Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-08-19
The Sentinel Sophistry on the Public
0ahf

propositions. 1t is hard indeed for the
professional humorist to deal seriously
with any proposition. The journal has
stated repeatedly that under the Harri
son administration the bonded debt Of
the nation was reduced $3.50, 0O0, 900 anC
ton which succeeded it the bonded deb
of the country was increased $262, 900,
100. These are the plain and indisput.
able facts of history. Twist and SQUIRE
| as it may the Democratic party cannot
| escape from them. THE Journal" SAYS
the Sentinel. gets it's figures by giyine
the bonded debt alone. and not deduct
ing the cash in the treasury" Certainly
it did. 1t was dealing with the bonded
debt Of the nation and not with TIC
| current cash in the treasury either a,
| the beginning or the end of Mr.. Cleye.
| lands administration. This cash was
held against the daily accruing ex.
penscs of the government. There was
| never any pretence that it could be OF
would be applied to the payment of any
part of the bonded debt of the nation
If it could have been it is entirely safe
| to say that the Cleveland admnistra-
! ton would not have been selling bonds
hearing interest at per cent. in order
to meet the current expense of the gov
| eminent. The Sentinel itself must have
q mighty poor opinion of that admins
! tration if it really believes that it sold
more } per cent. bonds than was neces-
sary to meet actual current needs Of
! bank and borrowed a hundred dollars
| 1T FIVE per cent. most people would
suppose that he had increased his debt
| by thar amount, but the humorist of
| the Sentinel says, no. 1t is true thai
| he borrowed $780, but he doesn't owe it
| hecaus@ he hasn't Yet spent the whole
of it. lie still has fifty dollars of it IN
| his pocket, therefore this should be sub
| tracted from his debt to the bank, be-
| cause he could pay that amount in on
| it, if he had no other use for the mon
| ey, therefore while he may SEEM to
| owe the bank 800 his REAL net debf
| is only $50, and any man who says
he has increased his Indebtedness S1oo
by the loan is a reckless falsifier,' a
viper" and an "Ananias"! Carrying
this sOphiStry 4 little further the hum
orist Of the Sentinel would probably
argue that if the borrower spent the
whole Of the 800 in the payment of
household bills he really wouldn't in
crease his debt at all by the loan, mas
much as the amount he had borrowed
would be offset by the decrease in his
liabilitiesi The Sentinel admits that the
Cleveland administration increased the
bonded debt Of the nation $262, 900;
but claims that the Journal does not
state the truth when it gives these fig
ures, because when it went out of Of
flee 1t had not spent all the money.
Therefore to get the real increase of
the national debt we should subtract
this amount from the sum borrowed
by the sale of interest bearing bonds,
although the cash in the treasury was
held for the meeting of current govern
ment expenses and not rs a sinking
fund against tho bonded debt.
No, 70, Mr.. Sentinel, you cannot de-
ccive the intelligent people of old Ken
nebcc with sophistry like this, and if
Won We're better acquainted with them
you would know it. The plain fact
is that the Cleveland administration
increased the national debt S262, 900 600.
by the sale of Understanding bonds.
That increase Of indebtedness the
American people have had to pay along
with the large interest account which
it carried. WigGe, and spuirm and
iugglc figures as you may, you cannot
escape from this fact that stands as
monument to Democratic incompe-
tency in the management of national
affairs. Not only have the American
people had this large increase of debt.
with its heavy interest account piled
IN by the Cleveland administration, to
pay, but the figures of the Sentinel it
self show that, under Republican ru1c,
they have paid considerable amount
| Of it, The Sentinel says that when Mr..
| Cleveland went out of office in 1897 the
| national debt was s9S6,oOO, 900. The al
manac published by the New York
| World. the leading Democratic author
| ity in this country, states the principal
national debt on Nov. S, 1897 to he ST.
SOS. ~, $40. In this statement is in
cIudcd about $500 600, OG0 of gold and sill
yer certificates and treasury notes
| "ofrsct by cash in the treasury" leav-
ling the interest bearing debt Of that year
a little rising $1,000. 0oo.oo0. 1t will he
seen that this is considerably more
than the amount stated by the Senti-
mel: but then the World, being 'reck-
less falsifcr'' like the Journal. has not
| vat learned the trick of conjuring away