Iron County register., 1881-09-15


into the Treasury is paid by the people.
The next consideration Is how to get
the money out of the Treasury. The
Constitution, Section 8, saws:
''No money shall he drawn from the Treas
ury, but in consequence of appropriations
made by law, and regular statement and
account of receipts and expenditures of all
public money shall be published from time to
time"
And in regard to the support of the
army, it is provided in Section s that
no appropriation for raising and sup
porting armies shall be for longer
period than two years.
Thus both the raising of the revenue
and its expenditure are as carefully as
possible guarded by law. The princi-
pal point not sufficiently guarded is in
regard to fraudulent contracts. Laws
are made on this point, but their exc
cution is difficult.
1t remains to consider the power to
raise revenue by loan. Sec. 8 says:
Congress shall have power to borrow money
on the credit of the United States"
This is a remedy for an extreme case.
When the best interests and welfare of
the Government cannot be sufficiently
secured or provided for by the current
revenue, then Congress can pledge the
future resources of the Government for
the payment of money within speci-
fled time. The case or a war Is the only
justification that ought to be recognized
for such measure, for the result Is a
national debt. ,l
1t now remains to consider the limi-
tatiOns on the right to tax. The Con-
stitution, Sec. 2, says representatives
and direct taxes shall be apportioned
among the several States, according to
the resr ective numbers Of the people;
and, in Sec. 9, "No capitatIon or other
direct tax shall be laid unless in pro-
portion to the census or enumeration
herein before directed to be taken"
In Sec. 8 there are two very fmpor-
tant limitations. First, all duties, i'm
posts, and excises shall be uniform
throughout the United States; and, Sec
ond, thu only recognized object in lay
ing and collecting taxes, duties, inn
posts, and excuses, and borrowing
money on the credit of the United
States, is specified to be to pay the
debts and provide for the common de-
fense and general welfare. For any,
thing outside of three objects no reven-
ue can either be raised or expended;
but for the attainment of any one or all
of these objects, taxation is unlimited,
except that it must be in proportion to
the population, and must be uniform
all over the nation. But the most diff
ficult problems of our finance arise in
connexion with the power to borrow
money on the credit of the United
States, and so create a national debt.
The point OH which the whole power
turns is the clause, "on the credit of
the United States"
Wharton, in his Law Dictionary, de-
fines "credit" to be "a transfer of goods
on trust. in confidence of future pay
ment. The seller believes in the sol
vency an prObity of the buyer, and
delivers his goods to him in confidence
of it, or he delivers them on the repu-
tation of his customer"
Borrowing money on the credit of
the United States involves an unavoid-
able obligation to pay, under penal
ty, part of which is the loss of char
acter for integrity. A Government
Treasury note represents loan with
out interest; bond, loan on interest
the obligation on the Government to
redeem being in both eases the same.
The existence of n Treasury note or
other evidence of a loan to the Govern
ment which repudiates the idea of re-
deniption, cannot be OH the credit of
the United States. It is something un-
known to the Constitution, and the
Supreme Court would at once sit down
on law creating any such Govern
ment paper paper. For before such
currency could be authorized, it must
appear either that it would pay the
United States debt or provide for the
common defense and general welfare of
the United States. But suppose this
irredeemable and utterly irresponsible
paper is issued by the Government by
the wagon load, how are people to get
hold of it? Obviously it represents a
loan to the Government, which must
have something to show as the loan is
received. The total valuation of prop
erty in our country is estimated at
$40, ,000, ,0O0. 900. Now, to humor the in
flationists to the top of their bent, let
the Government issue $40, ,0O0, ,O00, 900 of
this paper, and put it on the market as
loan, and let the people turn over to
the Government all their property on
this loan, what would be the result? |
Obviously the Government would own |
everything of value in the nation, and !
people would have "Greenbax." And !
farther, if this money is not to be re- |
deemed with gold or silver or anything |
else, the Government is not bound to |
receive it for anything. A Govern
ment official could, with good reason,
refuse the offer of a million dollars for |
an ass, on the ground that the would
be purchaser was himself more con-
summate ass than any animal the Off
to sell. But to treat this matter |
confers too much dignity on
it. If the Green hackers want to wrig-
gle, let them wriggle.
In future article we will examine
our finances as the late war left it. !
The Oldest inhabitant of the West
India Islands claims that his age Is lS2
Years.
Gen. Howard should go out West
again, aud rike the savages in the rear.
These A.aches are getting entirely too
lfualc