Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1837-01-19

io.. a,.,l .,;a IN yra Currency, partly coin ":1
pagt. bans NEWS, r uol,s n"i *sI'd ~ rA'tH'i "'
awa,s c'ivcfui" into specie Al tif WIZ u vi,
is ia the pr,sc.t o! society the best Pactca eu
rercy-aways remembering however, that Oils ol eA
change perform great part OF the du'y I'll currency anu
therefore, tina, the stale Of domestic exchanges is al
ways OF high Importance, anu great acluaI pct
iur on commercial business.
| admit that il currency par composed OF bank notes
has always Liability. and often Tendency, TO excess,
an, that requires The constant CAFE ana oversight I"
Government. $1,000 ,
am Of opinion even that the conyer.ibIity o. baak
notes into gold aGA silver although It be necessary
guard is not absolute security, against occas"'a' ca
OF paper issues. ,
behrvs. even, Iha, the cunning Of discounts 10 such
notes ad bills as represent zeal transactions q" Puicaa>e
and sale, real business paper. US II Is called '"s
gruerailv sufficient sheck Is not always 81; because
ueirV, that tarre srIuetiInes :uch lnns Us o'' N
ding. or over producrm. .
What Il ~ it viii bc asked, is sufficient check:
can only repeat what have before saId That IL 10 SUI
ec which rrqarcs The constant care. watchIuihesS Iu
suprrintcndrlrc o! Government. But our misfortune
Il. tina, we have withdrawn ali and all supcrntend
from the Whole subJcrt. We have surrrnueieu
,ic whole eigtand twenty States and lriF,
ioI:s Wh the power Of c'langc, una lie pN"tr anu
duty Of regulating coaIEIcTcr bun external ana ihcr'
mai lnis Government has little control over the
mass money which cIrculates III The country, IMAM
| foreign Government Upon The expiration OF The CHAR
ter ol the Bank II the United States new banSs were
crcaed by tie States sixty ghly millions OF DahR'
ing caailQ Ia been added ~ the mass, since c3S
All THIS easy /" Iurcsee-it was all ioreseen ana
| all iureu!d The wander only 49, tsat The evil has mol
already become greater than 1t l.; and 1t wcu!d nave
ben greater, and should have had such an excess as
would pc maps have appreciated the currency, had It not
for he extraordinary prosperity ut the c"untry-
No vciy great eXcrss, believe, has yet IN Tact hap
pcned, g" rather no vrr? great excess does now exist
| lIrrc are sufficient evidences, think, Of tAis
In The iirs place, tile amount Of specie IN the county
is Tar greater than ever known before, and IL mol
e%p"rTd Ia te ."xt place, us all The OanKs, as yt
their credit, and all pay specie IN denuhd INC
whole circulation is in effect equivalent To specie Cur
cu!aor; and the stale Ui the lureln exchanges SHOWS
that tie value of money, in the mass, Is not drpre
ca;cG Sce it may be transferred without any loss INTO
the currency Of other countries Our money therefore,
is as gaod Us tie money OF other countries. Ii It had
fallen below the value Of money abroad. the rates at eX-
charge would Instantly SHOW that TACT There has Oten
therefore, yet least there exists n present no coll"
Lrrab!r depreciation o. money H. then, il he asked what
keeps up the value 81 money, this vast aud s;di"n ex-
pnn>nm nUd increase If II, have already given lie a-
w!!tch appears 10 be tie true It's kept
up equally vast End sudd Il Increase in the property
IL . cou:try. aud IN the value Of that property, n
r!Sc we'll as marketable. None o! us. think, have
estimated his Increase high cnVugh and for that reason
nave al! been looking iur earlier fail in prices. 1t
"tN iOus IL :mc, HAT augmentation ~ the value
Of properly, exceeding all nrnrr experience in any
county, even our own. has taken place in the United
States within ;!c last few years The public lands may
furnish instance OF Ibis rapid increase. 1t rs
mated last SESSION. by NV honorable friend from Ohio.
