Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1857-10-08
THE BANKING SYSTEM OF TENNESSEE-THE
DUTY OF THE NATIONAL DEMOCRACY.
ARTICLE II.

In first article declared it to be the
imperative duty of the National Democracy to
establish for each State, they have done for
the General Government sound and uniform cur
Teney-one not susceptible of indefinite expansion
and contraction-one that can not necessarily ele
vate and depress the value of all real and personal
estate, of all products of human labOr-One that
will ever act as an insuperable check to all fraudu
lent credit-systems, corrupt speculaOns, Excess
81 7e impOrtaOns and an inflated domestic and for,
eign commerce.
At present we find the citizens of our State suf-
fering intensely from the endorsements of fnan
cal panic or crisis, produced solely and Immediately
by the imperfections of our Banking system. To
extricate our citizens as far as possible from i'm
pending ruin, and to remedy, for all future time,
the inherent evils of our rotten system, devolves
upon the members of the present Legislature in
session; but especially upon the Democratic portion,
whichs decidedly in the ascendant in both branches
The knife, that must prune or eradicate, must be |
guided however, by expert hands, by calm and sa-
gacious minds. You cannot slash with a cimetar /
or with one fell swOOp sweep all banks from the |
board. But by judiciOus legislation you may aver
the evils incident our system, and assuage thos'
with which we are at present, and may hereafter
be- afflicted.
What in State at present is the standard o.
the oalus Of all of our real and personal esate-ot
all the products of human labor? Is it gold ard
silver? No; but the spurious paper of a corrupt
ing and unsound banking system-Paper issues de
preciated at the very counters OF the banks thai
issue them, almost worthless abroad-ever fuctua
ting at home and elsewhere-e ntailing upon the az
gregate wealth of our CT liens and State annually
the loss of hundreds thousands, and during panic
of millions of dollars. We, ourselves, within III,
last few days, have seen upon the streets of ou'
city, and al the counters of brokers' the issue
Of some Of our Free and Stock Banks sold at from
20 to 80 per cent discount while those of other
were refused at any price This cruel and intolera
bic loss falls mostly upon those least able to bear
upon poor widows, day-aborers, guardians nj
heirs, mechanics and honest farmers of small mean
who hoard their savings at home These, too, ar
the very persons who suffer so severely as deposi
tors, when Of these destructive magazines blow
up.
If farmer in East Tennessee should sell his
wheat for 500; planter in West Tennessee his
cotton for $780, of the issue of some of their local
banks, and come to Nashville with some of his en-
graved rags to pay a note of this amount in one OF
our city banks, they would refuse to receive it
though their 500 has cost them what they could
have sold their cotton wheat for in gold or silver
If either Of these had been the sole legitimate cur
rency of the State. Now let these honest farmers
resort brokers' Office 10 convert their Deprecated
bills into current notes. and the broker would share
them from 20 to 40 per cent, and then only pay
them in branch-bsnk notes, which to convert into
gold silver, he would charge them from to per
cent additional. The personal loss and suffering
the depreciation of the aggregate wealth and labor
Of the State, by this fraudulent and Ubiquitous sys-
TEN Of banking are incalculable.
Gold and silver have by the common consent of all
civilized nations, been established as the standard
of all value-the medium Of all exchange; and not
the worthless and spurious prOcreation of banks
paper issues Among all nations from year to year
through indefinite periods, gold and silver have
maintained better than any other medal commodity
an unvarying value and therefore is better adapted
among all men and States to be the standard by
which all contracts and obligations should be
squared or cancelled. Paper issues may be by
banks or bankers multiplied indefinitely, as their
hopes wishes, anticipatiOns, caprice avarice may
dictate. But gold and silver not, for they have
intrinsic value consisting of the cost of labor
and capital Of mining, smelling, refining, coming
and stamping them-apart from the valuable and
ornamental uses to which they are applied. If a
currency of gold and silver adopted by all the
States of the Union 1t would be impossible for their
citizens to experience any thing ike monetary
convulsion. Amid all the embarrassments, from
financial crises that affected both Europe and Amer
lea for 30 years did Cuba or Gibralter, whose cur
runcy was alone gold and silver feel the shock .
Was their financial condition disturbed by these dis
asters? Never Do you hear Of panics and inan.
ciaI dstresses resulting from deranged currency
in either Texas or Arkansas? No. Because their
is gold and silver. Indeed, what States and couu
tries DO these financial Samuers desoate? Only
those that abound in unsound and rotten banks 49,
The States and nations whose currency is based
upon gold and silver never suffer generally from
the fraud of bankers and the explosion of shin
plaster establishments. Hence it is the imperative
duty Of the National Democracy establish once
where II is possible the currency of the States upol
the uniform and solid basis of gold and silver
Is there not a sufficient quantity of these Preciou
metals in the world, and annually accumulating
TO make them the sole currency Of the States Of thi
Union? The yield of the mines of Australia Cali
fornia, Mexico and South America alone. for on
or two years will quite suffice to furnish gold an
silver as a medium of exchange for all commoditie
between the several States or between these and al
foreign countries Will not our exports of cotton
tobacco, wheat rice and bacon, exclusive of others
bring into this country over two hundred million
dollars in gold, or its equivalent, foreign exchange
Gold and silver, like every other commercial com
.
wanted. There never was country whose CONNER
ciaI affairs were not disturbed by imprudent legsla
tion whose currency was gold and silver, that eve
lacked a suffciency of these precious metals {
transact all Of its exchanges.
Members of the Democratic party of our Stat
Legislature: These are the evils which our presen
banking system have brought upon our State, an
which you in duty and in principle, than a
Others must remedy. 1t has advanced the rate
interest to such degree that no profit upon homes
labor can afford to pay tit has deprived solver
business houses of the means of meeting their lie
gitimate engagements, without ruinous sacrifices
1t has caused universal reduction of prices an
thus baaled the calculations of the most prudent
has panic-stricken our wealthiest merchants ha
deprived manufacturers and mechanics of the mean
of executing their orders, and thrown hundreds
industrious people out Of employment-it has re
duced the price Of all the products Of industry, an
thus caused great loss of wealth 10 the State
has destroyed confidence and credit and parRlize
every department of human industry.
In our next will endcavor to analize our bank
ing system, pointing out Its evils and suggestin
their remedies.
THE TRADERS BANK
We notice in the New York Herald dispatc