People's Pilot, Volume 3, Number 29, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 January 1894 — Our Increasing National Debt. [ARTICLE]

Our Increasing National Debt.

James E. Wright, in January Donahoe’s. The national debt on the Ist of September, 18(55, in round numbers, was about $2,750,000,000. At that time it could have been justly liquidated with 18,000,000 average bales of cotton, or about 25,000,000 tons of bar iron. At the present time the national debt, although it has been reduced to about *1,250,000,000, or .considerably less than one-half, will require more than 30,000,000 bales of cotton, or 32,000,000 of bar iron to pay it. In blain, matter of fact speech, the lebt has been enlarged by some '0 per cent., as measured by tiiese two great staple products, while it has undergone a nominalishrinkage of 55 per cent. From 1870 to 1884 the national debt, in terms of money, was paid off to the extent of nearly *750,000,000, as shown by the official returns. But if we apply all of our greatest products —pork, coal, cotton, bar iron, beef, corn, wheat and oats—as the standard of value in payment, we find that the debt has increased i fully 50 per cent. So it has been with all other forms oi indebtedness. When you get very angry and feel like saying or doing something real rash, just stand on one foot till you get over it. You can never win your boy’s love with a big elm switch.