DIR. EWIng) That The drGaud$ Of actual settlers for
lands lur slt!c eight millions of acres per an.
an average Of Years. These eight millions.
if taken up at Government prices. ut private entry,
would cost Ten millions Of dollars. Now. partly By
cultivation tu, more by the continued rush If rngra
ton. both from Europe and the Atlantic coast, the value
OF these ten millions in very few years springs up
forty mII'nns that is To say, lands taken up nj dol
lar and quarter an soon bgcOme worth five dol.
las for actual cultivation. and in intrinsic val,c
And il is 10 b. remembered, that these lands a.e ucna.
bic, and sileabs, with as little Of form and ceremony,
almost, ms it they were g"ods and chaels. Sow, if We
make an strh!e, M. merely Oh the eight millions of
required ihr uctual settlement, but on The whole
any sci, c;cd and taken up annually, we shall see
'!nrihing % hc addition L" the whole amount uf pro-
p'tty which acciurs annually from the public lands 4
rise Ia, taken place. loo, though less striking in the
rauc Of other lands in The country; and prcpertv in
gnds. merchandise. pr"duc,s and other forms. rapid
Iy augmented. also. both in quantity and value BY the
industry and skill! Of the people. and the extension and
most success: i'll use of machinery.
anGlhrr most important element III the general eSti.
mate Of The progress IF wealth in the country it, the
wonderful annual increase of the cotton crops and the
prices which the article bears Last years crop reached
probably, 10 eighty millions of dollars. Now most Of
the cotton r.oLucrd in the United States is sold once
at least. IN the country. and much Of il many times
The bill drawn against il when shipped, either for Eu
rope Or the Atlantic ports usually casled at The
place at drawing. commonly, doubt, BY means Of
bank notes. or bank credits.
put all these but instances showing the in.
eaSrd value of property and amount Of business i'm the
Country, and accounting therefore for an expansion Of the
circulation. without surprising great excess since it
obvons that the circulating money Of country na,u.
rally bears proportion 10 the whole of property
and To the number and amount Of business trasac
Bat there another Of 4 less favorable charac.
ter, which may have had its eff ct already; or not
very likely Ia have it hereafter in ougnrnug the cir
cu!a"n ct bank notes: mean the obstruction and
barrassent vi the domestic exchanges In proper and
natural stale Of affairs the place of currency or money
filed 10 great extent by bills Of exchange and this
continues 10 be the Case long the rates Of exchange
remain low and steady Nnbody for example, will send
bank notes specie from New York tn New Orleans
ii he can buy good bill al par. or par. But whrn
exchange becomes disturbed when rates rise and Hue
tnaie bills TO be able ~ perform this function and
then bank notes begin I" be sent about from place 10
place. in quantities, 10 supply the place of bills OF
change. III payment I'll dctts aud balances All such,
aud all other, arrangements and distractions in the free
OF dnslic exchanges, necessarily produce al
unnatural ard Considerable increase Of the circuu.ion-
So far circulation has been, may he augment
by tins cause, far both the a!d The effect are
10 be dep"rr d. In my "pn:on have certainly rru.
TO lear this excess hereafter hat is pre"rnt il?
Is ii possible that many State banks far apart so
unknn;rn 10 each other, with Common Objects. u
cGm"n principles al discount. und general rrrula.
ton whatever, should act much in concert and upon
sys;rn 20 maintain the currency Of The country sisa-
dy, wh"ut either nn"s expansion Or unnecessary con
traction believe IL Is not possible. believe many OF
llpse who insist much hard money circulation be.
lirrc this us and HAT l!ry press their impruclcahI"
hard money notions "!l consciousness that the dis.
continuance 81 national institution has BROUGHT the
country into condition in which it is Threatened Will.
issues u irrcdrrulab!c paper.
Our present evil. however, is Of different kind Il
is indeed, sHi!cw at uovr and anomrlous With high
gr:!cra! presently, good crops generally speaking in
uhundance of the precious mrtais, and favorable state
OF iuel exchanges, in"n OF business have Yet felt for
months u:pn ccdrmird scarcity Of money. That
Is the state OF things; It's caus" in my opinion express
cd ii: few wrds ii is Mc Enlargement Fl initraai IN.
terc1GrSc. and inf,r"m r1ChG"yc Oar difficulty is no,
exhaustion, but abstraction Every body Ius means
enough. bat n"GUdy USE his means. All the usual
channrs OF commercial dealing are blocked up The
ui. r I'll lie North cannot obtain from The South
the proceeds Of tie sns U! their articles the South finds
noney scarce too in The m!tst Of lis abundant exports