The Abbeville banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1847-1869, 1857-10-29
THE MossYEp CRISIS.

Il moment to compare the condition Of
things in other periods of Of our difficulties
with the present.
The feature of the present moncyed cri.
sis do not at all resemble those of any other
period III our history. III 1887, and up to
1871, the people, generally, were in debt.
The North and the South were alike in
volvcd. The amount of specie in the coun-
try was then very small, and the total bank
ruptcy of four hundred thousand men
wits to be added to n vast Jude btedness by
men who were able and willing to pay 10y
regular instalmcnts, to be derived either
fiom the profitable use of their property or
10y its periodical conversion into money
This required time. Care, en.rgy and fru-
gdlity die: the rest
There was another class Of paying men
to be added to thatsa b were largely debt.
ors, VT who did not rs to any extinction
ts of their liabilities They relied up.
on Heir labor, skill and enterprise to free
them from debt These two classes of men
's''.utcd the great body Of tho people.
..cuinstanccs under which they had
to act were peculiarly trying. The failure
Of the .".>, was universal The balance
Of trade with fo,sgn countries was greatly
against u.s. Cur exports during the years
1887, .:3, 80, AZ, Al, ~, 43 and ~, in
breadSSutis, tobacco and cotton, did not av-
"rage per annum more than 7G Millions
Breadstuls were obout an average through
these Years Of eight millions Of dollars to-
bacco eight, and cotton sixty. We were
broken down ut homc-wc had Liuhtcd
namc and credit abroad. The precious
metals were i'll smaller quantities amongst
lis than they had been in any series of six
years since the war Of 1912, taking into
view the proportions Of population.
There are many very interesting s:.:;xti-
cal facts i'll connection with that part Of our
history TO which VIC might advert, but our
purpose is to condensc our views, and we
therefore leave out Of the question the order
Of things which followed the close Of the
United States Bank, and its rcappearancc
in the name Of the Pennsylvania Bank Of
the United States. We also omit the ini.
tiatory measures which were consequent
upon the establishment Of the subtrcasury
system. 1t saved the government then.-
it has saved it now. But we proceed to
state the position i'll Which we are at this
time.
Our present condition is not so disastrous
rs that long and dismal period to which we
have referred. We were proud enough,
even then, as a nation. but wo were griev-
ously ashamed Of our lost credit abroad
We were still heroes for the field Of battle
a Lation Of heroes but we were humblcd
under sense of our degrading misfortunes,
and trcmblcd at the name of our debts.-
Not nation would trust us. Our country
men hardly knew how to trust one another.
Behind us was desolation. Beneath our
feet was doubt, and suspicion lurkcd in
the public mind that We had nothing Of our
own to stand upon.
In the future, we saw that it would take
one, two, three, and four years, at least, be-
fore we could pay our debts and recover our
c edit abroad, and before we could be- free
and Independent at home as individuals.
That long, dark day has passed, and it
was verse than this. The calamity itself
was grcater-fhr greater. Its consequences
were more widely spread, and bore mucl,
more deeply and terribly upon that mighty
agricultural community which constitutes
the lnvlncible power Of this republic. Our
present calamity, however, is very great and
very trying, but it is not, in our opinion.
without remedy. 1t is true that it is dis
aster from which we cannot recover in a
single month. But VIC can master it in
eight months. Those whose failures are
hopeless will drop out Of the struggle, and
will cease to disturb the progressive i'm
provement which, after a little, will follow.
Let us very briefly sum up the facts Of
our case. We will see that we are not
pouring water into bottomless buckets, never
to be filled, nor speeding an arrow at tho
moon, which, though aimed we'll, can never
reach it.
The first thing which presents itself to
our consideration is our commercial position
with foreign nations.
We owe them nothing. The balance of
trade is in our favor. England is in our
debt. 1t is inmaterial to the question that
some of her capitalists have chosen, from
time to time to invest large sums of money
i" our Railroad Companies. Their biting
m'sfortunes with the stocks of Mississppi
years ago projected them heedlessIy upon
corporations. If they had put their money
in State stocks it would have been safe. All
that is thus vested will | e found to be so.-
The interest which those loans will draw