The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1878-02-07
oBIeoTlvf pOlnT or LEGISLATION,

The proposition Of senator BECK 10
stop tho payment Of tho national debt
until times ara belter, Is not receiving
he consideration II merits ~ o measure
Of relief The repeal Of tho sinking
fund not for tho payment OF the debt
would relieve the country Of ~ an
nual drain Of about Sa7 100000, The
debt was contracted for posIerliy, and II
Is only lalrand reasonable that tho next
should bear its share Of the
burden, When II Is remembered that
tho present generation bore the awful
brunt of the irrepressible conflict, which
cost o million lives and blotied out, In
manifold ways, property Of various
kinds 10 tho amount OF billions OF dol-
lars leaving ono section Of tho country
impoverished and almost desolale, "
certainly seems reasonable 10 ask that
the weight Of national debt paying be
divided between this aud future genera
tons, aud 10 spread over q long roach ol
time that II will not fall oppreaslyely
anywhere, II Ia not likely 10 impair
tho national credit and honor of Amer
ioa any more than tho deierring OF
payment of tho debt Of England
has weakened the financial credit
of that government The United
States has gained IN honorable name
among nations by its prompt and
successful efforts to meet every financial
obligation, II stands NJ tho head OF
the borrowing nations OF tho world be-
cause of la Scrupulous and prompt pay
mont Of interest ON liza debt II would
boa great misfortune 10 lose this ads
vantage, and one that would have de-
rosaing effect on our securieties NJ homo
and abroad With tho present proyis'
ions for meeting interest, the national
credit and honor can be maintained,
The bondholders vol understand the
measure aud appreciate any effort that
will develop tho dobtpaying capacity
of the country, But were II otherwise
II great nation has something else IA
think Of than the payment Vt ita debta
II would DO unfortunate 10 cripple itr
resources and put check on revivinp
industries, merely for the sake Of pay
ing ilg debts before they ARE due, and
which no one holding the obligations oI
the government care about being paid
There IN u tendency on the part OF
many public men 10 look on the gov
eminent M II corporation, IN and of IT,
sell, with interests apart from and indie
pendent of those of the country NJ
large This view In true of monarch.
ical governments 10 u greater or lel'
extent but Is not true of oul
own, and has been the main
cause Of the present depression
hanging over the country like u pail
Our government is simply the agent OF
the people, and has no interests apart
from the interesta of the country al
large The government is not in the
position Of banker whose whole busi'
ness is finance, and who IN enriched o,
impoverished according m his opera
tons away one way or another He
this In the Wow which seems TO posses,
Sherman aud Others shaping the llnan
cial policy of the government, To reao
their speeches and reports ono would
infer that the United States was II sort
of u private banker engaged in tinan'
cial operations on its own account and
trying desperately hard to outswit Other
spectators and drive smart bargain,
with capitalists and in the money
markets--lorgetting that is the peopl,
they are operating against instead o
operating Tor; that IL is the capital o
their principals which they are absorb
ing for the benefit of capitalists Thh
view IL radically false and is the radica
lalsehood of three.qnarters of the re-
publican linanciering The real ques,
ton is not how the government
rs such, can make money out of the
people, but how it can help the people
to make money for themselves Com
grcss is convened to promote the pub
lie prosperity, and unless some measure
other than RECOMMENDATION and tho re-.
peal of the resumption act is passed,
they will have failed in furnishing the
relief demanded at their hands. Meas,
ures calculated TO give the country
more money, improved business, open
new markets for our products and man
ulactured goods, and restore the conf
dence of capitalists in productive indus
try and enterprises of all kinds, are the
objective point both congress and the
administration should keep constantly
in view, Whether to defer the further
payment of the national debt until bet,
ter times is u polite measure or not,
the improvement Of the times should be
The chief and almost the sole concern of
till prosperity returns. 1t will
be easy to carry the burden when the
nation has the strength to bear it. To
levelop its debt>paying capacity is the
irst consideration.
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