Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1938-07-28
WASHINGTON.-A national debt
OF SAL 500, 000,000l What does it

WASHINGTON.-A national debt
of SAL, 500, 000,0 900! What does it
mean?
National l was staggered,
Debt as probably you
were, the other
day when the morning newspapers
blazoned forth in black headlines
they should have been printed in
red ink-that by next June 80 the
American government will owe
total of SAL, 500, O00, 900. I knew from
all of the spending that is going on
these days that the national debt
was going higher in the fiscal year
that started with the opening of
July; the debt had to increase be-
cause Of the lavish use of money
voted by congress under the lash of
President Roosevelt. But when
saw the revised estimates" official
ly issued by the bureau of the budg-
ct, somehow / was startled, amazed.
The implications are so many that
the magnitude of this debt simply
has overwhelmed me.
But there it is. Forty billions and
a half which Uncle Sam will owe
when the spenders get through vast
ing, chiseling, finding spots where
federal loans or new projects or just
plain, pork barrel distribution of
money drain dollars from the fed
eral treasury.
After the first impact Of this news
wore off, I began to look around
to see what it means. What does
it mean to me, ! wondered. And
to you? The first thought that had
naturally was: how is this money
going to be paid back to tho-e from
whom it was borrowed by Uncle
Sam? Everyone knows, of course,
that the federal government has
only two ways to get funds-by taxa
ton or by borrowing. The fact that
borrowed money must be repaid
means, Of course, that there is only
one way by which we can expect
the government to obtain funds.
There must be taxes - coolies of
taxes. Or. the government must do
that which every person abhors, re-
fuse to pay its debts. That is re-
pudiation, default. becoming a dead
beat.
Heretofore, this thing called the
national debt has been more or less
something way of in the distance
from me. I could not be too much
concerned, personally, how much
the federal government owed, ex-
cept that realized some portion of
It was going to come out of my own
earnings while ! am trying to pay
for education of my two boys, keep
my household running and buy those
things which my wife enjoys. fig-
ured, Of course, that I would be
working a part of each year to pay
back the money that is being bor-
rowed now. But someway did not
get excited about the whole thing
until this latest set of government
statistics was released by Acting
Director Daniel Bell, Of the budget
bureau.
! learned from the treasury that
right now the per capita national
debt amour's to S23570. That is to
say, without any more borrowing or
spending, each man, woman and
child In the United States, whether
he knows it or not, has been obi
gated by his national government to
that extent. Well. President Roose-
welt says there will be an increase
Of s., 4S5, 000, 900 in the national debt
between now and next June 80. That
means an increase in the per capita
debt, obviously. So when you do a
little figuring you will find that by
next June 80, the federal govern
ment win owe almost $500 for each
Of US who claims the United States
as our country.
HauirW rolr,,iotn,l .,,l,.k - -.