Connecticut western news., 1886-11-10
PUBLIC DEBTS.
Vast Sums That the Worlds
 Leading Nations Owe.
The Debt Burden Easiest Upon the United
 States and Germany,


 The writer of letter in which we were asked to publish an article on pub- lie debts expresses the belief "that in proportion to ability to pay, the public debt of tho United States is smaller than that of any of the great nations of the earth" The statement might be made very much stronger than that.
 Germany is the only one of the great powers of Europe which has not q larger debt, measuring it's gross amount, than that of the United States, and the only one in which the actual burden of the debt, to say nothing of ability to bear it, is not greater than it is here. But it may be interesting to present the facts in regard to each country by itself, and we take them in alphabetical order.
 Since May, 1868, Austria ia-Hungary has created no debt as whole, but each kingdom has had its own 'budget" and debt account. The sum of the old debt of the empire and of that of tho two kingdoms is more than twenty-two hundred and fifty million dollars, and the interest, which has to be met by tax ation, amounts to about two dollars and thirty cents for each person in Austria, and to three dollars and half in Hun- gary.
 | The public debt of France is the largest of any in the world. The consolidated debt alone, which is by no means all of the debt, is almost four thousand million dollars. The charge on account of tho public debt for this year is more than seven million dollars for each inhabitant of the Republic.
 Germany as whole has but very small debt, scarcely more than one hun dred and fifty million dollars, and it has invested funds which amount to more than this, so that tho Empire may be said to have no debt at all. The several countries of Germany have their own debts, but in the case of Prussia, which has the largest, the obligations wore incurred chiefly in building railroads, which pay larger profit than the inter est on the debt. To all intents, there fore, the Germans bear no burden at all on account of public debt.
 Great Britain has great debt which, however, bears low rate of interest. The nominal capital is about thirty seven hundred million dollars, and the interest charge is one hundred and forty millions which imposes an average burden of 6 little more than four dollars on each in- habitant of the British Isles.
 The debt of Italy is not Capitalized. J It represents an obligation to pay SC much interest every year; and this sun amounts to three dollars and seventy five cents year for each subject of tho klng. No statistics of the debts o Spain and Turkey arc worth anything. The government of Turkey is hopelessl, bankrupt, and IS bound hand and foot by its foreign debt. The last statement of the Spanish debt showed it to be near ly twcnty-six hundred million dollars Spain pays an amount of interest whicl averages more than three dollars for eacl Spaniard; and leaves some interest un paid.
 Russia owes capital of about twenty seven hundred million dollars and pay about one hundred and forty-five mil lions annually for interest. It thi
 amount were divided by tho number rep
 rescnting the whole population of th
 Russian empire, in Europe and Asia, i
 would make an average of one dol lar and forty cents for every subject O
 the Czar.
 , The net debt of the United States a the close of the last fiscal year, June 80 l 1886, was very little less than thirteer hundred and ninety million dollars, ant ) the annual interest charged upon it wa r not quite forty mine and and half mil ) lions. As it IS estimated that the pres 5 ent population of the country is abou
 sixty-one millions, the yearly burden c
 the debt amounts to only eighty
 one cents upon each member of the com munity.
 We may, accordingly, state it as fac that the actual burden of the public deb is very far less upon each inhabitant c the United States than it is upon a citi zen of any other great power in tn r world except Germany; while, if abilit , to bear the same burden of taxation wer to be considered, the difference woul = be greater still.
 o Locomotives in Jerusalem. f Locomotives now run into Jerusalem The roar of the engines through tn