The Portland daily press., 1896-01-25
SPAIN's CRUSHING DEBT.

OF Ignorance that is gradually but slowly
| leayening the whole lump.
| SPAIN's CRUSHING DEBT.
Which the War with Cuba Is Stead lily
Augmentins.
New York Sum-
The struggle of the patriot Cubans for
political Independence from the rule of
monarchical Spain is a fiscal as well as
| military contest, for upon the continued
power of the Spanish government to
| meet the peouniary requirements of the
army of Martinez Campos, as we'll as
upon the ability of that general to over
| throw the Cubans in the field, is depend
emit the hopes Of the Span arus of an out
come favorable to them OF this last and
| most serious uprising on the lever faith
| full Isle, p as it was once claimed Senior
| Nava RIO Retr5ter, SPANS minister of
| finance. denies the statement that the
| Spanish government intends to raise a
| new loan for the purpose of meeting tire
expenses OF the campaign in Cuba. But
ii the war is prolonged there is very little
question but that the Madrid govern
ment will be compelled to seek by some
new loan or new taxes the additional
money necessary for its prosecution.
| At the present time the debt of Spain
is 81, s50, UoO, COO. Spain has about 16, 00O,-
900 people. yet its actual debt land tE5
credit of the Snanish government is none
of the best) is mo @ than the entire do 5t
OF the Unlteu states. The purchasing
rower of money is much greater in
Spain than it is in the United States,
and the standard of wages is very muck
lower. But Notwithstanding this. tie
/ II t debt TO ench innabitant in Spain e
50. whereas in the United States it is
InSC ftar, x ~, -. ~.
saoient touatry, almost in decadence,
t 10 latter IS developing each year new re-
| sources and timos OF revenue, and paying
ut, too, lis items of Indebtedness as they
accrue. while the Spaniards are CON-
pelled TO renew Iheir obligations as they
,all due. More than half of the present
debt OF Spain, $3.50, Geo., 900 in amount.
is what is known as The home debt, held
in Spain without other security than T. .
| prolDlSe OF tho government to ray Il,
while 500, 900 of the Spanish Geb6 is held
| by the subjects Of other governments
and is pl detected by franchises or monopc-
| lies guaranteed by the government Tor
Il Q better security of the bondholders.
he talapce of the Spanish debt is of the
varie y known as floating debt, upon
wnt b a large amount of interest has to
be ra.a. ana liz q little is Of the variety
known a demand debt, payable at tho
| p e g renee Of the holder. The interest
h nge upon the debt OF the United
States is $50, 900, 900 year, whereas the
annual irtereSt charge on the debt of
| Spain is $55 coo co., In 1882 the Spanish
| government compounded its debt by
| summary settlement with it's creditors,
| which, while it did not impair the only
security which existed for payment,
| scaled down the face value of the claim
| against the government. For many
| years Spain has been in a bad way finan-
cially, and its creditors have been com
PEELED to compound at the best terms
| they could secure their manifold claims
lie Spanish system of finance is not
| such as, prosecuted in the United States
would inspire confidence among inves-
| tors. The revenue of this government,
which averages about $780, 600, 90 year
comes in almost equal proportions from
customs dutiss levied by the treasury
department on goods subject to the tariff
and tho internal revenue department.,
from collections made at home. Each
| item yields on the average about $3.50, 000-
| 600 a year, and the whole sum Cor SO
much of it as Is necessary goes to hqui-
date the running expenses of the govern
ment, and to reduce the debt if there is
any surplus.
! In Spain, however. the total govern
mental receipts from duties collected at
| the custom houses (and smuggling is an
offense not unknown in the Spanish
| N onarchy) amounts TO S35, 000 600 a year,
| OF $40, 900, 900 less than the annual interest
charged on the debt. Then there is the
army and navy to sustain, costing on
| a peace footing { and OF course Oh a war
| footing the amount is very much larger)
$40. 900, COO, and then there ara the various
public departments to sustain, public
buildings to pay for, a large civil list to
meet and the dignity of the Spanish gov
eminent to preserve. There are pensions
and allowances, salaries and stipends,
and altogether it costs $500, 600, 600 year
to pay the expenses of the Spanish gov
eminent, or about two thirds the expense
of the United States government. though
the population of Spain is Is. 900, 600
and of the United States 20, 00O, goo Tar
land tax, tobacco tax, stamp tax
and an excise tax, but all these combined
do not yield enough for the expenses of
the government. There is now the ad-
ditional burden of the money required
to meet the drafts upon the Spanish
treasury made by Gen. Martinez Campos
and his associates for the vigorous prose-
oution by land and sea of the warfare
against the Cubans at q distance Of thou
sands of miles from Spain. The main
tenanoe of an army at such distance
from Madrid is an item of large cost, and
many Cubans are sanguine of the out
come Of the fight, Chasing their ccnfld-
ence upon the crippled and disabled con-
dition of the Spanish treasury rather
than on the success of the Cubans in war.
for the latter fighting on their own soil
and aeclimated to Cuba can prolong
their struggle indefinitely, whereas the
Spaniards, il they do not win soon in
Gu ba, will be confronted by the spectre
of n atienal bankruptcy in Madrid