, 1859-01-14

Oullcu ctotest ana indemnify our injured
eitize1s, whom they have iorcibly despOiled
Of their property.
Should our commissioner prove unsue.
eessfal, after a sincere and earnest effort,
to accomplish the object Of his mission,
then no alternative will remain but the EN-.
ployment Of force TO obtain 'just satisfac.
ton from Paraguay. In view Of this con
tingtncy. the Secretary Of the Navy, nm
der my direction, has fitted out and dis
patched naval force, 10 rendezvous near
Buenos Ayres. which, it is believed. will
prove sufficient for the occasion. Il is my
earnest desire. however, that It may not be
found necessary to resort to this last alter
native.
ouR FINAscIAL CONDITION.
When Congress met in December last,
the business Of the country had just been
crushed, by one Of those periodical reVul-
sions which are the inevitable consequence
Of our unsound and extravagant system Of
bank credits, and Inflated currency. With
all theso elements Of national wealth in
abundance, our manufactures were suspend
ed. our useful public and private enterprises
we're arrested, and thousands Of laborers
were deprived Of employment and reduced
to want Universal distress prevailed
among the commercial, manufacturing, aud
mechanical classes This reEulsiOn was
felt the more severely in the United States,
because similar causes had produced the
like deplorable effects throughout the COM
mercial nations Of Europe All were expe-
riencing sad reverses at the same moment.
Our manufacturers everywhere suffered
severely, not because OF the recent reduc-
ton in tho tariff Of duties on imports, but
because there was no demand at any price
for the productions. The people were
obliged to restrict themselves, in their pur-
chases, to articles Of prime necessity, In
the general prostration Of business, the
iron manufacturers in different States prob
ably suffered moro than any other class, and
much destitution was the inevitable conse-
quenea. among tho great number Of work
men who bad been employed in this useful
branch Of our industry. There could be
no supply where there was no demand
To present an example, there could be nc
demand for railroad iron, after our mag.
ni6cent system Of railroads, extending lis
benefits TO every portion Of the Union had
been bronght 10 a dead pause. The same
consequences have resulted from similar
causes 10 many other branches Of usefn
manufactures. tits selEevident that wher,
there Is no ability to purchase manufactured
articles, these cannot be sold, aud conse
quently must cease to be produced.
Nogovernment, and especially govern
ment Of such limited powers as that Of tht
United States, could have prevented tn,
late revulsion. The whole Commercial
world seemed for years to have been rush
ing to this catastrophe. The same ruinoui
consequences would have followed in thI
United States, whether the duties upon for
eigh imports had remained as they were
under the tariff Of 1876, or had been raised
to q much higher standard. The tariff o
1857 had no lagency in the result TIT
general causes existing throughout thI
world, could not have been controlled b.
the legislation Of any particular country.
The periodical reyulsions which have ex
sted in our past history, must continue t.
return at intervals, 50 long as our pFeseh
unbonnded system Of bank credits shal
prevail They will, however, probably b,
the less severe in future; because it is no
to be expected, at least for many years t
come, that the commercial nations o
Europe, with whose interests our own or,
90 materially involved, will expose them
selves to similar calamities. Bat this sub
Jet was treated so much at large in M
last annual message, that shall not now
pursue Il fnrther. Still, respectfully re
new the recommendation in favor Of tht
passage Of q uniform bankrupt law, appli
cable TO bankrupt institutions. This is al
the power over the subject which, believe
the Federal Government possesses. Sucl
a law would mitigate, though it might no
prevent, the evil. The instinct of self
preservation might produce a wholesome
restraint upon their banking business, !
they knew in advance that suspension o.
specie payments would inevitably produe,
their civil death.
But the effects Of the revulsion are nov
slowly bot surely passing away. The ener
~ and enterprise Of our citizens, with ouI
unbounded resources, will, within the periOC
Of another year, restore a state Of whole
some industry aud trade. The rate of in
ierest is there very low. Confidence il
gradually reEiEing, and so soon as it is dis
covered that this capital can be proftably
employed in commercial and manufacturing
enterprises, and 10 the construction Of rail
roads aud other works Of public aud private
improvement, prosperity will again smile
throughout the land. II is in vain, how
ever, to disguise the fact from ourselves,
that speculative imitation Of our curren-
ey, without a corresponding imitation in
other countries whose manufactures come