The American nation is in danger of an attack of
apoplexy. So prosperous is the Union, that though Congress wastes money energetically, the Treasury receives from twenty to twenty-five millions a year more than it can spend, and does not know what to do with it. There is no more debt ready to be paid off. In Europe, the problem would be solved in a moment by taking off taxes ; but the Protectionists of the Union look on taxes as good things, and would rather throw the surpluses into the sea. The Secretary of the Treasury tries to buy up the unex- pired loans ; but as the bonds are mostly deposited in the National Banks as security for notes, bankers do not readily offer them, except at a higher premium than the Secretary feels authorised to pay. The accumulation, therefore, goes on, all gold flows to the Treasury, and business is contracted by want of currency, which, in its turn, produces a disturbing demand for gold from the Bank of England. Why does not the American Congress lend £50,000,000 in silver to the Russian Government, to buy up its paper roubles with P If the Washington Treasury received the interest, that would be equal to extinguishing debt. If something of the kind is not done, the House of Represen- tatives will make some preposterous grant or other, probably in pensions, merely to relieve their constituents of their crushing burden of property.
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