territory, marked the resumption of the forward march of the

United States. Twenty-five years later, at the presidential

campaign of 1892, the debt had been reduced to $900,000,000,

deducting the sinking fund, and the charge for pensions had about

reached its maximum and soon began to decrease, though no one

objected to any amount of reward for bona fide soldiers who had

helped to save the country. The country's wealth had also

enormously increased, while the population had grown to