Constitutional Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1824-1832, 1830-04-30

compared them would no, he oy;n, ~, nc uey
credit IN The bank bills of which currency hapnened 70 be
composed Il would exist, though these bills were of
cd credit and convertible into specie the pleasure of the hold
or and would rel, simply from Redundancy ofher
tty 1t is important Just UNDERSTANDING NJ tho h;,
that the relative Depreciation of paper al the deen MA
ces, as compared with specie should not he connJc &
this general depreciation OF the of the ccu,a,m@
medium including specie Though closely allied, both in be,,
ana efeci they deserve TO he separately considered
Inc evis resulting from The relative depreca,,on of b,rL
paper az Inherent places are more easily their causes
PaPaVe ~ their nature, aud consequently more ecnerav
understood by the community Though much less r;ns
cn,a sns rom .ne general depreciation of the whole
exposition e'' " ue'"ahu iuii
very serious evil already limited which grew out of the
Importation, its tendency TO drow all tbe %
lion 'nclGhandlse TO the cities where the dcpreca
was seales, ana divert them from those where curren-
was comparatively sound 1.-THE Bank of the United States
without alternative receive the deneci,,ed Local
currency 1t is dcult TO imagine the extent 10 which the
would have had an interest encourage the excessive
Oh us banks and increase the degradation of s currency
winch the currency had reached Boston and New York
h; = YOU'D nave found it advantageous derive
commerce would undoubtedly taken thai drcc,;o, ad
not inc currency been corrected To avoid this injurious di
S o oreign imports Massachusetts, and New York and
SCUM carolina, would have driven Inv ali po;ves r
ana sell interest degrade their respective cur.
at east To par with the Baltinore and
% rivalry in the career of depreciation would have sprn.
state of hns no can be assigned AS the tendency
,e TO be collected at few places aud in the mos, de-
very small part of that would have been dsued =,
the points where il collected The governmen. 49,
consequently have been compelled to bs,y wouia
the transfer Of It's funds Ia -. loss upon
i which would have resulted from these CAUSES alone
Hauho' NC estimated a'a less than millions of dol
But the principal loss which resulted from the relative denre
I a, uah paper at different places and its gene
RAJ credit was that sustained by the community in the erea,
operations OF commercial exchange The extent these onera
tions annually may be safely estimated a, sxiv n;Ia -
dollars Upon tins loss sustained bv the merchanT
ana and farmers and manufacturers not poba-
bly, less than average per cent being The
state of
me currency and beyond the which it as been acai
by the operations of the Bank of United States
WI be thus perceived, that annual tax of six millions of
aoars was levied from the industrious productive classes
10y m iage moneyed capitalists Cities who
were engaged in the business brokerage vaov en,o
currency and nucualng of exchanges open
vice anu abundant harvest money broker and n &c
therefore, surprising that they should be opposed 10 an in
muny from the stated has deprived iLem Of
,ne enormous profits which they from specuatons in
by the community, great operations of exchange
pe losses were suffered throughout interior of the
OF te ntneous paper banks, pulled into fictitious credit bv
arnhces and having substantial of captal
!" ensure the redemption of their bills
but no adequate conception can be formed of tho evil of
currency, without looking beyond the relative de-
ele mass appears from the report Mr. Crawford the
secretary Of Treasury 1920 during the general
Oh specie payments by the local banks the years
ana 1916 The circulating medium of United States
aa reached the aggregate of and ten mil
10 ortyve millions of dollars, being reduction of y
Per cent IN the snort period of four The
inclined to the that DISTRESSING
tons OF restoring vicious currency state by the
GAZING IN OF bank paper and the curan,en DISCOUNTS
mad carried the reduction of the currency 1919 to pon,
somewhat owerthan consistent Just
of the community for circulating medium and h, ,he
discounts have gradually enlarged since ,ha. time so a,
10 satisfy those requirements will be assumed therefore
a 'e circulating medium of the United States fifty
h'e millions of dollars for the last years. taking the ave
Even upon this assumption it will fo,o,v Inn, ,
mas neen one hundred per valuable for the
would nan was m 1916 In other words, dollars
m purchase no more OF any commodity 1876 than one
noar mas been capable of purchasing any time since
II - OBVIOUS therefore, that the depreciation of the paner o
particular banks any particular time as i
specie furnishes no criterion by which ascertain Inc
pared with the value Of that currency at diiIeren, nerod
specie dollar IN 1916 would purchase no more than half as
DIis ay as paper dollar will purchase present
r. @ resulting nom redundant currency, the
Ges which have resulted from great changes in the
oalu 81 ae which have been unavoably produced by the
Il correction OF the redundancy. = -
An individual who borrowed of money in 1916 and
pa,u IN $50 evidently returned lender double the
Viue received from hin who paid debt in I82o
winch ne had contracted in 1876 evidently paid double The
quantity aud value of the currency interfere in the mos,
ana injurious manner, between debtor and creditor
ent ana OF arbitrarily contracting and expanding their
sues without any general CONTROL they exercise more dansc
Gus and despoc power property of the commn;,
an was ever exercised by the absolute In
such state of things every community holds his
property at the of money making corporations which
nave decided interest to abuse their power
ny course of liberal discounts and excessive sues for
few years. followed by sudden calling in of their debts and
continuation OF their issues they would have the power
the property OF their debtors themselves ao
without limit Debts contracted when discounts were
DeFa and the currency of course Deprecated would be col
ecte when their discounts almost suspended and the
currency OF course unnaturay appecaied and in this way
the piiy Oh the community might pass under hammer
from ghtful owners TO the banks for less one half lis
intrinsic value II the committee Id not greatly mistaken
.ne matter there IS more of history than speculation in wra
'hey nave mere presented 10 the consideration me House
s impossible to form any thing like accurate estimate
OF he injuries and losses sustained by community in
Gus ways by the disorders and fluctuations the currency
e PERIOD which lnievened between the expiration of the old
nanK chaEie and the establishment of the present bank Blu,
some toea6e notion may be formed the losses SUSTAINED
war r-' '"S WV
ne committee have gwen this part of the subject an alter
dnu Careful examination, ard they estimate tho
ecuay losses OF The Government, exclusively fol
e want oil sound currency aud efficient system of finance
al sum less than forty millions of they shall
'Ae ln apparent the House will avo something like stan
daId Tor estimating the individual the comuunv
me government borrowed, during the short period of the
var egny millions OF dollars at average discount ffecr
per cent giving certificates stock amounting to eighty mil
IONS OF dollars in exchange for sixty eight millions of dollars