The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1857-10-17

1he Present CFsslo.s-A Hinane1aa Leeak1nw.
The peesssg criSis i of more serious II.
| port than airy thaa Aas happened since 1851.
The attacks nado upon credit have b1or
successful i destEpying Ill condolences.
Railroad credits gArewsy first. Bank crsd.
it, became weakened. Mercantile cfediHa
are now suffering acutely, and the banking
system Of whole cities and States, ~ based
on specie, - suspended. Foreign exchange
is unsaleable, and though domestic exchan-
ges are in favor Of New York, remittauces
are almost impossible, from there being such
extreme scarcity Of New York exchange ID
the interior, which has only produces to sand
| forward. Unless relief come speedily, We
fear still larger proportion Of The mcrcan-
tile interest of New York will be prostrated.
Each merchant stands tremulous with anx-
icty, either for himself or his ncighbor, OF
both. Each regards the other with . look
as if inquiring whether the other viii fail
on the morrow. They do not stand phalanx-
ed together ready to assist each other, but
regard one another with suspicion, and with
watchful eye, how each can help himself.
The banks have been assisting, and that in
vain, outside institution, sending help to
Philadelphia, Rhode Island, and other parts,
which has been rendered vain by general
suspension of specie payments. They now
should confne their help to this locality !;
which help would not weaken themselves,
but rather the contrary.
The basis Of all prosperity is confidence,
and credit, that springs out Of 1t. We cam
not avail ourselves Of the advantages we
possess; we cannot turn to account the ma
terial wealth within our reach without the
currency Of confidence. With abundance Of
the elements of wealth, with most bounti-
full harvest-cereals in superabundance-- land
the raw materials of industry also abound
ing; yet the want of confidence in each other
prevents the interchange Of commodities to
that extent which would afford relief. We
want currency of credit that will enable
US to avail ourselves of the wealth that has
just been reaped from the fields. We are
in the condition of man with the lock jaw.
There is food before us, but we cannot touch
it. Though fraud and imposture every
where abound yet they are but percentage
on the general honesty of the community
They are like the bad debts of q commercial
firm, to be deducted from the surplus prof
its of good debts; and the general distrust
which has been excited toward large masses
of property is unwarranted by facts.
These wholesale and discriminating at
tacks have however brought into discredit
the obligation of the mass of the trading
community and consequently into almost a
helpless and hopeless condition. Yet we do
not despair. Mutual help is needful; and
instead of pushing one another down, we
must as far as possible shoulder one anoth-
er up. With large amounts, of bills receiv-
able in hand, some houses, like Messrs. Gar
ner & Co., have been obliged to suspend,
being deprived of sufficient facilities in the
discount market. Those who have expand
ed their liabilities on the faith of an ever
available money market for discounts, and
with large liabilities maturing, are now in
the EXTREMIST distress. They look for help
on every side, and meet with none. The
present month is the heaviest month of the
fall season for maturing notes. The banks
have to receive largely, and should deal lib
orally with their friends. There is also q
large number of capitalists, who usually in
vest largely in mercantile paper, but who
have stopped purchasing out Of mistrust.-
Let them look to the paper they hold, and
which is now maturing, and be ready to as
sist, for their own sake, in affording the IA
cilities necessary to the due payment Of
what they themselves hold. Collections are
difficult, yet there is no moral obligation
greater for those who have the means than
that OF paying their debts even in advance
OF the usual time. Give the utmost curren-
cy to funds. Money exists in abundance,
but it does not circulate with sufficient free
dom. The same identical amount of money,
if circulating rapidly from hand to hand,
multiplies itself, and of itself tends to make
money easy. A nimble sixpence, says the
proverb, is better than slow shilling
Quicken the circulation. pay debts, let no
advantage be taken by any of the general
adverse state of the market to defer payment
who have the means to pay. The commune
ty wants help; and the npprehended evils of
the coming winter may be averted by for
to discharge monetary obligations.
The crisis is too severe to last. If met
with manly courage and frmness-looking
danger and difficulty in the face, much of It
viii disappear, and the rest may be got
through with some sacrifices. Without,
however, u full renewal Of credit and conf
dence, we cannot expect re-establishment
Of u healthy current of business, and to this
end We should all work.-N. Y. Independent
Oct. l. ~ a 49, "-.