308 GUANO SUPPLY. Chap. XVIII. 



On the wliole these attempts to find other deposits of 

 guano, whicli would tend to bring down the price in Enghmd, 

 have failed of success ; and the Peruvians may consider 

 themselves secure of their strange source of revenue for some 

 twenty years to come. And a stranger means of defraying 

 nearly the whole expenditure of the state was never before 

 heard of. In 1859 the disbursements amounted to 20,387,756 

 dollars, of which sum three-fourths were raised by shovelling 

 heaj)S of dirt off a desolate island on the coast ! 



A prudent Government would have looked upon the guano 

 monopoly as an extraordinary item in the receipts, and would 

 have reserved it for paying off the internal and foreign debt, 

 for public works, and improvements ; but the heads of the 

 Peruvians appear to. have been turned by this wonderful in- 

 crease of their revenue, and they have squandered it with 

 ruinous and dishonest recklessness. It is true that the interest 

 of the foreign debt has been paid,^ but otherwise the large 

 receipts have either been embezzled, as in General Echenique's 

 time, or spent on immense and unnecessary armaments, and 

 in jobbing salaries and pensions. Thousands of families now 

 live on the public money, and, when the guano receipts fail, 

 the ruin and suffering will be severe and widely spread. On 



* The Peruvian Government eon- j In 1852 the Congress authorised 

 tracted three loans in London be- ; General MencUbm-u to effect a loan in 

 tween 1822 and IS25, amounting to j London for 2,600,000L to redeem the 



1,816,000L, bearing interest at 6 per 

 cent. 



No interest was paid from 1825 to 

 1819, when the sales of guano had 

 greatly increased the resources of 

 Peru. In 1849 Senor Osma made an 

 agreement with the bondholders to 

 issue New Bonds at 4 per cent, per 

 annum, the rate to increase ^ per cent, 

 annually up to 6 per cent. Arrears of 

 interest, about 2,(3l5,000Z., were to be 

 capitalized, and Deferred Bunds to be 

 issued to represent 75 per cent, of these 



remainder of the 6 per cent, loan, and 

 to refund other home and Cliile debts. 



The annual interest and siixldng 

 fund amount, respectively, to 267,000?. 

 antl 82,000Z. ; the payment of which is 

 secured on the profits of guano sold in 

 Great Britain. 



There is also a French loan of 

 800,000Z. secm-ed on the profits of 

 guano sold in France. 



The whole foreign debt of Peru 

 amounted to 4,491,042/. in 1857 ; and 

 the domestic debt to 4,835,708/. The 



arrears, and to bear interest at 1 per j foreign debt is aninudly reduced by 

 cent, per annum, increasing J per cent, j means of a sinking fund, 

 annually up to 3 per cent. 



