Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1885-05-21
500 Per Minute.

The decrease Of the public debt in the
fiscal year that is to end in eight weeks
will be over $50, ,000, 900. Thus, writes a
correspondent to the Cincinnati Times
Star, will not be so great as In some
former years, but il is faster than we
generally suppose. Five million Of dol
lars a month Is 81 900 day, or 500 a
minute. That is a pretty rapid rate at
which to be extinguishing the public
debt, in spite of the people who are cry
| ing all the time that our debt IL grow
| ing less in an imperceptible way. The
debt Is now only 81 400, ,000, 900 in round
numbers. OF course this deducts from
it the leash in the treasury" and 1t
ought to do so. The cash i'm the treasu-
ry is put there to redeem the egreenbacks
and gold and silver certificates, and as
these gold and silver certificates are
counted as part of the debt, the cash
which is always on hand to redeem
them ought to be counted as an offset.
The debt statement gives the sum of
81 1888, 100000. Deduct from this the
cash in the treasury, which amounts to
S483, ,000, 900, and you have the debt cut
down to 81 400, 900, 900. The reduction of
the debt thisyear has not been as great
do III bub even uI Tic pres
ent rate the total public debt will be
wiped out in about twenty-five years,
or about the time which has elapsed
since it was created. People who are in
the habit of groaning about our debt
being something too great to bear will
do we'll to inquire about the debts of
other nations. Take Italy, for instance.
Her debt is over s., ,000, 900, 900, or about
three times as much per head as our
own. Russia, who is apparently eager
for war, has debt of s., 500, 100000.
Great Britain, whose population is
but 30, ,OOO, 900 against our So, ,O00, 900 has
a debt of $3, 200, 100000, or about four
times as much per head as we have,
and yet Great Britain is supposed to be
exceptionally well off. France, bril-
liant and elastic France, whose recovery
from her terrible war few years ago
has been the wonder of the world, is
carrying a debt of 81, $50, ,O0O, 900, or five
times as much per head as our country
is carrying. Our debt is about S25 per
head all around, that of Russia almost
$40 per head, that of Italy nearly S75 per
head, that of Great Britain 800 apiece,
and that of Frace about $l30 per citizen.
The interest charged on debt of this
sort is something enormous, more than
the people can stand under for any great
length of time.
Of our debt only little over billion
bears interest, or to ue exact, 81, ,196, $780,
$50. OF this only as much as $3.50, 200, 900
bears as much as A. per cent. 1t is in
teresting to see how much money re-
mains in the treasury unclaimed, after
the interest has ceased to accrue. On
some of this the interest ceased half q
century ago, while on large sums inter-
est has notaccumlated for twenty years,
and yet the principal has never been
asked for.
"What do you suppose is the explana-
tion of the delay in presenting those
bonds for payment, that have been due
so long" your correspondent asked of
an official, running over the curious
list, which, by the way, foots up sever
al millions of dollars.
THAT'S a mystery" he answered,
with smile. II suppose some of it has
been lost or stolen, some of it burned
up, some of it stuck away in forgotten
places, perhaps some is held by people
who do not know that interest las
ceased on it or who do not know that
they have the bonds at all. There
sometimes come to us some of these
that have come to light by some curious
turn in the wheel of fortune. OF course,
a very considerable portion of them will
never turn up or be presented for pay
ment.n