The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-10-17
From the Nsv York Morning News.
THE GOLD HUMBUG.

A few years since, when, amid tho evils OF q most
ruinous abundance Of paper money and an unpatu.
raj scarcity of coin, the democratic party pcrss.ed
multifarious promises Of corporate spectators, and
encouraging the increase Of the national coinage
the whole commercial world rang with opprobrious
cpithets bestowed upon the great leaders Of the pco
pie, for their alleged folly IN suPpcsing that specie
carried in the face Of the strongest opposition
object being to encourage the import, and TO retain
a necessary quantity, Of gold in the country. No
measure was ever moro persevcringly reviled than
the measure Of Col. Benton to establish branch
mints TO give the imported gold an American form,
in which il could circulate freely and familiarity
among the people. Those measures have served to
assist in more than doubling the quantity Of nation
al coin in circulation, and the quantity Of specie in
the country has become as large as is necessary.
Now, however, the opponents Of specie currency
have changed their note and nothing bat specie will
suit them. The 'Naiional IntelligencerS Of late
date spoke az follows: - al5
at is quito clear, we think, that The safest and
most solid business for us would be to make our ex-
ports exceed our imports; because the balance what
ever it may be, will come TO In coin: that ID to
say, If, in l646, we export ono hundred and fifty
millions, and import only one hundred millions, the
balance Of fry millions due vs. By The residue Of the
rord iu be received IN The HARD schieh should be a,
,0ecome 10 tie iocQfocos The whgs But If the party
in power disturb the tariff the reverse will be the
case, and the consequence may be another CONNER
cial and financial rovulsion, perhaps disastrous
that Of lsS7-which may Heaven forefendl"
This 10 enphatically ''gold humbug." Why,
this tegeweey, that for years reiterated the stupid
assertion that there sis not specie enough in the
world TO transact its business now talks coolly Of
importing $4,000 900 per annum. In such state
OF commerce, supposing il possible for II to continue
on such basis, how cheap would money become in
the course of few yearsl and how high level OF
prices would represent that cheap money!
AT late date, the Bank of England had on hand
$4,000, 000-making $l25, 900 900, which would
supply two years and half of the hntsitigencer's
sound trade. After long import of the precious
METALS il cannot be eaten drunk, would il not
get SO cheap to be exported at profit ESQ, the
''sound business" would be liable to become de-
ranged without any disturbance of the tariff. From
an extreme Of paper, the bank party have gone to
an extreme of specie, and always leaving room to
Regulate" Now, the great principle Of the demo-
cratic regulation" was simply to afix to the
precious metals legal value, and as nearly as pos
sible that which they had obtained abroad, in order
that nothing might interfere with their free influx
and eflux. Having done that, it became very
apparent that they would always flow to the
point where their value was the greatest II they
become scarce in the United States, they win come
here in spite of all the regulations of combined E-
rope II, after continued import, they become
cheaper hero than in Europe in consequence of their
accumulation here, and depletion there, they will 60
there in the face of all the tariffs that be manu-
featured. The only way TO retain any considerable
quantities here is to give them value by increasing
the demand for them That is, to make them alone
receivable for State and federal revenues. They will
then not leave the country until that demand more
than fully satisfied. The whig system is to make
them stay in bank vaults by virtue of parchment
laws az