Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/343

 Ch. 8. capital, will abolih thoe taxes which are raied to dicharge the interet.

this means the quantity of property in the kingdom is greatly encreaed in idea, compared with former times; yet, if we coolly conider it, not at all encreaed in reality. We may boat of large fortunes, and quantities of money in the funds. But where does this money exit? It exits only in name, in paper, in public faith, in parliamentary ecurity: and that is undoubtedly ufficient for the creditors of the public to rely on. But then what is the pledge which the public faith has pawned for the ecurity of thee debts? The land, the trade, and the peronal indutry of the ubject; from which the money mut arie that upplies the everal taxes. In thee therefore, and thee only, the property of the public creditors does really and intrinically exit: and of coure the land, the trade, and the peronal indutry of individuals, are diminihed in their true value jut o much as they are pledged to anwer. If A's income amounts to 100𝑙. per annum; and he is o far indebted to B, that he pays him 50𝑙. per annum for his interet; one half of the value of A's property is transferred to B the creditor. The creditor's property exits in the demand which he has upon the debtor, and no where ele; and the debtor is only a trutee to his creditor for one half of the value of his income. In hort, the property of a creditor of the public conits in a certain portion of the national taxes: by how much therefore he is the richer, by o much the nation, which pays thee taxes, is the poorer.

only advantage, that can reult to a nation from public debts, is the encreae of circulation by multiplying the cah of the kingdom, and creating a new pecies of money, always ready to be employed in any beneficial undertaking, by means of it's transferrable quality; and yet productive of ome profit, even when it lies idle and unemployed. A certain proportion of debt eems therefere to be highly ueful to a trading people; but what that proportion is, it is not for me to determine. Thus much is Rh