New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1848-11-17
Money and Business.


We do not perceive any material change Ia ile
value quantity Of money bat there is evidently
a lessening demand, which, If 1t continues will
soon reduce the price to legal interest Prime
business paper can be negotiated at l2 per cent.
The Fall trade so far az our observation ex
tends. has been small, though the sales have been
to say the least-equa TO the means of payment
Indeed there is general complaint that country
traders do not pay up well, and when this Is the
case il is best for all concerned that they should
carry home small stocks different course would
result ia failures all round. One great difficulty
in our business is that the consumers are oicoys
ahead of Mep means that Is to say, always IN
debt and when the price of labor IA Is, they are
unable 10 20 ON consuming at the same ratio aud
to pay up their debts too. just at this point We
are now labor has fallen in value all over the
country, perhaps tw enty five per cent and by the
amount OF that fall is the ability TO consume less
cned Tor the consuming power OF nation Is gov
erned by the value OF its labor or, If II IS pushed
beyond that, it Is SO pressed with the expectation
that labor will rise in value and be able to pay for
what It buys on credit, beyond its usual llne Of
credit, generally very delusive idea.
The result OF the recent election will have a
beneficial effect upon business affairs generally,
because thers is a strong feeling that the down
ward tendency OF things will be arrested by a
change OF policy, so soon as the new Congress
meets and men will be content TO struggle on,
with that change in view, who would have given
in despair, under the certainty that the pre-
sent easures OF Government were to remain Tx
ed for another four years. Indeed, there is reason
TO hope that the present Congress may interfere
inthe matter and do something TO relieve the coun-
try from the odius, useless, and oppressive Sub
Treasury scheme and from the gross frauds, at
least, which are daily prscticed under an al yslo-
rem Tariff
How men of ordinary intelligence could ever
have made an al yalorem tariff with any other ex-
pectation than they were holding out inducements
for honest men to turn knaves or else leave trade
in the hands of knaves already made, passes our
comprehension. A case OF fraud has recently been
brought to our notice which illustrates our mean
ing and saves explanation house Ia this city
purchased a large quantity of Shawls, In Glasgow.
and entered part here and part OF them in New
York. They cost 81 o., and paid duty OF 80 =.
Thirty days after, New York house imported a
lot OF the same goods, and entered them At a cost
OF 81 SO, paying duty OF 81 IA difference OF
"a cents, or ELEVEN FIR CENT. on the cOst-amount-
ing, In fact, to what importers, generally, would
consider quite sufficient profit. Now II is Giles
that one party paid too much duty or the other did
not pay enough bat, all the satisfaction our Bos-
ton merchant could obtain on presenting ms case
at the New-York Custom. House, was, that q,
paid too much for his Shsws. and must suffer the
consequence answer with which he would
have been content. II he had not been entirely
satisfied that no other purchaser could have 90
tanned them ON better terms than he did This :
but one instnncc aud II 1t only Tor the moral
effect OF the thing. tariff should not be allowed 90
exist by the Government, which holds cut such
inducements 20 knavery, as every business man
can readily see are held out by this al vslorem
system
BY the late English papers, We notice numerous
arrivsls of bresdstutis at Liverpool snd London
nom the continent aud the Indications are strong
that but a small portion Of our surplus will be
wanted IN Great Britain. Cotton had again fallen
IN Nsae-low as were previous prices-snd pres
ent appearances warrant the oonclason which We
ventured 10 draw some months since that our az
sregate exports for the year will be very small.
a compared with last year and the year before