The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-02-16
To The Editor of the Press:

10 the Edlt0f OF the FTeSS.
In the PRESS of Saturday notice that your
correspondent represents me as opposing at
length the proposition to abolish the sinking
fund of 1865. This is not quite correct. had
the honor to be requested by the committee to
give my views upon the propositions before
them, one of which was the abolition of the
sinking fund and the other was the discontinu-
ance of the usual annual payment of S320,0O0
toward the sta to debt. 1 did not have occasion
to speak sat length on either proposition, and
az to the sinking fund 1 stated that did not
consider myself enough of a financier to war
rant me in giving advice to the honorable COM
mittee who doubtless know much more about
such details than myself. I did, however,
venture 10 add that it seemed to me at the time
the war loans of 1868 and 1864 vera incurred
that it would have been better to distribute the
payment of the bonds over a series of years in
stead of bringing them to maturity in 1880, '8S
and &c., But Inasmuch as they we're all issued
on so long time it would hardly be safe to leave
them unprovided for, either by sinking fund or
some other equally safe and sure method.
But my main opposition was to the Cover
nors recommendation looking toward the
abandonment of the payment of the state debt.
Against that proposition of His Excellency
earnestly protested, as a citizen of Portland
and the county of Cumberland, paying as they
do 13 and % per cent. respectively of the entire
state tax.
According to the Governors own account he
found a law ten years old under which nearly
S30O0 900 of the principal of our state debt has
been paid since 1865, thus reducing eur indebt-
edness from ever S. 0000 900 to some So go, 900.
This has been accomplished by an annual tax
of three mills on every dollar OF the state valua-
| ton, a payment of which no complaint has, to
| the public Knowledge, been made, although
| during the same period still greater sum has
also been paid for interest, viz: "a 1000, 600. IL
| His Excellency could have been willing TO let
| we'll enough alone. the whole debt would have
been extingushed in fourteen years more
| Unhappily, however, the suggestion to post
| pone consummation so devoutly to wished,
| until the end of the nineteenth century, has
been broached in the quarter least expected. In
| the absence of any public demand, whether
| through the newspapers, by convention, resoiu-
/ tions, by Legislative petitions, orders, reports
| of committees, speeches or votes, amid pro-
| found popular silence and apparent universal
| acquiescence in the wise legislation OF the past
ten years. and to the surprise OF everybody
| whom have happened to converse with on the
| subject, Governor lDingley has seen NJ to rec
| ommend a radical change in our nnancal
| policy by reducing by one third the annual
| payment toward the state debt, viz, from S321, =
| 900 to $214,000
regard this as the first step toward repudia-
| tion which, however, it is hoped that the L eg.
| islature will never consent to take. 1t can no.
fail to affect our state credit, which, According
| to the Governor, would seem to be at present
| altogether too good, for,he complains that "the
| market price of our state bonds has advanced
SO that it is now impossible to obtain our se-
curities without, paying from one to two per
cent. premium"
While / am not anxious to see our state bonds
below pal, IL have little doubtIthat the Governors
plan is admirably calculated to put them there
In my Judgment, our share of the national
debt of nearly two and half thousand mill
| lions increased more than three millions last
| month, is likely to burden our posterity to their
reasonable satisfaction, even, if it is not aggra-
vated by any portioniof our present state indebt
| edness to say nothing of our heavy county and
| municipal liabilities. 1t is morally certain
| that the present generation which inherited no
| debts from its predecessor will bequeath to its
successor a burden for which we shall receive no
thanks, even if every dollar of our state debt is
paid at maturity, as it will be if the people can
| be let alone.
Why then suddenly aud without any assign
| able reason venture on so dangerous step SO
! suddenly? 1t is easy.to understand why job
| bers, lobbyists, schemers and intationlsts IN
| and out of favor may be anxious to stop the
| payment of our state debt, for the obvious rea-
| son that a larger proportion of the money rails :
ed by taxation can thus be squandered In un-