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FINANCES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



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The largest English loans were made in 1812 

 and 1813, during the wars with Napoleon and 

 the United States. In these two years the 

 British exchequer borrowed 534 millions of 

 dollars, being an average of 22J millions per 

 month. In these two years it raised from loans 

 only 34 millions more than the United States 

 Treasury raised in nine months. At that pe- 

 riod the received authorities estimate the 

 wealth of the United Kingdom to have been 

 10,212 millions of dollars. By the census of 

 1860, the wealth of the loyal States, deducting 

 slaves, is returned at 10,71 6 millions of dollars. 

 Both these calculations are doubtless too low, 

 but they are perhaps equally so. They indicate 

 nearly equal wealth in the two nations in their 

 respective periods of trial. In England, then, 

 as in the United States now, the business of 

 the country was carried on with a currency 

 below the par of gold. The premium on gold 

 in Bank of England notes stood at 41 J per cent, 

 from December, 1812, to March, 1813. It had 

 been at 38 per cent, from September to De- 

 cember, and averaged 30 per cent, during the 

 years 1812 and 1814. Thus under remarkably 

 similar fiscal conditions the Government of 

 Great Britain borrowed much less than half as 

 much money as that of the United States in 

 equal times, and at an average interest 57 per 

 cent, higher than the normal rate of her loans, 

 while the latter pays but 20 per cent, increased 

 interest upon the loans of the last two years of 

 the rebellion, if 5 per cent, is takn to be the 

 standard of government credit in its best con- 

 dition. In 1813 and 1814 the United States 

 Treasury sold $42,269,776 of 6 per cent, stock 

 at a discount of $6,282,014, a little less than 

 15 per cent. In about twice the length of time 

 in which these loans were made, the present 

 Secretary, Mr. Chase, has raised about 900 

 millions on loan, for longer or shorter periods, 

 which, if charged with the whole amount of 

 discounts upon those negotiated below the par 

 of 6 per cent., would amount to about one per 

 cent, discount upon the principal at 6 per cent, 

 interest. This result is based upon the fact 

 that a large amount of Government notes was 

 issued without interest and convertible into 

 bonds at par. 



The rate of interest paid by Great Britain 

 upon 3,309 millions of dollars borrowed be- 

 tween 1793 and 1816, and unredeemed at the 

 latter date, was 5 per cent, and a fraction upon 

 the cash received for all the stock issued. In 

 1815 a loan of 175 millions of dollars was made 

 at 6 and sixty-two hundredths on the cash re- 

 ceived. In four years of her largest borrowing 

 she raised but 89 millions of dollars at these 

 rates. Great reliance was also placed by that 

 Government on taxes ; thus in 1815, when the 

 expenditures reached 555 millions of dollars, 

 about 190 millions were raised by loans ; thus 

 more than three-fifths of the whole expendi- 

 tures of 1815 was raised by contemporaneous 

 taxes, and less than two-fifths by loans. In 

 1863 little more than one-sixth of the expendi- 



