New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-11-28

| Taxes due. e.............. 1,ll3 ,94S
following statement of funds on hand on the 18th
| of November. 1851:
General fund ......................$ u $50 80
Current school fund d............ 3,519 Al
| Internal Improvement tax fund :. -. 20, ,T36 so
| Internal Improvement fund. ........... l2,777 06
Road and ievee fund ................ 5,340 Is
| Levee and drainage fund. -. ......... 8,lS4 SO
! Redemption State debt fund lG,2ll Al
Free school fund Observation-Disclosures. "a ,664 so
| accumulating fund ...... ia, ,297 o.
| Seminary fund (sales of land) .... 65l 81
! ." a" (interest) ... 4,l46 90
| Military fund. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 4,5U0 90
| Public land fund. Observation-Disclosures. 1879 "a
Total $685., ,622 27
These statements exhibit but little more than
one-third of the taxes paid, and the consequent
| deprivation OF the bulk of the States ordinary
revenue. 1t is an unavoidable consequence of the
troubled condition Of the finances of the country,
and the inability Of the planters to sell their pro-
duce. Deprived OF the ordinary commercial facil-
ties with our great staple withheld from sale, it has
been impossible for the Sheriis TO collect the taxes
in the ordinary way; and to have enforced the for
textures Of property would have been hardship
upon the people not now to be endured. 1t will be
necessary, therefore, for the Legislature to provide
for an extension of the time of collecting and pay
| ing into the Treasury the taxes now due, and it
will be but just to the collectors that they be
| leyed IRON any legal consequences resulting from
their non-payment of the taxes into the Treasury
at the time required by present laws.
| | suggest to you the necessity Of an express en-
| actment permitting the receipt of the Treasury
notes of the Confederate States in payment of the
| State taxes.
Some legislation will be necessary to enable the
people to pay these taxi within the period which
| may be designated by you, ard also to enable the
planters to obtain the supplies for their plantations
until the removal of the hndrance at present exist
ing to the shipment and sale OF their crops. This
| matter deserves your most serious consideration
The necessity of some provision for this purpose
| suggests itself to every mind. 1t will be your
province so to regulate it that security, sufficiently
ample may be afforded to the capitalist to induce
| the employment OF bis means, and the nature of
the security required be such to place it in the
power of the planter to avail himself OF the bene-
tits OF the provision
Existing laws facilitate the procurement of sup
plies by giving the factor privilege on the crop
| which was enabled to be produced by his ad-
yances. The speedy and annual sale of the crops
| heretofore has provided the factor with timely
| reimbursement. That resource now failing, | re.
commend that planters be permitted to give sup
ply notes, which shall be negotiable and shall ex-
press their face that they are for "supplies, ~
the payment OF which shall be secured by impart-
ing To them the quality of a lien on the crop,
which shall have precedence over all except er.
lstlng claims OF tnat nature. To prevent the use
OF fictitious supply notes, it will be necessary 10
guard their use by such restrictions will attain
the end proposed, and prevent the abuse OF the
privilege accorded by your legislation
Various plans have been suggested for the relief
of the community trem our present anomalous fin
ancial condition. 1t has been suggested that the
Confederate Government should make advances
upon, or should purchase portion of the cotton
crop. Without discussing the extent of its consti'
tutiona power in this respect | should deprecate
the adoption of such alternative. If it is indis-
pensable that such advances be made by Govern
ment it is better, in my judgment, that the States
shall undertake it rather than their agent the Con
tederate Government. In either case l fear the
adoption of such policy would prove disastrous.
1t is better to leave the remedy to be applied in the
ordinary channels of trade, assisted by such legis-
latlOn as have above indicated.
The ordinary sources of revenue having been
closed by the blockade established by the enemy,
it became necessary for the Confederate Govern
ment to resort to the issue of paper resting upon
its own credit and upon direct taxation. All the
banks in the Confederate States had suspended
specie payments except those of New Orleans and
Mobile, so that there was no difficulty i'll giving
| circulation to the issues of the Confederate Gov
ernment, save in Louisiana and Alabama. In
New Orleaus, the banks, steadily adhering to the
| Obligations of their charters, continued to pay
specie for all their cash liabilities. The depreca-
} ton of Treasury notes followed as necessary
consequence, the banks not being able to receive
them in payment of obligations due, so long as
. they were compelled to discharge their debts
in coin. As it was OF the highest Importance that
the credit of the Treasury issues should be estab
lished a solid basis, and considering it my duty
to aid so far as | could morally or legally in bring
ing about this result, | recommended the banks oi
| New Orleans, by public proclamation, to suspend
specie payments. In taking this course | was well
aware it was beyond my power to relieve the
, banks from the penalty attached by law to a VIC
lation of their charter, nor did conceal from them
| the legal consequences attached to the measure
which recommended. The Legislature is with
out authority to sanction the suspension of specie
| payments by the banks, and if you should require
judicial proceedings to be instituted, forfeiture
, of their charters will inevitably follow. But
| cannot too strongly recommend you to abstain
from such proceedings, but rather to instruct the
, Attorney-General not to bring salt against them
The banks reluctantly adopted the course re
| commended, not because they were unwilling tC
aid in the attainment of the end proposed, but be
cause they were apprehenslve the legal conse
E quences OF this act might be visited upon them
s They decided, however, to encounter the haZart
B of their chartered existence to subserye grea
public purpose, just all of us now risk life ant
property in this great struggle for political nde
pendence. Provision should be made by you tt
submit the whole subject to Convention OF thu
people, to be assembled after the ratification OF /
7 treaty of peace between the Confederate and th'
United States.
=, 1t is certain the new relations of Louisiana tt
! | her sister States and the developments which thi
. war is making in the character and tendencies
+ our institutions, will require at your hands Con
!, venton of the people to adapt the organIG law Il
,, the requirements which wider experience has in
dicated as essential to proper political structure
r. | Looking forward to the necessity wh!ch Will de
: mand reconstruction of the Consutntloh at III
= hands of the people, the action to be taken III re
ference to the banks may be wisely lett to the de
cision of the sovereign power, when you shall ca
T. the same into activity. II is proper here to stat
that on the Gay hlleE lssucu my
" received letter from the Secretary of the Treas
: : ury of the Confederate Government, written wit
Il the appreciation of the Cabinet urging me to d
u all could to induce the banks to suspend. Th
y letter was accompanied by circular addFesse
. to the banks. Copies of the latter and clreuaa
a vii! be sent to you. " r,-..-
ia The extraordinary state in which the Cotto
~ States of the Coniederacy find themselves, b
"a reason Of their inability to sell produce during tn
:. blockade, and their mmoYable determination nj
to sel! at any price unit! they can obtain retur
cargogs in exchange for aeirproduce, has induce
a condition of things, which can only be relieve
T. by legislation and even then only to limited G.
b. t9nt The experience Of twenty years in ban
rv ing system uneVualed on this continent, and ce
= tanly not surpassed anywhere, has attached {
. iudicious persons to the principle on which
OF rests These have been sanctitied by the endors
al ment of the people in the recent Convention, a.
NJ mower has been taken away from you to chart
ng any bank OF adopt any banking system not foam
er ed on the fundamental rules of the act OF lS42,
'at would not lightly recommend to you a -dispega
re, of these principles but only from an oftrr,lT
d necessity demanded by the events WHICH are ira
'ry pirng. We are in the midst Of war OF gr'
pg magnitude exacting great sacrifices from patri
ISM which are eheeruly, indeed. enthflsastica
- made All the ordinary channels of ira
- are closed, and yet there is 70 murmur
on 1scontent-the neccssaries Of life are qu
srupled in value, labor is without its US