New-York daily tribune., 1857-10-01


| found in another column.
The interruption AID embarrsss ment TO which a.
kids Of mercantile business have been subjected
| by the prevailing panic, constitute far more SO
rious and vital reproacb to our business com nunty
than sny Of the overtradiug ard unwarrantable
speculation which can be ale ged against it. While
az citizens of n w-York, we are taking, and justly,
credit to ourselves for the frmDess aod endurance
with which our banks aud business men stand up
against the panic, we ought also to recOlect, and
that with deep shame and modification, tina. thi,
most disastrous panic had its origin in this city.
That it is panic, and panic alone that has thrown
things into the present confuson-that has almost
slnibilsted for the moment all stock values-that
has Iai,ed the prices of money to the most un.
heard.of rates-tbat has led to te stoppage Of spe
Gle payments by numerous banks and that has rem
dered unavailable, except at ruinous rates, bills Of
exchange, whether foreign or domestc-that all
this disorder, confusion and loss has its origin 10
panic and nothing but panic, a few considerations
will make perfectly evident. There has not been a
sirge day for six months past ormOre that precisely
the saue reasons, 30 far as values are concerned,
for the annihaton of credit have not existed that
exist now, CT did exist when the present extraordi
nary crisis began. II has been perfectly well
known all along that our imports were excessive.
1t has been perfectly We'll known that railroads
bad cost great outlay, on which the return was as
yet very scanty. 1t has been perfectly well known
that several of the great ind 1stra interests Of the
country, such az manufacturing, shipping and coal
mining were not productive. There existed, in
addition, at the commencement of the season, a
real ard very serious ground of alarm which has
since disappeared. We were left at the end of a
very long and severe Winter, with greatly dimin-
ished stocks of all kinds of agricultural produce
and the cold, wet, backward season for long time
held out very poor encouragement for crops. If
upon the strength Of that state of things an alarm
had been taken, there would have been 80 ne sense
in it. But that state Of things passed away, and
the panic was deferred till the Guntry was already
secure of the largest crops iu the way Of food that
have ever been gathered.
That there existed abundant reason for curtail.
ment and reduction Of business, that portion Of
our business men were insolyent, We do not deny
We have, from time to time, uttered in these col
umns notes of warning on that subject But there
has been no day for the last six months that there
has not existed just as much reason for reduction
and punishment as at this moment Nor had any
thing occurred which could in the least justify the
perfect frenzy of alarm int which, first this CITY,
and coon after the whole country has been thrown.
The Michigan Southern Railroad stopped payment
on floating debt Of million or two OF dollars
and the Ohio Life and Trust Company, having ad-
vanced largely on the securities of that road aud
never, as it would seem, having had any real cap
tal employed here in New York was also obliged to
STOP But surely the business and credit system Of
this country does not stand on such fail fOunda
ton that two or three failures in ,olving amount
Of few millions, can afford any rational ground
for discreditiDg every stock, and calling in
question the solvency Of the entire commercial
body. And il is remarkable thing that this
panic, by which the business Of the country
has been so disastrousy interrupted, did not
originate in what may be called the regu-
lar course of commercial business. The
regular course of commercial business afforded no
occasion for it. There was no sudden nor unusual
call from abroad to pay up debts, and it is re-
marksbe fact that contrary to the course of
things when the crisis has been less panic than
real CT mmercal revulsion, in the sane proportion
that the terror has spread, remittance abroad has
stopped. There was 70 failure Of remittances
from the country, no dlsinclnation to purchase,
and general fall of prices, which are almost the
inevitable premOnition Of commercial catastrophe
based on actual losses Of capital. The present
panic had its origin solely and exclusively with
that nest Of gamblers, the Brokers' Board. It
went on for some days in that locality without at
tracing much attention from the merchants. 1t
was only when the stock gamblers seized with
fright, had frightened the BANKERS into refusing
loans upon pledges Of stock, that the panic
began to spread, till in short tune it
reached an intensity hardly ever known before
The Stock Board where the fright originated
sppears to remain in panic stricAea condition
n ever. But whatever may be the case with
stoehs, the merchants Of this city have given in the
last four weeks pretty strong evidence of not being
entirely worthless. Whatever creakers and panic.
makers may say to the contrary, the experience Of
the last four weeks affords ground to conclude that
there is pretty large proportion of solvent per.
sons in this community. With the ascertainmeut
Of that fact il would seem ts be time for something
Ike commencement of the reestabEshment of q
moderate degree Of confidence on the part of the
money lenders toward the merchants.