Year: 1868

The PUBLIC DEBT OF THE UNITED STATES It's Or


GANIzATIoN-ITs LIQUIDATION; ADMINISTRATION


J. s. Gibbons


This volume Of two hundred ana eighty pages con-
tains great deal or valuable matter on all the
topics pertaining to national finances embraced under
the above heads and on kindred subjects. The author
writes like commercial man. All his views and
arguments are based upon commercial practice and
theories. With him commerce Is the sun around
which everything revolves. 1t is the life giving
power to industry to national wealth and national


finance, and to the well being Of society. He meas
ures everything by this standard, and therefore
whatever conflicts with the interests Of commerce Ia
to him wrong in theory and injurious in practice.
He applies this principle throughout the whole work
to the operations Of the Treasury Department. to the
revenue SYSTEM to the currency to taxation and to
the national banks.


Doubtless the principle he lays down Is a sound
one if our system OF commerce be good and If the
system Of banking, which he makes essential part
and controlling agent In commerce, be on good
foundation. II he means commerce in the br0adest
and widest sense, internal as well as foreign, the
general exchange OF the products Of labor in the
towns and villages OF the whole country well rs
the great shipping and trading transactions at the
central marts and with foreign countries, agree
with him that all the operations Of government
should be made In accordance with and for the in
terests Of commerce. In this sense commerce In
cudes the whole business OF q country, and is the
source OF wealth, geneSa well being and civilization
to all. But the question arises, how Is this general
principle to be appliedp Certainly not by fayoring
one interest more than another or to the detrment
of another. Most assuredy not by making the bank
ing interest paramount to ali other interests and by
making 1t all powerful as 1t seems this writer
would make 1t. He favors the national bank
system and bank mOnop0es In general, and
In doing so takes very narrow and incorrect view
people. Banks may be useful or necessary to COM
merce but they may be so organized or combined as
to absorb all the profits OF industry, to keep the
mass OF the people In poverty, or to be danger
an embarrassment to the government.


But apart from the writer's blind faith In the bank
ing system as the sum OF all good, there is, as we
said, great deal of valuable matter in the book. lie
Is very severe on Mr.. McCuochs financial crudities
and management OF the Treasury Department. ''The
official reports of Mr.. McCuloch,n he says 'atYord
the fullest testimony to the disastrous consequences
of the Treasury policy There has been no change In
and pause In the current Of misfortune" Through
out the whole work he cuts up root and branch the
Secretary. With regard to the liquidation of the
national debt, he proposes that this shall be
very gradual and slow process, extending
over period OF hundred and forty years; and
he argues that any attempt to liqudate the
debt within short or much shorter time will be dis
asrous 10 commerce and the general interests OF the
country because, he says, it would make the burden
OF taxation too heavy and abstract capital from pro-
duction He ridicues, therefore, Mr.. McCulloch's
idea OF making the present generation, which con-
tracted the debt, pay the bulk OF It, Though he
scouts the idea that national debt is a national
blessing he thinks II would be an evil to liquidate 1t
within the lifetime OF the present generation The
plan for the perpetuation Of the debt for long


period as he proposes, even for half that time,


would probably make 1t as permanent the British


national debt IL Is only by amiliarizing the people


OF this country with steady and pretty rapid liqui
dation that will make them contented to bear the
weight OF the debt. Nor do we any good reason


for believing rapid liquidation would be detrimental
to commerce. On the contrary, the more capital Is


set free from investment In government securities,
| the more 1t would he invested In the productive
| employment OF agriculture, mining, manufacturing
| and commerce.


Mr.. Gibbons shows, we think that It Ia not re-
dundancy OF currency that prevents a return to
| specie payments, but the weight Of taxation, the
mismanagement Of our finances and the abnormal
condition in which the war has left us. Making al


lowance for the qreenback currency which Is locked
up as reserve Ill the banks and, therefore, which
| Is not strictly in circulation, he shows that the


actual volume of circulation is not greater than just


before the war even than ten years ago. He gives
the figures to prove this assertion, and certainly
makes out what to many may appear surprising
and unexpected state OF things. There are Il great
many other points relative TO debt and financial
system In this work worthy or notice, though they
arc diifused and jumbled together without proper
order; but we must leave the reader to pick them
out and digest them himself ON the whole this
book will be found a useful contribution 10 the tcra-
ture OF the day on the prolific subjects Of which II
I traaf