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

~ .heir own NieSHs 'AffroprlcIy, they nigh
perhaps have t,soughs that an apcia;,y wa
due Ia The ifouse aud the nation, Tor hlvin,
proposed sys,eni which suffered 50 iarg,
i porion OF the c.srreat annual expenditure.
to remain unpro,;dcd for, except thro' IL.
medium of a debt tircdeemablc ior perhap.
twelve years to come: and 1t might seen
10 reasonable men waste Of time and ar.
Sc-nent, to endcssor to enforce the pror-i.
ely or necessity Of providing arevenue a,
least commensurateto the objcctshctorc sta
ted. Such novel and strange jtieas had
however, oflate apparently obtained a cur.
rency in political circles out:of doors ON this
point. ara he feared had not been entirely
without their prosclytes even within these
walls; and SO much had been thrown out
as to our capacity of obtaining loans upon
eligible terms and to an almost unlimited
eXtenr; both Tor deiraying our current char
ges, ard even the insercst on the loans
themselves, through the medium of some
magical paper machinery, that he deemed
1t Important to bring these doctrines to an
early test, before they had acquired too
fatal ascendancy either here or elsewhere in
our country
ne ability OF government to obtain any
considerable SUMS by way Of loans upon elf
gible terms, (Mr. Bacon said,) depended,
ne appreheIded, mostly upon the market
value which the public funds or stocks of the
country bore in the market. Since no pru-
dent capitalist could be expected to loan his
money.to government for this security at
mar, IT that. security would in all probability
fall i'll his hands below the no.
minal value which it expressed to be worth
when this was the case, the only mode of
obtaining the use of such capital must be by
allowing to the lender an extra interest, or
Ot l,er ri IA;
therefor beyond the ordinary rate of legal
interest in the country.
The market value of public stocks or
funds depends again upon the proportion
between the interest which they bear, and
the profit which can be made by investing
individual capital in some private enterprise
or employment which the situation and cir
Of the country affords. 1t is in
huenced by the plenty or scarcity of money
or capital in the country, by the credit of
the government itself, and by the quantity
OF its stock which shall be circulating in the
market. These are principles which are
neither novel nor original, they are founded
ON universal experience, and require, it is
presumed, no illustration to establish them
in the mind of any man who has at all re-
hected upon the subject-lct US then apply
them to the circumstances and case of our
own country. In the first place it is well
known that we are not yet country having
IT rs command q large diisposabie monicd
capital. That We are nation strong in our
own peculiar resources, in well-directed
and successful agriculture, in the general in
dustry OF our people, and, until of late, in a
growing and fourishing external commerce,
is not to be doubted. But, as compared with
Elost other nations, whose exigencies have
compelled them to resort to an extensive
system OF public credit, we are in regard
to surplus monied capital. comparatively,
poor andfeeble. 1t is true, that we have
nominal bank capital of some fifty or sixty
millions OF dollars, and much reliance is APP
Parently placed upon this for the facilities
of loans. Undoubtedly we shall be able to
obtain considerable aids from that quarter,
but still it is to be feared that some of our
calculations on that may be ill founded. A
considerable part Of this capital, there's rea :
son to believe, rests upon credit in some
shapeor other, and is one which its holders
are compelled to manage with the utmost
caution and circumspection. Their loans
DO not generally extend beyond sixty days,
and they are enabled to extend or contract
their discounts precisely in proportion to the
pressure that is like to be made upon them
and to the general state of commercial and
other credit. 1t is not such loans that will
answer our purpose; they must be made ir-
redeemable tor much longer period, per.
haps for 10 or IL years
But the difficulty of obtaining loans in Thu
country to any very great extent does no.
rest altogether upon theory; we are not
without some experience on that point -
From the late bank of the ". S. strong a
it was in capital, and dependent as it wa
upon the government, the khole amount o
the loans which they were enabled to max
us during the continuance of their charter
hardly amounted to seven millions 1t i
well known that during the wear 1896, tn
government. being pressed FOR the pnym
ot the loans previously effected with tina
bank and the bank of'N. York, opened do
mestic loan for Ave millions, Dnt wer- able
to obtain subscriptions only to the amount Of
eighty thousand dollars, & that ire dee na,J,
Tor more than twenty years, and were more
over compelled in order to meet their EN-
gagcipents to sell large portion of thci
shares in the Bank upon the best terms the,
were able to 10. The credit of the govern
ment was as goll then as it is nov, an,
there was certainly as strong q disposition il
the monicd interest of the nation to accomu
date them as there now is The truth is,
we can make il for the interest of capitalist
to lend us this money, we shall undoubtedl-
obtain it cvcn from our enemies and on n
other consideration should we hatter our
selves from obtaining single cent from
th 0se whom we call our friends.
1t is not to be dorbted tlr.t since that ne
Rod, the monied capital of the nation i'm
experienced a very considerable ausmenta
ton; and so far at that gees. it is to be no
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