Jasper County Democrat, Volume 12, Number 39, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 August 1909 — BONDS IN TIME OF PEACE. [ARTICLE]

BONDS IN TIME OF PEACE.

There used to be some talk about the iniquity of “issuing bonds in time of peace,” that is, of course, when they were issued under a Democratic administration. But within the past two years millions of bonds have been issued and now the new tariff bill has provided for issuing nearly $300,000,000 more. The Indiankpolis News says:

In the beginning it was proposed to pay the cost of the Panama canal entirely out of the current revenues. In those days the government was a good deal troubled to find -a way to dispose of its surplus. That trouble has disappeared Instead of a surplus last year, the year ending with June, we had a deficit considerably in excess of $100,000,000. Here’ is a very marked change in Now there are no surplus raflßH to be devoted to jects. It will be ther that in those days it was fcefimated that the canal would cost less than $150,000,000. Now it is known that it will cost almost $400,1)00,000. So it was necessary to abandon the original plan. This was the theory on which the makers of the new tariff proceeded when they tacked to the bill / a section authorizing the issue# of $295,569,000 of three per cent, bonds to cover the cost of the canal, and to reimburse the treasury for the amount advanced on the account. We have already borrowed $84,631,900 for canal purposes. Thus we get a present estimate of $380,200,900 as the cost of the enterprise