Year: 1872

Large Custom House Reccipts-The


Dry Goods Epidemic.


One Of the most often repeated and urgent
pleas of the republican orators and newspapers
for the reelection of General Grant is the al
legged successful financial policy of the admin
istration It must be admitted, too, that if
this be well founded General Grants admins
tration has one strong claim at least to public
| favor. The able management of the national
finances of great nation is of moro inn
portance in promoting the welfare of the
people than arc the mere partisan political
| questions of tho day. Let us look, then, at
the grounds for this plea of wisdom and ability
in managing the finances of the country. 1t
is not, however with view to political effect
| to the Presidential contest-so much, that we
enter upon this subject, as for the purpose of
correcting wrong impressions and to show our
actual financial condition and what the coun-
try needs.


! About three hundred millions of the ma
tonal debt--a seventh of the whole interest
bearing portion of the debt-has been paid off
in little moro than three years Of General
Grants administration. This, undoubtedly,
is On important and gratifying fact, and it is
the one chiefly which the republicans delight
TO dwell upon. In connection with this they
clnim the merit for the administration OF hav-
ing collected the revenue more faithfully than
it had been collected previously. 1t is but
fair to admit this fact also. Then, within the
present year, the party in power has taken off
fifty millions Of taxation. Whatever may have
been the motive, and if even the object was to
court popular favor on the eve of Presiden-
tial election, republican Congress and the
administration are entitled to credit for the
boon. So far, then, as the party in power
have brought about these results, it has the
| right to speak about them and TO claim COM
mendation.


But is the liquidation of three hundred
millions Of the interest-bearing debt due to the
financial policy or wisdom of the administra-
tion2 Was it wise even to pay off the debt
so rapidly? When General Grant came into
power revenue system was in operation that
brought IN income of over four hundred mil
lions a year and kept the Treasury full to
repletion. It was the same during Mr.. John
sons administration. Though the revenue
was not as we'll collected; though, in fact,
there were stupsndous frauds while Mr.. John
son was in the White House, arising chiefly
from the bitter hostility of a republican Con-
gress to the President and the corruption Of
the republican party, large sum of the
public debt was liquidated, besides an enor-
nous amount Of floating war indebtedness dis
charged, during that administration. Yet
neither the republicans nor any other parties
ever thought of giving Mr. johnson credit
for what was accomplished. 1t was the
revenue systom-a war revenue after the war
ceased-together with the wonderful resources
of the country and ability of the people to
bear taxation, that kept the Treasury full and
enabled the government to pay so much Of the
debt. With the exception of having collected
the revenue better, General Grant, admins
istration is not more entitled to credit for pay
ing off q large amount of debt than was that
of Mr.. Johnson. And it must be borne in
mind, as we have said that MIR. johnson was
embarrassed at every step by hostile Con-
gress, while with General Grant all has been
plain sailing. But, indeed, neither could help
having an enormous surplus revenue under
the system that existed. The liquidation of
the debt resulted necessarily from the taxes
imposed There was no other way of dispos-
ing of the vast and surplus income


The policy of General Grants administra-
ton was to keep up this burdensome taxation,
in order to pay of rapidly the public debt
and The views of the dominant party in Con-
gross accorded with that No doubt the OBJ
ject WIS partly political--was with view to
obtain public appreciation. The Secretary of
The Treasury particularly has this OBJ
ject in view, as is shown by his
reterated speeches, in which he claims
so much credit for the financial
policy of the administration. But, apart from
this, we are willing to concede that the admin
the credit of the government, enable the Secre-
tary to fund the debt at lower rate of interest
and to bring about specie payments. Still, be-
hind all this there was the old protectionist
idea of Mr.. Boutwell, and the New England
republicans, of which he is a true represent
ative They understood very well that the
more revenue the government called for the
higher must taxes ana duueS be malntalned,
and, consequently, the greater protection would
be afforded to the home manufacturers. New
England became rich through the war; and the
accumulation of a vast public debt, which
made large revenue necessary, has continued
to be in that way en- advantage to that section
of the country and manufacturers generally,
while other sections and the mass ofthe Ameri-
can people have been the sufferers. It will be
seen, then, that by keeping up large revenue,
ostensibly for the purpose of paying off the
debt and imnrnyinc The credit of the poyern-