The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1857-09-14


estate, rents and commodities of all kinds to their
true values, for this is exactly what toey want
Revulsions In Trade-ls3y Compared with
1857.
We print to day series Of extracts from the
files of the HERALD, published twenty. one years
ago, which exhibit faithful picture of the condi-
ton Of the monetary and financial affairs i'm
MI diately preceding the great revulsioo OF 1887.
At that time we foresaw clearly the crisis that
was coming upon the community, like thief in
the night and we warned the public day after
day, and week after week, to be upon its guard,
and to prepare for the coming Storm Not only
were our admonitions UNDECIDED but we were
abused without stint and beyond all measure
The lazy speculators whose interest it was to
keep up prices of stocks and provisions 80 that
they might draw the life-blood from the honest
aboring classes Of the community, howled at US
Ike wolves disturbed in their lair Toe si-
pendiary press of the stockholders took up the
cry, and day after day they made Wall street
hdeous with their clamor. The hounds of justice
were set upon us, and no effort was left untfied
to hunt us down even to prison
Shortly after we had the unhe.rd Of audacity
to give daily report of the money market and
transactions in Wall street, which &C that time no
Journal thought of giving, we commenced the
publication OF list of failures, as we fouad them
reported on Change and among the mercantile
community. We supposed that in so doing we
were performing q service to the commercial
public, and we knew that we were doing =
favor to all honest men; for, by giving publicity
to the names of those who became bankrupt, we
put the public on it's guard against dishonesty
and rascality, and prevented tier getting new
credits aud cheating new set of creditors. But
they bought up the poverty. strickeo presses of
that day, and succeeded in seducing many honest
men to believe that in exposing the ra.cals we
were ipjuring the real business men of the city,
in precisely the same manner that the Liverpool
press is now persuading that community that the
London Times is injuring the trade of Liverpool
by exposing the fraud and forgery that comes to
light there. 1t was supposed to be the duty of
every man to hunt us down, aud circumstance
soon occurred of which they gladly availed them
selves In publishing our list of failures we ac-
cidentally misprinted name. Though the error
was amply corrected the next day, and every
suitable reparation made by US in our columns,
a criminal suit was brought against us. and every
effort was made to send us to Blackwells leland.
But we have assiduously continued our daily
and nightly labors as an honest editor since that
time; and thanks to our exertions and our integ-
rity Of purpose, q new generation OF merchants
has grown up around us in New York, with other
ideas of commercial integrity and commercial
honesty. To-day q religious newspaper makes
feature of its weekly list of failures. and every
merchant knows that in giving it information of
new bankrupts he is doing his fellow merchants
good service. II similar mistake occu S in the
list, as happened in recent instance, instead of
institutipg criminal suits and endeavoring to
thrust the editor into prison, as was done with
us, the parties concerned merely call upon him
and some of the leading journals and request
correction of the error. This speaks well for the
present race of New York merch ants. and it is
this regard for integrity and determination 10 ex-
pose fraud or dishonesty that gives them their
true hold upon the trade of the country. aud
con, titutes one Of the living fountains of the
prosperity of our city.
The series of extracts from the history of the
past, which we publish to day, will be read with
profit by hundreds Of thousands all over the
country. They will be struck with the similarity
that exists between the state Of affairs imme-
diately previous to the great commercial revul. |
sion Of 1887 and that which exists now. The |
same wild imitation and vaeillation in fancy |
stocks; the same spirit Of speculation in some of
the great staples Of trade; the same mania for |
operation In Western lands; the same paralysatiou
Of our shipping interest; the same exorbitant |
prices Of food and the necessaries Of ife and the
same gradual tightening of the money market |
Only one element is wanting to make the pic |
ture complete, and that is the same ignorant |
tampering by the government with monetary |
affairs. Happily, the absence of this element |
and the great influx Of gold from California and |
Australia, deprives the coming revulsisn Of the |
most terrible feature that characterized that OF
1887; but the revusion Is not the less certain TO
come, though we may hope that it will not leave
the same wide spread desolation.
Fancy stocks that are mere tools for specula- |
tive gamblers must disappear, and the worthless
railroads, canals, coal companies and banks
Of the present day must take their
place alongside of the dead United States
Bank, Utica. Mohawk Morris and other fan
cies of 1886. The exhorbitant prices ths
have ruled for cotton -four, sugar, and others Of
the first staples OF commerce and consumption,
placing them above the ability Of the great mass
Of consumers, must come down; and the stocks
that have been held 20 long In store by spcculs-
tors must again enter the channels OF trade and
give profitable employment to our ships and
sailors in spreading them over the earth twas
the attempt of moneyed SPECTATORS to monopolize
to themselves all the chain of profits that should
have been divided between producer, merchant,
carrier and retailer, that has paralysed the dis