Columbus Democrat. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 18??-18??, 1840-10-03

not this stle ct things degrade ,hc morals Of 20
cieiy by exciting the worst passions N The breast,
of nun Has mol The farlI,iy Of obtaining money
from banks been the means oi brgsaung thousand.
Who would Otherwise have been wealthy aud use.
fol member. Of sooietyi And has not the loss
uccasIonsd by the depreciation of bank notes fll.
en- upon the productive classes aud not on the
bankers Of the State These ats facts that aunot
be denied Tor they are within the knlwled1c Of
every ci,izrn that has resided IA tire State for the
last SIX years.
A deprecated currency il one Of the greatest
evils tina, can be inflicted IN any people. II opcr.
ales with peculiar hardship on the Planters Of the
cotton growing States. The price Of the great
staple which Is produced by their capital and in
duslry Is fixed by the foreign demand and supply
aud is Of course measured by the specie standard
Of Europe. Every article they have To purchase
which goes into the cost Of the production Of cot.
ton, has 10 be paid for at the deprecated paper
money price, while they are obliged u sell their
products by the specie standard Of the county to
which il is shipped Thus the depreciation Of tde
currency and the consequent high pnces that pa.
per mouey induces IS to the cotton planter an me.
| tleyahlr loss. Ihr interests of the whole nation,
but particularly the cotton growing States require,
nay lmpeuousy demand sound circulating me-
dun. Past experience proves that banks have
ever been the means IN this country OF diving
| specie from the ordinary channels OF circulation
| by the issuance Of small notes. Nothing N pollt-
cal economy il better established than that spe-
| cle currency aud paper currency VAL never en-
culate togeher go satisfied have they become ~
| France Of this fact lat one hundred dollars l. the
smallest bank note allowed 10 be issued. Eng.
land s following her example and has raised her
smallest denomination OF bank notes irom live to
| twentyiy dollars, and she Is still gradually
ascending the scale to tie point fixed by France.
| Such n thing AZ bank note Is never seen m the
ordinary channels Of trade IN France aud mrcy
il England. Mr. Jederson's views on this sub.
iecl are 60 clear aud lorcble as to cary couylc
lion to every mind. We submit the following
extract from his letter of Oath of June, 1918, Ia
John W. Eppes, on the subject under consldera.
ton
Awe are an agricultural nation. Such an Que
employs ITS spnrrngs IN the purchase or Improve.
n,enl Of land or stocks. The lendablo monsy
among them is chiefly that OF orphans and wards
in the hands OF executors and guardians, and that
which the farmer lays by tIl lie has enough tor
the purchase in view. In such nation there is
one and one only resource for loans, sufficient ID
carry them through the expense Of wal; and
that will always be sufficient, and III the power o.
an honest government, punctual in lie preSerya
ton Of ts faith. The fund mean, is the mas,
Of circulating coin. Every one knows, that, al
though not literally, II is neatly lue, that ever,
pupcr dollar emitted banshes Il SILVER one from
| H. "A. 4 l.
purchases and payments with bulls fitted for cir.
culatlon, lhrusts an equal sum Of coin out Of CIR
cuIaIIon. his Is equivalent 10 borrowing thai
sum, and yet the vendor, receiving payment IN d
medium IA eleclunl us coin for hts purchases OF
payments, has no claim to interest. Aud so til,
natIon may continue TO issue It's bills as ia, as it,
wants require ard The limits of The circulation vii
admit. Those llms are understood to exenC
with us, at present, to two hundred millions o
dollars. a greater sum than would be necessar,
lor any war. But this, the only resource whtcl
the government could command with certainty
the States have unfortunately fooled away, ma
cortupuy ahenaed to swlnders and shavers, un
der the cover Of private banks. Say, too, rs al
additional evil, that the dsposable funds of ind
vlduals, TO tins great amount, have thus been with
drawn from improvement and useful enterprise
ard employed IN The useless, usurous, aud demon
al2Ing practices Of bank directors and their oc
comphces,"
Ii conceded by political ccor omisls that tn
true value OF permanent property depends on III
| annual interest which that property yields. Tn
value OF unproductve property, therefore, came
| I've correctly Osterlnued. 1t is conceded asc
hai the value Of property is influenced TO grct
extent by the quantity Of The circulating medml
} in country, as when that medium is abundar
the rate OF interest becomes low, and when 1t
scarce the converse Of the proposition follows
| course lfthis circulating medium has an inirlr
SIC value, the price OF property so regulated
stable; but II that medium is not what it professe
, 10 be ON It's face, then the value Of property
, fictitious and is subject to continual iluciuauor
~ ptice. The best interests Of every communal
thctttoiS demand that lis currency should be kei
sound, rs by this means the prlce of propeIi
would never llucluaie much above or below i
/ real value. Should The proposition be direct
! made thal oar Legislature be empowered to Il
the value, by law, OF all property real and petso
, al, It would De spurned by The people as an inv
> SION of their rights and liberties vet we fad Ii,
our legislators have actually done THIS Indirect
? which they dare not avow openly They La,
c created a host Of "moa'y changers" under II
E protection Of bank chuuers, aud have grant,
e them the special prtriirge' OF expanding
; pleasure the circulating medium Of the State
y thee lines the actual money in their possesslo
r thereby emp werng them to regulate the value
t all property as their oupduy might direct! Tn
/. they have this power and have exercised II too,
y proved by the nominal value Of property in Ii
$ State having kept pace with the quantity of not
+ thrown into circulation by the banks. ltone cha
II Of men were allowed the privilege to shorten
u lengthen the yardslick; increase or diminish d
!. bushei measure; add to or take from the standa
/, weights OF the country as they thought prupe
q the community would see AT once the adyanta
these men would have over the mass Of the peop