The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-09-29


| now they are doing their utmost to prevent
cordial and complete union of the conservative
| elements against the republican candidate
| They cannot see the length Of their noses be-
fore them. or begin to comprehend the true
nature Of the issue before the country, but they
chatter and jsbber like angry apes or parrots
conveying nothing Ineligible to the reader,
and even failing to understand the jargon them
selves. They have no in dependence of thought
or action, but are mere machines, which will go
for a while if any body winds them up.
| Tn. French Gold Fields In ATrica-Thsir
| Immense Products and RemArkabis
Effects.
| One Of the most perplexing problems Of the
| age to political economists has been the fnan
cial secrets Of the French empire, and its sbun-
dant coinage OF gold. For series of years the
| imperial treasury has borne the most extraor-
binary demands upon It; vast enterprises have
been undertaken and carried out; commerce
| and industry have received q constant stimulus;
| the financial panic Of 1857 was driven from
| France by the bountiful resources Of the bank,
| and the French mint, which twenty years ago
issued annually only about two and half mil
lions Of dollars in gold coinage, now pours out
from one hundred to one hundred and ten mil
lions of coin every year, being more than equal
70 that coined by the United States and England
together.
Whence comes this immense supply Of gold'
| The French official reports classify 1t as RE
| coinage, &c." but what u this etcetera?
There are three great known gold
fields. Russia works those of the Ural
mountains, and keeps the production a secret;
but whatever its amount may be, its presence
is not felt in the great centres Of trade. The
yield Of California and Australia Is known
TO amount to about one hundred millions Of
dollars yearly; but large portion Of this Is
coined and retained by this country and
England How Is 1t, then, that France can
coin annually an amount Of gold equal TO the
joint production Of California and Australia,
and yet the supply Of eagles and sovereigns
continue to accumulate? The secret Is ex-
planned In q communication published In
another column, which has been furnished to
us by an eminent geologist who has recently
returned from Europe.
/ A fourth gold field, more prolific than those
| Of either shore Of the Pacific, and worked with
greater secresy than the Russian mines In
Asia, bias been opened by France and steadily
developed for the last ak years. Acting upon
the suggestions Of an American citizen, Louis
Napoleon sent a secret expedition Of thirteen
vessels and twenty-five hundred men to the
before neglected colony Of Senegal. From
that time the progress Of French rule and
French enterprise in Africa has been rapid and
remarkable. Algeria has crossed the desert Of
Sahara and linked It's posts with those Of the
advancing colony Of Senegsmbia. The British
flag has been bought Of from q large portion OF
the western coast Of Africa, and the French tri-
color has been planted in Abyssinia. The new
colonial region has been separated from the
colonial system Of the empire, and placed under
the immediate presidency Of the Emperor.
Numerous Institutions and Offices have been
created, which have no ostensible results, add
yet their officers attain frequent rewards and
promotion. Why lie this II Il because Louis
Napoleon Is secretly working hundreds Of thou
sands Of African slaves in the new gold fields
Of Africa, deriving therefrom not only the
means for extending bis empire on that cont
nent, BIZ also the resources to supply the i'm
mcpsc workings Of the French mint, and to give
life and energy to his vast political schemes.
In these revelations we may fad also
The secret of his steel.clad ships, his
efforts to change the balance Of power
in the Mediterranean bis creation Of navy
to surpass in numbers and efficiency that Of
England, his sedulous cultivation Of an African
policy that has been constantly puzzle to
Europe, aud the care with which Algeria is fos-
tered. A war with England would cut of his
Atlantic route to the Senegal gold region, aud
hence the path he l. opening with Artesisn wells
across the deserts Of Sahara. A few years
continuance Of the immense supply Of gold he
bias been drawing from bis ne African posses
sions will enable him to realize even the dreams
OF his uncle for the reconstruction Of Europe
and make bis reign the Augustsn era Of the
French empire.
In the table Of the coinage Of the minis OF
the United States, England and France. which
is given In The communication published In
another column, will be found the statistics Of
gold supply to the channels of circulation
that will account for many Of the anomalies
witnessed in finance and trade durin~ the past
few years. How long !. =. TO affect
the relations Of values no ul1 But Ia
It's communication tasss con.
Hectc3 with political emf signs
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