Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1879-09-02
See that your men are all out.
Boston Journal
A USED Up GREENBAChER.

Gen. Ewing, in his speech at Lancaster
g.. described Secretary Sherman'S refund
ing operations a follows;
''NIr sherman claims great creditor having
successfully funded $500 90 oi the puohc
q epi into i've, four and one half. ana four per
cent bonds since March Z. lS11, reducing the IN
terc-t paid by Government about Sl0,W1,WO a
year 10 appears, however. by finance reports
/ that the interest on the public dcpt IN - was
az "a q, and last year $1,000 AMI THIS year
sl,5.OOo1. In IS and lS's over thirteen mn
| lions more OF interest ON the dcbt mas p'tIl
paid than when MIR. sherman took charge "l
| 'hc funding operation That large sum Is Mh"'
| the operation cost. II j. made up OF bonuses
I in rho shane, of double interest and of commiS-
sion, paid TO syndicate. Meantime Mr.. Nhtr.
man has increased the principal OF the pondCH
/ debt sSIWs,Ou. 70 will take The savings oi IN
terc~t 10y reminding Tor tiEht or zen Years 70
paw of this increased debt and the uonuNrS
| ami double interest, and get even ON the entire
/ operation"
This ingenious attack upon the Secre-
tary'> policy has met with great favor ia
| the ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS press and has
| been very extensively circulated. In Sec
rctary Shcrmau'S speech at SteubenNlue,
| last week hc andlyzed this charge or com
biuatiou OF charges, and replied 10 them IN
detail 10 is questionable whether a stale
mcut I'm some particulars 81 plausible a.
/ Gen. Ewing'> was ever before 50 riddled.
u 10 Gen Ewing'> first charge Of an in
crease of interest amounting 20 thirteen
million dollars, Secretary sherman cited
/ from the official records the following facts /;
Since March l>t, 1871. the Treasury De
/ partmcut has sold for refundmg purposes
/ S>O4. OIG. go United States bonds. and has
| called In or received by exchange the same
Iamouut in six or five per cent bonds,
an of which have been redeemed with the
exception of S3,O72 100, which have not
Ibccu presented, hut for which the money j.
ready and on which the interest has stopped.
\ Ry this process the jnitcd States Will DE
saved from and ai(cr July q, 1879, the
sum of Sl4997.l77 annually-an amount
/ which. If invested annually * sinking
fund so four per cent, would pay the
present interc>t-bcariuS debt in less
I than forty->iX wears. The actual amount
/ OF interest dCCruiuG i'm the year ended June
I 3d.. l~--. was SlOG. So. 371.J3. Gen. Ewing
SAYS tina, the amount paid was only So
I ia 900. and this Is true, but the balance of
unpaid interest, amounting 70 S3,2lG, N'1--
I %. was carried forward swelling the pay
ment> of the next year In ISIS the amount
of interest accruiuS. including double in
t.reSt. was 500, 80. tGl. -. which was less
| than the interest aCcruiug the previous
wear. hut the amount paid In consequence
/ of the sum carried forward from lS,7 was
/ SI02 500 S74.Cj. II thus appears that dur
( ing I>-- the saving by rcfunding was more
/ than sufficient 70 pay the double interest OF
which Gen. Ewing complains, and leave 4
balance over of S6U6, ELISE. During the
wear ended June 30. 1879, the rctundiug OPP
rratiouS were 50 vast that the actual
amount OF interest accruing, including
double interest. was sos. ole, 1880. But
of the interest paid in lS1g SJ,92j,OOO Was
I paid ON bonds sold for resumption pur-
poses and having nothing To do with the
/ refluding process Dcducting this amount
I we mud that the saving during 1879 from
rcrunding operations. covered all the
double interest and LETT balance OF Soil
/ ~l9.SS. Instead. therefore, Of an increase
IF interest of SI3.0Uo.O0o, aS charged,
/ there was a decrease OF over 81 100000.
/ But Gen. Ewing'S special grievance l.
\ the payment Of double interest. The laws
of Congress provide that three months
notice must be given 10 bOndhOlderS be-
/ fore paving OF bonds, and thus compel the
\ naymtnt of double interest for that period.
\ I'm ISIS Secretary Sherman called the at
| teution of Congress 20 this loss OF inter
/ est and earnestly recommended that the
/ time for notice Doe shortened, but Gen.
/ Ewing and his associates on the Banking
and Currency Committee declined TO take
| any action. For every dollar of interest
| lost after that date-abOut Si,0OOOOJ-
! Gen. Ewing and his associates are clearly
! responsible.
/ Gen Ewing complains further of com
| missions paid TO SyndicateS. The Refund
| inc act of 1870 provided for q commission
| Of oue-half of one per cent. for the eN-
pcnSeS of rcfunding, and this l. the small
rSt amount ever allowed in this or any
other country for such purposes. Secre-
/ tary Sherman, however, cut down the
commission 70 one-eighth of one per cent,
having other expenses out of the residue
of the one-half of one per cent. allowed,
and I'm this way the Treasury Department
made a net saving OF Sl,l77,l27.79, OF
which Gen. Ewing makes no mention.
Gen. Ewing'S remaining charge is that
the Treasury Department increased the
principal OF the bonded debt $4,000, 900.
Under the Resumption act S90,00O,0O0 Of
bonds were sold yielding the Treasury
| $50. 75O. 900. This money Is now in the
| Treasury in gold coin, and yet Gen. Ewing
includes in the debt nearly the whole
amount. without saying one word about
the gold on hand, the proceeds of the bonds
sold lie says that II will take the savings
of interest for eight or ten years TO pay of
this increased bonded debt, but Is not frank
enough to state that the proceeds of the
bonds are in the Treasury uneXpended,
and that by express provision of law to
maintain specie payments,
These explanations by Secretary Sher-
man completely demOlish the tissue of mis-
concentrations which Gen. Ewing wrought
with 50 much ingenuity. The paragraph
,noted from Gen. Ewing'S address is fair
InecImeu of the tricks and jugglery with
6oures which constitute the current
Grrenback arguments. Ewing'S misState-
ments are still actively circulated among
the Greenback papers, and it was only yes
teriay that the Globe served them up with
a triumphant flourish, being prompted, evl-
identity, by the conviction that lie Wei
stuck to is as good as the truth.