The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1874-09-03
THE RECENT PROGRESS OF
PI'RLIC DERT

Ia 'oholucllHS Tue vast lIuutuCc upOu
the prosperity Of nations flowing from
public debts, it is an important tact to
be noted that these national mortgages
have been almost trebied in amount
during the last twenty five years. Tax.
ing the sum of the Indebtedness Of all
nations as the standard of comparison
we find that in 1913 Gust before the
wars and political revolutions of that
eventiul year. the national debts
amounted to only $500, 900, 900, while
at the close of 1873, they footed up no
less than 81, 40o,000,OO This start
ling increase, moreover, was mostly
made since the wear 1860, and shows
an alarming tendency 'on the part OF
some of the foremost nations in
| Christeudom toward eucumbering the
people with enormous burdens Of
taxatien.
The only leading cause of the crea-
ton Of national debts is war. The pub
lie debt of Great Britain, which has
varied during the last sixty years from
$500, 100000, in 1915, to E7S5,0OO,
900, IN 1874, is almost entirely war
debt. The American civil war, the
Prussian- Austrian war of 1866, and
more than all, the French German war
of 1870, led to immense loans in Eu-
rope and America, unprecedented in
all the annals Of national borrowing.
Besides this most fruitful cause Of the
heaviest public debts, which appears to
have placed England and France under
permanent mortgage, there have been
heavy sums borrowed during the past
fifteen years for public improvements.
Russia alone has increased her debt
from $500 O00, 600 in 1913, 10 more
than 81, zoe, O00, 600, in 1874 aud the
greater part of the money has been used
IN constructing her vast system Of rail :
ways aud similar internal improvements
Italy has been heavy borrower with
the same objects. And even nations in
low credit, as Austria, Spain, Portugal,
Turkey, Mexico aud the South Ameri.
eau republics, have contracted new debts
at high interest, SO that an epidemic of
borrowing may be said to have set in
all over the globe. The average in
crease of the national debts Of all coun-
tries from 1861 when the United
States first began to borrow largely to
1873 has been the enormous aggregate
Of one thousand millions of dollars a
year. ...
Should this average be Kept up for
say twenty five years longer, the total
of public debts will have reached $50.
900 ,000, 900. or considerably more than
double the present aggregate. The in.
terest alone of this prodlgious sum, at
five per cent, will amount TO two thou.
sand liye hundred millions of dollars or
70 more than the whole annual re,
venues of all the nations of Europe and
America at the present time.
Such possible result is, to say the
least of it, striking object for con.
temptation. If it should be reached, it
will not only and in bankruptcy many
of the foremost governments Of the
world, but will cause inealculable
losses to the millions of investors
in public securities, which have long
been regarded as on the whole the
safest repositories for private savings.
Is there any prospect that the acceler-
ated rates of Increase in national debts
will be realized? Will the reckless
and extravagant use OF credit, which
has unquestionably led TO the creation
of the vast addition to government
debts witnessed in the past few years,
By continued for the years to come?
The answer 10 these queries Involves
complex considerations Of finance and
its laws, M we'll as the probable future
relatious of States and the peace OF the
world. On the Que hand il is not to
be doubted that many of the borrowing
nations have almost reached the limit
OF their credit in the financial markets
Of Europe, and this will necessarily
tend to limit future creations of
indebtedness, Here are some Of the
nations which have been paying ex-
cessive interest for years showing them