
in the comparison of a man who cam
not pay his debts to n piece of coin that
is spurious. Both present an appear
ance of worth and value, and both are
worthless in the payment of financial
obligations. Mr.. Tucker aggregates
the people of his State, and pronounces
them all counterfeit.
This is the condition of the people of
Louisiana to-day. They have reached
the point where they own nothing and
where the gradual absorption of their
property by the creditor class has set
in. In twenty-five years, and even less,
ut the prevailing system government,
their last dollar will have been trans
ferred to foreign capitalists. This as
sertion is susceptible of startling veri-
fication. The total assessed value of
the taxable property of the State, for
last year, amounted to $3.50, 504, At SO.
OF this amount the people are owing
in State obligations $4l,733,752 II.
That is, they now owe capitalists one
dollar in every six of the total assessed
value Of their property. fla man has
property valued at 5000, 81 700 of the
amount belongs to some one else.
The debt owed by New Orleans, the
several parishes and municipal COR
porations amounts to several millions
more, say $50, O00, 600. We believe New
Orleans alone has debt over twenty
millions.
How much do we owe the cities of
New York, Philadelphia, st. Louis,
Cincinnati, London, Liverpool and
other foreign cities, upon commercial
account, and which as we will present
~ show must be paid from property
(valued alone:) Conjecture is the only
guide we have in this item Of debt.
Suppose we say this item amounts to
one-half the purchases made out of the
State annually and we rather believe
it should be the full amount, as we are
computing Il table made up of yearly
indebtedness. But place it at half; or
let it be the amount returned for 1871
as invested in trade at the time of the
assessment, which is s2G,2l6,s24.
The three items enumerated give us a
sum total of indebtedness of $97, $780,
SIG 81, Or nearly three tifths of the value
Of the taxable property of the State:
Here let us submit the question for
rcticction-Can the average man, who
o"So AuISS-HllliS VI Cne value Oh MS pro-
pcrty, and pays eight per cent. interest
per annum, two per cent. waste, or in
surance, and four per cent. tax, even yet
Il release, except by bankruptcy:
The average rate of taxation the
present year will not be less than four
per cent.
The revenue of the country is almost
exclusively derived from cotton. 1t is
estimated that it costs fifteen cents per
pound to grow and prepare cotton for
market, to which add one cent for
transportation; and then supposing the
the crop average twenty cents per
pound, we have a profit of four cents
per pound. This would give a total
profit of about eight millions of dol
lars, and we will allow five millions
more for sugar, making thirteen mil
lions. Out of this amount, we must
BUY corn, pork, wagons, mules, and
support the non-producing class. who