, 1876-02-22

Ono OF the greatest nbrscs under the Cor.
ernmcnt is that praeticed Under tho pretaxt
Of tho Nnional Sinking Fund, mud which,
begun by Mr.. boutwell,, Inns been continued
by his SUCCESSORS in the Treasury Depart
1ncnt. Tho act Of 1862, commonly known as
TINT croa!iug the public debt, provided TINT
a sum equal to l per cont Of tho public debt
should DO taken annnally for sinking fund
for tho payment of that debt. No sinking
fund by TINT name was organized until 1869 ;
but payments of portions of tho public debt
Ind been ma1o as far back as 1866. Since
the organization Of tho public debt In 1860,
there havo boon purchases Of bonds other
than for the purposes Of the sinking fund,
tho principal Of which amounted to slsa,-
241, ,7GG. There woro purchased for the sink
Ing fund up to juno 80, 1876, bonds to the
amount Of $1CG, 100000. Tho sinking fund
proper, therefore, contains bonds to tho
amount OF $1GG, 10000 These bonds bear
interest at tho rato Of q per cent per annum.
Though tho bonds hive been cancelled, Nh
nmount c1ual to tho interest which the bonds
would have borne Is annually paid into tho
sinking fund. The annual interest on 31GG,.
00D.00 Of bontls purchased for tho sinking
fund is nbont Slo,ooo,ooo. In computing
the amount OF tho per cent, there arc in.
c1ndod in tho public debt not only the out
standing bonds, but tho greonbncks, frac-
tional currency, md oil the odds and ends OF
past-due indebtedness anu other snms for
which tho Government il liable. That per
cont was intended ~ a sinking fund for tho
NJ cf In 1.,,1u1 s1a1,f
marty, for tho payment Of tho 6.o0 bondB,
nud not for tic other Indebtedness Of tho
Government The sinking fluid, therefore,
Inns at it's annual accration this per cent OF
tic total Of all kinds Of public debt, md tho
interest at per cent on all tho previous nc-
| ctetions. Tho addition to the sinking fund
In 1B75 was :3l ,51o, ,501, which for all tinle
hereafter will boar por cent interest
The sinking fund takes from tho public
taxes sum equal to l per cent Of the public
debt, which in 1874 waa -. ,6lG, ,!l05, and also
u por cent interest Oh previous purchases,
which IL now about SlO,0o0,0o0 year.
| While tho asl,n received from the tax of per
cent on tho amount Of the public debt de-
creases annually III small amount, TINT of
tho interest increases at tho rats OF nearly
$4,000, 600 q year, and the increase is pcr1na.
| uent.
Tho public dobt on tho Int Of July, 1866,
wls 81, III, 2JJ, III, largo sum having been
previously paid. On the 1st Of July, 1868,
tho debt was s2,d58, ,452,e showing DE-
creass at the time OF tho establishment Of the
sinking fund Of :52s{, ,753, od3. With thesu
figures wo can ahow tint there IL 10 danger
Of Il violation OF the pledge to the rublu
creditors il tho sinking fluid was suspended
for aoyernl years to como. Here arc the pay
ulents ,1nle m the debt:
Debt paid 2sC0 10 1870 .{33i, ,7s3 0s.
Uouds purchased for alakiue fuud,,,..... ls6ls?&3
tliaE b0naA purchased nurs 1E69 ...... lB12t1 76t
othes forus Ut .lebt pad s!ucs lsa3...... u3s40l2
Totsa payment Of dabs saes 1RGd.... .$s97, GO
Tho obligation was thai oae per contum o.
the public dubt WIS TO lo paid annually
but tue Unitod Htutcs luye no. only paid tht
whole au1a required under that obligation
but moro than $250, noe, 700 In e1ccss Of thu
requirement, Tho United States, therefore
Instead OF raislug $4,000, ,o0o by taxation
annually to purchase bonds, of which no ont
is demanding or desiring payment, nlay, with
out the slightest violation Of the national Oh
legation, discontinue tho operations Of tn
sinking fund for eight or ten ycars to como
leaving that amount of taxation in the SHAPE
Of working caplAh In the 1lantls of iha people
| The whole theory Of sinking fund where
In the Government purchases its own debts
and eouunuaa V TAX th* people to pay ths In