The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1894-03-13

les. where 10 1e n0IQ, /. Re
bonds, in accordance with the require
ments of State Legislatures, etc. So
then the government owes in fact very
little of this enormous debt. How,
whv. what for and by whom was this
debt contracted9 We all know that for
the last dozen years everything has
been on a wild boom in America.
Every little town had to have it's boom;
street cars, sewerage, electric lights,
waterworks and streets paved, and
these things cost money. Noneo OF these
towns had enough, so bonds were
issued and thrown upon the market,
bearing interest from 5 to 8 per cent,
sold at a heavy sacrifice, bought IN by
London agents in New York, and laid
back in London vaults to swallow
taxes, water rents, street a fares,
etc , as fast as we pay them. This is
how some of the debt was made. But
a large portion of it was made about
like this: You remember a few years
ago the papers were filed for a while
with the great discovery or invention
of the process of governing iron into
steel, the "Bessemer process" it was
called. This steel was being turned
out at an English furnace in the shape
of railroad rails. These rails sold for
$3.50 per ton. While these rails were
up at this price nearly all our principal
railroads purchased and rerailed their
whole lines and systems, Not having
sufficient cash, how did they do thls8
They issued bonds, mortgaged their
roadbeds, rolling stock, tracks and
everything else they had, sold these
bonds in England at an average of not
more than rs cents on the dollar of par
value, raised the money in England,
spent the money in England for rails at
$3.50 per ton. Thus they left the money
in England where the interest takes all
the tax the roads a collect from
their patrons. When the bonds ma
ture, having gathered all the money
in the country, we suppose England
will take the roads, the cities connected
by them and the country that is taxed
to death to support them, and put us
all, railroad presidents and all, to rails
ing corn, wheat, cotton and hogs for
the Henglish nobility.
Suppose the manipulators of these
roads had not been in such great haste
to get rich, but had waited afew years,
American furnaces and mills now turn
out a greatly superior rail at $50 per
ton. A very little figuring will show
what the roads and the country have
lost by these ambitious, reckless fell
lows. Rails at $3.50, paid for in bonds
at rs cents in the dollar, makes the
rails cost them $213, SO per ton, whereas
they are now 500. So then it appears
that the interest on the debt made for
the rails would more than pay for as
many better rails now every two
years. But this is not all. John Bull
says: Uncle Sam, you owe too much
money; you will find this debt too
heavy to pay, and surely you are
honest. Now if you are, show it by
destroying everything called money
but gold, and we will have confidence
in you" To this Uncle Sam replies:
II guess you r right, Mr.. Bull" and
at once called in his hands and had
half our money destroyed.
A very little figuring now will show
that for every 1O8 cents worth of these
rails, at present price, $2O per tom,
the Englishman gets 5 cents in gold per
year, in the shape of interest, and
when the obligations mature, will claim
100 in gold on the principal. Figure
this out and see for yourself.
The New York Times says the ''busi-
ness community" is not a bit excited
the passage of the mischievous
Bland bill by the House. The Senate
will never pass it, and, if it does, the
President will veto it. Now you know
what to expect. Wall street has been
heard from.
RALEIGH AND VICINITY.