The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1812-03-10

I
] OF our own manufacturers, must probably in
icrease beth the Demand and ne profit up
on them. 1t may be added, that every man
Iwhohas commercial capital ON iiand will call
cuiate that the war will net probably last
many years, that at its close new and pref
liable channels of commerce. will again be
opened, when he can resu,ne his ordinary
pursuits, and would not these men very FREE
q1ently prefer reserving their capital for
such an use, at period which they would
at least latter themselves could not be far
distant, tutying it down in permanent
loan to the government /? 1t is true that
the transferable nature of public stock, al
ways enables its holders to realize it's value
| ny sale IN the market, and to convert the
Icapltal held in tito any other use which
they may prctcr-but any unusual sales
must inevitably deprcss the market value
ano thus expose the original holder to a loss
TX upon all these remote circumstances
those who have money tn invest can and
viii calculate with much greater preci-
SION and correctness than we can DO for
them.
These (Mr. B. sadly are some of the con-
sidcratlons which struck him as worthy
OF consideration when we are about calcula-
ting on the prospects which we have of OBJ
tanning toa very extensive degree domestic
loans upon very moderate terms of interest,
ana that too on the supposition that we pro-
vide settled revenue sufficient at least to
meet our ordinary eXpences and the inter
est on the debt Which we may annually
contract But if We suffer ourselves to yield
to the new theory of borrowing both princi-
pa! and interest, we have no data by which
To- Judge upon what probable terms loans
may be obtained at all, or how long it will
De before we must wind up business. This
Is an experiment which it is believed no re-
gular or providcnt government, which reli-
sd upon public opinion and voluntary credit
ior the supply OF its exigencies, has of late
oeen presumptuous enough to attempt. IN.
der such system of finance, our course
must probably be that of all other intlividu-
ais OF desperate fortune and broken resour-
cess * like other bankrupts we must trust to
chance, and get along at the mercy of shar-
pers and shavers. He did not use these terms
IN relation to those who would take advan-
tage OF our necessities by way of reproach a.
gainst them. The public debt of a nation
was always fair object of speculation, and
II by course of improvident conduct we
drive ourselves to the necessity Of yielding
to ruiDous and unreasonable demands,
the iauit hes at our own door, and we ought
TO be made accountable to the nation for
the result Under such a system OF man
aagement, it is impossible to say what prn-
dent capitalist would trust us at all or up
on what, even tolerable, terms. But sup
pose tor moment that all doubts of this
sort were removed, what would be the in
eVitabie effect of throwing into the market
annually such an increased amount of pub
lie debt as this system must reQuirc-the
same atleast as Cutting it with any other
commodity beyond the natural rise and de-
nand, and from the delicate nature of pub
lie credit probably much greater and more
sensible. The result of it for only two years
is briefly alluded to in the report of the
commissioning on the supposirion of an
extraordinary expenditure of eleven mil
lions year. We must, if no additional re-
source be provided, raise by loan for the
next year II 100000 dollars, and for the
succeeding year l8,22O,000 dollars, exclu-
sive of $4,000 dollars annually for the re-
existing contract, making an average of
nearly 20 millions annually. The effects of
such al operation upon the price of public
tstocks and the consequent terms OF all fu
ture loans must be abundantly manifest.
| We are not, (sad Mr.. b. without some
Experience also on this point. He had been
Uniformed from sources that he believed
could be depended upon, that owing to the
difficulty of making remittapces from, q. b.
to this country by means of British manu-
lfactures, American merchants had been in
the habit, during the last year, of purcha-
sing American stocks which were owned in
IG. Britain, and remitting them to this coun-
ltry. The Whole amount however did not
probably exceed three millions. But the
effect of throwing only this unusual quanti-
;(ty into our market had, he was assured,
sunk the price of stocks for considerable
tpart or the year,:as much as four per cent,
Ibelow their former price, and had at one
time reduced them below par--thcy had in
ion. But lie perceived, that though it was
NOW nearly at the close of quarter, when
they were usually little higher than at
other periods, they were now quoted in the
price currents OF the day, as bat barely at
par; in one instance he had lately 3ticed
they were stated as little below. From
this circumstance then we may perhaps
Judge something Of the effect which may
he produced by sudden influx OF new
stock to the annual amount OF 30 mil
lions.
u j. is well known that the government o
10. Britain. with her immense Trss Of fun
dcd debt, does not venture to put into cir
culation 9: c7ce very large portion OF ne y
stock. 1t is there let out gradually, ant
las the state of the market will bear
though the medium Of the bank. vino act ~
SCENTS of the successful bidders Of the loan
and support them in all their operations,
mode which, from the manner of takn,
loans and for other reasons, cannot in thl
tcountry be so successfully sdopted.
II was not his disposition (Mr. p. said