Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1854-04-15
RICHMOND wHIG.
From the London Times Mach On

From the London Times, March 2s
Among the chimeras, the delusions, and the terror
mat attend the temperance Of war, it could hardly
expected that should miss that master absp,d;,v b;.
ated the finance Of the last great struggle The demo
OIL paper or deprecated currency reasserts s unus
come dominion, and when counting the hours IN,
may possibly intervene before an actual decar,,on
war; VIC are reminded by ancient prophet OF the fan,
N''' that war may be fed with promises and mus, b.
e'r'ed on ut the expense Of posterity. Mr. Spoone
hat the time Is now come when, il we are L
'' On toe war, We must be ready to take such mea.
sufes as will call out the energies and capital of the
without cramping them by limiting the circulating medium
the quantity Of metal that happens to be in the Rank
I" England Gold, in this philosophers sys.em is Nh.
quickest the most capricious and volatile of metals ~
oy no brides can il be retained in our Golfers H.
tn T.ny a"ays TO be running away The next time
ne cnahceior OF the Exchequer FIVE millions I, viii
hot be In the Bank. So how are we TO meet tne s, ~ w.
pioaehes of this dear;h? What Ia the fttcst nren,r,
WI ue uhy OF utter metallic destituton hand? "Do at
once that which Sir r. Peel seemed inclined to h ard
Hhich he evidently had in his mind-yiz let the R,nL
hoganu issue, say, 25O,OO0i of without auy ad
'Ai secu'i'y OF bullion We never carry on in
us country hrni and lasting prosperity uness
We have an amount of circulation in bank notes from
about twenty to twenty -four miliocs They who
nahk oi hngand know perfectly well how the system
snou'u DC managed This is at leas, ineligible IL has
the sanction ct t.n thousand precedents Every man who
"uus h stock OF gold falling short, and will neither make
unde
resorts to the very method described by this nancer2
ne issues promssory notes, matter whether e5L or
Too', OF sooooI or 25o,O0OL IL is all the same thing
ae ess ne mas the more he promises pay. But the
says Mr.. Spooneig ""'' '"e"'
>, fou say you wish to have loan Let the Bank of
make an advance, let them give notes represent
u goo OUT let them be required pay away that
gcd io certain time. Let the gold be locked up There
y souu DC as certain means of conversion whenever
WA. conversion should be required During the
ii.
drawing gold out of this country Let notes represent
ou Ahu We snail then have equal and steady ciFcua-
Won, hhu all VINO manage affairs will know on what
siness- se e ou
So says our paper prophet
AccOtGng 10 Mr. Spooner, the peculiar beauty of his
pau Is hat people will know what they NAV calculate
there can be no doubt that is just what people in business
wish to do and what in fact indispensable to business
Lei US suppose then that gentleman in an extensive
ouSnes and therefore with every obligation to DISCHARGE
al one date or another receives one OF these new notes
IN PAYNE Mt OF debt. lie looks at IT, and finds Il re-
ceip ior SO much gold locked up in the Bank That he
may know what arrangements make for the payment
o MS own debts he naturally looks the date at which
me paper before him will be available for this
No~, Will Mr. Spooner just tell what mystic words will
'ne aforesaid merchant find in this note and ahove
me simnle fact. that il is receip. for so mucb GOLD
that ALL and no promise is added the gold II profes
10 REPRESENT nignt just well be- ike the sailors
hette AZ the bottom of the sea, wrapt In bed of
plpecay hundred feet deep in IN Australian gully
piece OF paper may represent gold ob,ainabe ly
gong TO Lombardy-sreet, by seeding it from
lohuon 10 81. Petersburg, or from Meibourpe TO
London. 1t may represent gold obtaInable to.d,v
or o-mo'row, or three months hence or wear
hehce or hve years hence twenty years hence or t
somebody's DEATH or on other given contingency
As s9ch, It's value can be ascertained arthing II il
sshhe ahu {. plot nrppise and be discounted ac
cordngs But what value can assignee - nia,a -,
paper which makes 10 promise, which makes statement
which 1t refuses TO prove, and which, therefore,
nothing ne non dppnreHtibus et erisien6us eddea
est ratio. Who will credit the existence of these
% ma IN itG
knowledge which man always hides. wealth of which
he can never give proofy But we're il certain
that twenty millions Of gold hidden in the vaults of the
Bank guarded by jealous Parlaments and watchiu dra
CONS Of what possible would the bare representative
of it be to the man in want of the reaityS You may
have we'll file. carpet-bag but If it is Manchester
and yo .e IN brook>stree summoned to dinner Won
t ss well have nothing but what you stand in i, il
impossible that one thing represent another except
an imitation OF 1t or as security for its production In
the late war the Chinese had paper Notifications paper
guns and even paper gunners. That was representa-
i've IN one sense There occasionally be met with
te CONS assuming TO be soveregns shilnss as the
case may be, but turning close scrutiny 10 be zinc
brass some other base metal That ia sort of renre
sentative But what kind Of representative is this that
Mr. Spooner proposes? does even promise or give
you promise to come of ut the Greek kaeuds or the
hrst year OF the millennium
There Is indeed danger that shall count the cost
ot the approaching n this ialscous arithmetic We
shall start with the manly resolution to paw our way wear
by year. coin by coin, fast spend As no mort.
man can conjecture the length the breadth of that war
D0rrOWlnr
reign for the future; and there is reason why we should
not perseverc for come time come. But II the worst
comes TO :he worst we always preserve metallic cur
rency, II We only choose to pay for it, and whatever the
prec, viii be found the best economy in the end Our
funds will always have their value in the market and will
attract gold from every part OF the world gold huuld
he wanted The very of such propositions then a
that oil Mr. Spooner is to operate warning not against
an nconvcribe currency, but against plans of similar
tendency though perhaps disguised There should
be no Disguise or uncertainty in the matter for in
merce you do not pay TO day you may well not pay
at all, and Is the in the affairs Of n nation.
considerable class Of the Whig nuancicrs during the
late strongly advocated tcrminable nnnuities "a
medium between tho vast efforts that would be neces.
say tor paying ones way year by year and the system
of perpetual Annuities that actually adopted. That
plan has its own merits and ts objections but il is
ineligible and honest; IL is the form OF the debt of the
United States. But il the mote is merely signify the
deposit Of god and the date OF the repayment Is to be
iet optional contingent otherwise uncertain or in-
voIvcd ia some philosophical formula that nobody can
state than il did during the late war ~hrn there was at
least the termination Of that for the creditor look
to- That termination long in coming but IL did come
a, last, and the national honor nobly redeemed by
the return to cash payments Were such delay in the
repayment OF debts all that Mr. Spooner requires that
TO say the least would be very premature But ne asks
much more; how much he does not say, inasmuch
"a he indicates term OF repayment whatever but pro
poses that a' long find it convenient shall
nuc to put off the natonsl creditor. with the
that have the money though do choose TO pro-
duce II.