The Connecticut courant and Hartford weekly intelligencer — Hartford, Conn., 1777-12-30 00:00:00, page 1

For the. Connecticut Courant.
[ CATO continued.
IN my lad 1 recommended to the consider
ation ofthe publick, ftrft to Search out
theirs chafe of the depreciation of the Bills
'pf public credit, and when difebvered, chear
fully to submit to any inconveniencies' ne
cessary to retrieve its credit, without which,
pur cable is loityour army mttft and will vfe
tyrn home, unless they are possessed of more
public virtue and trucpatriorifm than those for
'whom the, are fighting for at home.- We
at this time of day, are too fat effibarked' in
the caufexa look: back : It is not my de
sign at this time to juftify every measure
„htebhas ^een I adopted, that has brought
us into the liquation we now are in ; at pte
fent we F.ave>only this alternative left, either
to be independent and remainfree, or to forfeit
pur effaces. and remain the Offals of 'Britain.
There are two things which naturally pre
sent themfelv£s: toowr notice and obfervati
om, which every one muff fee, are the-phrici
.ple caules of the 'depreciation 'of out paper
•medium.
Thefr, is, the large emiffioh of bills emit
ted for chepuipofe of m^intfiihirfe the de
fenfiye war. in which we -are engaged with
Great-Britain, and an undue pj>(s%t& of
thofebiCs being Thrown Into this ftte for
the provisions. with which we have Suppli
ed theArtny and theirarrienfe funis brhtight
into the .three' other W w-T'rgiand*-States,
JforTAhtfrfwgat,ffli<Q!fßs mi--
litany ltorcs,b^ot in by dpr-privateers
into the three, entero ita^s, -where the de-
preciation begin, .and has 'been traveling
syeftward evafdioce r but extends no Further
Southward than out army:" • "
I The' natural remedy , and cure.of this evil
is, addrge £a%%'&n; iris whit weniutt foonef
or later fufontit to, and Certainly- the &w-
EnglandhSratrs ntvercan better fink them,'
than when grearpAt of the continental bills
are in our poffitiion, and when- the farmer
demands 20s. per bufiicl for his wheat, and
the eng,ofer £ voper cwt. for his h^ar,
.which'did not colt him more-than 55 or 60s.
per cwt.-^fugars not imported -with e@%
.but purchafeci at dubfan, ready imported (0
his hand. leannot therefore think any/%-
jure time, will id well suit the -conveniency
,and ease of the farmer in being taxed,- than
when a bushel of wheat, which has totally
been fold for. 4 s. will pay 20's, and if tMr
happens, to fail him, hecan have,(during the
Winter feaibn, while our children are freez
ing around us) the federate price of eight
dollars for a lead of wooc, which heretofore
would not procure him more than ) or Bs..
and if the farmers and engrofos can affix any
future period of tig^e, when it wilt better
suit their convenient, 1 should be glad they
would point it out to their reprefernatives,
before the adjourned faffions of our assem
bly, who doubrlefs will give it due v,ight
and consideration, unlcfs tl.e farmers wrb
boid their Wheat, rye, &c. &c with ari'et
pe&atibn of a better market from General
Howe fhcrtly, to be paid in fetid coin, and
the engreftr retain' their federal commodities
TUESDAY, Derate ^, i„f:
CONNECTICUT
AND
'WEEKLY I
Containing thi Freih^ft 'ADVICES,
sot the fupplyingthe "Britfb troops from the
fame patriotic principles.
The second obvious cause of the depreciati
on of our continental bills is, the total flag
nation of land jobbing, trude and navigation,
for the importation pf foreign commodities,
of real ufa and'Such - ar are mere luxuries, tri
fles, trinkets, and gew gauze. There is ano
ther very obvious reason which I will not
mention until I have cartfull, and calmly en
deavored t 6 quiet the minds of my country
men, and fhtw them, that this fo^nd'eauje of
the depreciation of our'bffls, is To far from
being a mifbief i&^s, 'hit it Will turn out
greatly to our advan%?, alltho' Sorely agairift
the Win tirWaYfife^
f^he rich fare erj,laofe great fucs, whose
eyes fund outzvitb fottnefs, and wbdb'ave colldps
of fat on tbeirflanks, who heretofore sent off
as^many ofour- good and whofefome irihibi-'
rants toour frontiers, tc be scalped by Bur
goyne and his fa^W birds, by purchasing
their lands, which they had been gradually
e^^g^Asthey annually turn out cattle into
their fatting paftuTes to ft them for the &fa
These raenHeeing thg rietr trade bf'@d
jdbbing intifely at an er. their neighbours
not in-diking.to partv - T;*°r f^fs on the
ib^dcrs arid itfc bi ti.br wfe d add children
Our midld:g farmers who live handfortiely,
and futyh 'ftheir families with decency, and
in go6dbafhiori, hearing the clamour railed
by these great bugs, imagining their neigh
bnuris as much volßr As his farm is larger
or richer than theirs, fro/n a similar notion of
gain, -join in the clamber against the credit
of the bills ; andthus by progressive grada
tions, until it descends to oarfmalleft land
holders; who-ciinnot foare morf from the ex
igencies of their families, than a pig, goose;
turfe,, or perhaps a dozen of efy, which
they fell to purchase a litde sugar and alfpice
in order to- prepare a chark/givng dirwr, to
Weft God for tbe tofarat. dd bounties of his
Providences which by the r t^s m&hsgement
o^ouf farthers is tonfot&f > co a, artificial
ferine, which was it aid d :y'the dexterity
ami powers of a Clive, rid,, : have th %iame
effects in the Wert, as it rely had in the
&,. These teger farmers f realty fit, th%
merely to aceott^date them with their farhgs,
and 'finding largbpilcs 6f continental bills,
dailyaccumufritirig in their chests, 'for their
btittGf,-cheefefbeef, pork end wheat, which
they furntfied Tofthe use bfthe^rmyj began
tb grow oneafy/and in order $ niake a
greater bend at theblofe of ffie War, and make
amends ~for the belays of enlargihg their
farms,they m&ke'a^A^ cry against me' Cre
dit-of the bill's, pronounde them food for db
tbing, and x s^>bld the ptbducb of their
firms, until they can have th> price they
demand, and thus by depreciating the bills,
th'ey get -four .debars for their wheat and
feme other articles, ^hen they ought to have
but dne, and which when obtained they waft
know, and do ktoib, when calledfor by taxety
will produce them ttlnany round dollars, as
they &n produce fafare ones, or what would
no doubt suit ttiem much better, Their heigh
boursriarms..
