The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1856-07-31
THE PACIFIC
Commercial Advertiser.


WIEN the announcement was first made by the
Government Of it's desire to borrow money for the use
Of the public treasury, offering to iSue therefor " Ex-
chequer Bills of $500 and 81 900 each, the notice
was looked upon almost as a hoax, and the general
impression was that those having the charge of the
treasury department either had very little desire 20
obtain money for the government within the limits Of
the Kingdom, or were Ignorant Of the manner in
which they should 60 TO work TO procure it. y few,
unaecustomed to handling large piles Of gold or ear
rying In their pockets evidences of SO much spare
change, and being moreover fan imaginative turn
Of mind, dreamed that our poor little Kingdom, by
some secret polishing of the Aladdin treasury lamp,
had suddenly been transferred into the heart of Cali
fornia or England, and had become the seat ofmthe
Rothchlds and Earrings, and henceforth h*sht thou
sand dollar bills, promising to pay so-and-so, were to
be had at the beck-s% something that one might roll
up and tuck away In the inner apartment Of his port
monnae, or in some corner Of his chest, and feel safe.
But q second thought was taken by the Minister. and
the plan, so far as made public, modified to suit the
latitude and longitude Of Honolulu, by allowing sums
of $50 and 800 and upwards to be received. The
dream was broken, and they find themselves and the
Kingdom still fast in the middle Of the Pacific.
The fifty thousand dollars advertised for, we pre-
sumo to be part ofthe one hundred and fifty thousand
dollar loan authorized by the Legislature Of 1855, TO
be made for the support of the military, and to repel,
perhaps the formidable f~llibuster expeditions fore
shadowed in the reports Of the Secretary at War.
Che balance of the loan, or 100000, the Minister Of
the Treasury, Mr.. Allen, is fully authorized to nego-
tate at New York or London.
We &. no doubt that there are more than fifty
thousand dollars continually laying idle in this city
alone, which could readily he brongi into eircnla-
f7op u-a,.n aDv Diau dnviSp1 nv tka gaxerDpopDf ~
others that would satisfy the holders of the funds
that the certificates which they would receive in lieu
Of their money, would be worth the same as gold, and
cause them no loss for no man would think of plac-
ing a thousand dollars in the treasury Office and TAX
ing for his deposits d certificate or :. exchequer bill, y
which, when he may be pressed fer the money, must
be sacrificed Tor $500 or $3.50. The first care of the
Minister of Finance should be that the bills which he
issues, if bearing interest, are such as will maintain
a par value and in order to do this we think two
things at IeastKin be found necessary.
First, some rate of interest should be fixed on, and
all the bills issued should bear. that rate If the bills
ere issued in the manner advertised for, payable only
in two years from date, some at 8, 10, or y, per cent.
interest per annum, does the Minister or any one else
suppose that they viii all have the same value in the
market Not at all. Some certificates, and perhaps
all of them, if not r%edeemable under two years,
would be at a discount and this depreciation, so
far as concerns the native portion Of the COM
munity interested, would defeat the object intended,
for it is not to be expected that they would understand
why one pieeeof paper, promising the payment of ffty
dollars by the government, should be worth any less
than another piece, promising to pay the same amount,
but bearing q higher rate of interest and finding a
difference in the value Of them, they would reject the
! whole as worthless, as is the case wiz dimes, and
again bury their silver under their zsouses as they do
now.
Do the government expect that the merchants or
others are going to bid for a rate of interest, in a
market where money is,at times so hard to obtain
1t may be able to procure the funds by this mode
which is sometimes adopted il. markets where money is
abundant, but we are very doubtful of it. There are
industrious natives and foreigners who have some
times by them from one hundred to five hundred
dollars, which they would be glad to inyest at q fail
rate of interest but they viii never be induced t.
enter into a competition for the lowest rate to be al
lowed for their deposits, because. II unsuccessful il
their bid, they are unwilling to have it known thai
they possess such an amount.
But perhaps a more important feature necessary t.
maintain the par value of the certificates issued viii
be to make them r~edeemable at any time for pay.
ments at the customs, or for licenses or debts due tt
the government. This would make them always ne
gotiable and popular with the trading community
In place of any such bills returned to the treasury
new bills could be issued, if funds were still wanted
by the government.
What is now, and haslong been needed here, is some
safe place of deposit, where anybody, whether a ma
tive, resident foreigner or stranger, visiting the King
dom for a few months, can place what spare funds ht
possesses and feel that the certificate which he receives
is worth its par value in gold at any time in the mar.
ket, so that he may not be obliged to dispose of it a
o discount when the money is wanted. The govern
ment is the proper party to carry thisplan into effect
for the public has the fullest confidence In it., ans
viii continue to have unless by the il-advised act'
or Encouragement Of the treasurer, its finances