The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1848-11-06

and which the public treasury is to guarantee for
forty cents, hard money; and also, the further
emission oil 10000 bills OF the nominal value OF
two dollars each, and guaranteed In like manner
and rates. The whole OF both which emissions
are to be ready for issuing, at latest, by the first Of
January, 1919. He also further directed to have
prepared an additional quantity OF 900 bills OF
the denominations of one and two dollars, to be
laid by In reserve in The treasury department. to be
used Tor the purpose of expanding the monetary
circulation as soon the condition of mercantile
affairs, and the state of the country, call forit.
To hasten the withdrawal of the present Issue
from circulation as soon as the sum OF $1,000, in
coin is imported, as before provided, dues accIu-
ing TO the treasury shall commence 10 be paid,
half in the new. small coin and half IN the present
currency: the latter at the rate of ten doll lrs to
one, while the old paper thus called in Is to be
cancelled In due form: And the act goes on to
de clare that portion of this CON- which will
thus find Its way into the treasury, may from time
to time be appropriated, in sums not exceeding
five thous and dollars at any one time, to the pur
chase OF old silver at the rate before designated,
proceeding to many specific detalls-of no par
tlcular interest to my present purpose-the act
finally empowers the President to raise, by loan,
foreign or domestic, on credit or by mortgage OF
to $50 600 dollars, to be, appropriated, when OBJ
tanned, 10 the withdrawal and cancellation of the
same amount OF the present circulation.
1t will be observed that the foregoing act fixes
the value of the old emission, to be allowed at the
treasury at ten for one which is In fact the rate
at which it has all along been received for the
custom-house dues that were payable in that cur
Iency; while, as has been before seen, the market
value OF the same currency has been only fifteen
for one, with a downward tendency. Now how
ever plausible the charge may at first appear, that
the government, by receiving their own paper only
at great discount of from It's ostensible value,
though 1t be still less one than Is ex acted In
the market, lepudlates a large portion OF her debt
in his n m he rpm cd thar
tins issue did circulate at par from the be-
ginning and much If not most of 1t, went into
circulation with no higher intrinsic value attached
to il than its authors now allow for 1t on its re-
turn For any slight practical reputation there
Smay be in It, there are still, in extenuatlon, the
,iigating circumstances OF overriding necessity,
= nd the high examples of greater and far more
wealthy nations.
AS to the question of what will be practically
effected under this scheme, that is quite another
affair; and | confess myself unable to discover
what is at last to guaranty the new paper circu-
ltlng medium that is to be issued at ket value,
at the rate per nominal dollar prescribed by the
actin other words, to it from the fate of
the old emission. With a nearly empty treasury,
and with governmental expenditures that each
year more than consume the annual revenue, what
can save it from rapid depreclaton-,f not
NOMINAL at least actua in the shape of enhanced
prices of all commodi les OF consumption No
great results can, | fear, be anticipated from the
colnlng-In o;her words, sale OF the old silver to
be found here. The Haylens made too clean
swee p for that, when they got possession. And as
to the authorized loan, still less is to be feared,
can be hoped for or realized from that. No;
evade the issue asithey maylvainly attemnt to do
beat about and try to shun the real rock of diff
cuty as long and perseverlngly as they please
still this government must at last, adopt TIL only
efiectual means OF removing it They will be
broken IN pieces upon it. An efficient and extern
sive system of agricultural improvements must be
instituted, and its growth fostered, as the only
sure basis for monetary and every other. kind OF
stability and prosperity pertaining to the state
and this can only be effected, Is, in effect, ad-
United by almost everybody, by foreign immgra-
ton. All ! but the danger of the overthrow of
our state relieion-the subversion seIzure into
their hands of the government by a horde of
foreign adventures I'VE are afraid of them
And 80 the only remedy for great evil, or train
of evils, Is Stunned, and mere airy schemes,
based on nothing but gossamer tissue of fnan-
cisl devices, are elaborated with careful lnge.
nulty and patient toll, to end in nothing.
The hard money alluded to IN the beginning of
the above act, and on which all the Legislative de-
alterations had been based. the sum OF IS, 900
dollars, reserved in the chest of the department
Tor this purpose, which surplus had occurred not
withstanding the fact of the government expendi-
tures surprising in amount its revenues by the
disbursements being mostly made in the paper
currency, while considerable portion of the gold
of several years accrual from import duties has
been retained in the treasury.
Some unfavOrable rumors having got abroad
the Congress, on completing their labor of devil
sing and drafting the new monetary system, ap-
pointed committee to proceed and examine the
condition Of the strong chest; when 10 +! large
deficit was discovered. The city was soon all In
an uproar Every body accused the minister of
having converted the funds to his private purposes
and some went so far as to implicate the Presi-
dent himself in their suspicious. The lower
house demanded account of the minister;
which, on the refusal OF that officer to submit,
any farther than to declare that 1t had been appro
prated to the Legitimate purposes of the govern
ment, that body proceeded to lmpeach him. The
UPPER house, however. on examining into the case,
refused to ratfy the measure, as was ssary to
render 1t efte ctual as an impeachment. and so 1t
fell through. The President, who had been alb
sent from the city for long while, account of
his health, returned highly ncensed at the pro-
ceedng of the House, and threatened to Danish
certain members who had been most active in
the measure But the affair was finally compro.
missed bv the House receding from the ground
they had taken, and acknowledging they. had
acted with precipitation. Another ground of irri'
tation was also embraced In this rather singular
compromise, I" making up" Some OF the
same active and bold members had somewhat
warmly discussed the propriety of defining and
limiting the, in some respects dctatoral power
conferred on the President by the article of he'con
sttution herein before noticed They maintained
that the executive had, on several occasions, in
practice gwen a somewhat lautud marian consruc
ton to its provisions, which, they commended,
were intended to apply tor certain purposes only,
TO particular times and emergencies. And so
ended at least for the present, this serious msun-
Outstanding between the two branches OF the
government, and which, for some days, threaten
ed the most disastrous consequences. During
this period the public excitement was intense.
Neatly all business was suspended by day, while
the streets and places of public resort were de-
serted by night Rumors of plots and conspira.
cies for putting the obnoxious functlonares out OF
the way, and substituting others in their stead,
were constantly rife, AID everything seemed ripe
for intestine commotion and revolution. A por-
ton of the residents were apprehenslve, and, 7
think, not without some good reason, that, In
such a case, scenes similar to those which have,
of late, been enacted at the Hayden end OF the
island, would be reproduced here, or, quite as
likely, the far more appalling tragedies so ire
quenily enacted in that portion OF the island near
the close of the last century.
But the tempest, which at one time seemed to De