r ^# .11
t^^wi#
f^ ^^^^^
ST%r%_ /A ml
&ra^ffl^
I^3^^
hf'ff^^fef^ B
as they do not fee by depreciating the bills,
they ericreafe the expences of the army, th^
emission of our bills, btir taxes which mull
keep pace with our emifficns, the expences
of obr towns, societies, clergy, schools, and
even of what is nearer to lech one of us, of
bur own families, and that in the close of
the war, the greater part of us must refigri
up owe little fafrif to ihefe great bugs, and
their more ungodly affociatts the monopolizers^
proffers, arid their contemptible offspring the
jobbers and far,er;, with whom will be found
the far greater part of our bills, when their
redemption -draws near; yet such is ouf
blindness and ignorance, (a'fure evidence of the
apoftacy'of the human race if we were not
furniflied with any other from the sacred
oracles) that we fancy we „ really inrich
ing ourselves all th^ time, and what is ft ill
more aftririfoing, we at the fame tithe flatter
ouffelves" w€ are cbrifti@ns§ while We from
time to time in the' mi^n of plenty, tan bav§
bur Neighbour come with their money in
ttieir hand, to purchase bread for to supply
the real taints of their children, who look tip
tb them for their fupport,;and even minfers.
f^gfyl, andean fend them from house
to'hcufe without fepp&mg their %un,>
Good God fwrit tfbu n,t be avenged of jueb#
Nation as this / I can assure my reader who
ever he is, that lam neither clergyman, nor
p-ea&rriout for the admonition of my bre
thren the farm's; who wfbbold bread front
the hungry, and for the mfrudlion of the %
grower, monfyli%er§ and extortioner, who have
ctifribined to ruintlfe‘ country, fuffer me tat
recite a single paffige from revelation, which"
it any of them have ever read! am quite,
certain they never have duly co^dered;and
t^eded upon the fatal consequences of a
ntgle@: of the duties enjoined; they are the
words of our blessed Saviour, and for that
very re^fon, are worthy of their most ierious
attention, viz. I'benfall be fay afc unto ibeni
oh the left baud, DEPARTfrom me, ye cursed, in
to everlasting FIRE, prepared for the devil
and bis aiigels, for 1 was an bungred, and yd
&av'e mb no meat : Iwastbrify&jeGAVE nd
drink: I was afranger ahdye took me not ins
n^ked andye cloatbed'me nht: Jick and in frifo^
ahdje vijiMme dot. Theft fall they also an
f&r him faying, Lord, when 'few wk
thee art hundred; bra thrift of a granger,
or fict bffti prfa; and did not minder nnte
thee ? Then (bail be arfaef them faying
verily Ifoy witoyou, infoueb as,e did it ^
to one of the leas r,sf these, ,e did it dot td
ME, if evbrlafo,fr e ' IS to ft „ e portion of.
those who do not give to any who belong to
Christ s church; what muff be the portion of
filch as refuse to SELL, v/heri as much mo
ney is offered to them, as they will pteafe td
are, mlift not their iniquity be as great as
that of Elif hv/fe, Which was not to be purged
with facrifice nor offering FORF.Zk'
Gentlemen, yot rare welcome to this ihort
sermon or exhorttion; and you have no o
ther rate or tax to pay tor it; except p 6 th^
widow of your life v/oithy printer, which
Iwould also exhort you to pay in the netrf
&te^ of life; for her cemfert, aud the co&
Okniyi
eAttO A N'T
te^^t> d&b
IKMMTLI&^N6^^
^^-^^^—=__=C-.— a=-.—^^
(Both FOREIGN and DOMESTIC.'