Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1863-09-02

lars pOf bashe BY one who wishes to buy In order 10
all again 10 steps the Government officer and says 10
the purchaser will seize that wheat and pay you but
four dollars per busbel for it, If you dare TO buy It at
market price," What is the effect Of this proceeding
upon the poor solderH He has already paid bis axts
(6ne-tenh Of the gross produce Of the labor OF his
wife and chdren,) aud is now deprived of an addi-
tona four hundred dollars taken for the public use
over and above his just proportion OF the public bur
theus The benefit OF these four hundred dollars neither
;nures TO him nor his comrades i'll the army for their
ratons of bread increased single ounce by the
mode in which the Government collects 1t. lie was
rcady and willing to sell his wheat TO the Government
at the market price rather than to any other personS
The benefit neither inuros 10 him nor the Government,
lint relieves from that amount Of taxation all other tax
p,yers Guiding those muchabused scapegoats-
The spectators and extorti0ners.
The case of this soldier is the case of thousands and
tens of thousands of other soldiers who grow wheat,
aud the example demonstrates that these pretended
friends of the soldier while they praise, still plumber
him 10 common with his class. have already pointed
out the remedy 10 wit: equal tax alton and fair purcha-
ses In open market He who holds that the armies OF
the Republic can only be sustained by impressnent,
may as well make up his mind to speedy and dsas-
i trous close of the know il IS not uue and i
know that nothing but the obstinate folly OF our rulers
could continue this system for single day longer. The
difficulty Of supplying the army with bread consists
neither IN scarcity high prices. We have 81 album
dance of corn q use the word in its largest sense, in
GLIDING wheat maize, oats &C. &c) and it is cheap
cheap relatively and positively; positively, because
buh Of be bought Tor less money IN Georgia
az this time than atauy oher me With the last quarter
of century, relatively because this iscquay true OF its
excbapgeable value for all other commodities of general
consumption, foreign domesticone dollar will buy
bushe of wheat in any part OF the State where tits
usually grown and any commodity which can be readily
exchanged for one dollar will buy it also; but it takes
eight or Confederate paper dollars TO perform this
| exchapge-to buy one hundred cents in standard
| nd herr al he il
i be- in the price of wheat aud all other commodities
the depreciation of the currency. The stern truth ought
10 be spokenWe cannot avoid dangers by shutting our
ewes 10 them Let look them full in the fscegrap-
/ pie with them-couquer them The task is now on
difficult not impossible; We have departed from sound
principles we must TO them promptly, or prepare
10 see our currency 90 out that OF our atheTs Gid IN
1880 in the darkest hour Of their revolutionary strug-
gle.
radical errors in the management OF our finances, which
produced our present calamtous condition by the ope
ration Of laws Of currency as fixed, certain and immu-
table as the laws which govern the planetary system
At the begnn ng OF this struggle We had large national
resources and unequaed elements Of public credit; We
borrowed gold at par for our bond,--weaIth laid lis
treasures at feet and poverty itself claimed az
lryiege to augment our resources with its nite FOhy
has manly contributed to the drying up OF this hviLg
fountain Of public supply The first great error was III
attempting 10 carry great and expensive NaTsOlely
ON credit-without taxation This il the first attempt
of the kind ever made by civilized peoplt; the result
of the experiment will hardly invite its repetition. Du.
ring the first year Of its existence the present Congress
| neither levied collected single cent oil taxes,
| and postponed the collection Of those levied for
| the second year to a period fatally too late to
| support our currency. The second naturally
| resulted from the first, and consummated tue
destruction of public credit. This error was, the
use of the public credit almost exclusively In the form
of currency. The LatuIal result OF this policy was
plain, inevitable, overwhelming. Iii well settled and
sound principle in currency, that nation which has
sufficient quantity OF circulating medium properly 10
answer the lis trade and commerce, cannot add
to the value Of that currency by any farther addition 10
its quantity In the ordinary state OF trade any cxcess
of the oper quantity exhibits slt in the form OF the
expor alton Of bullion; any deficiency, In Importation.
When from any cause whatever the operation Oh thus
law is prevented any redundancy OF currency must ne
cessary deprecate the whole mss' and this deprecIa-
ton will exh bit itself in the rise ia price of all COM
modit,s IL is also true, that il this redundant curren-
cy ex in the form OF paper money not conVeruD e
into coin at the will Of the holder, the measure OF this
depreciation the difference between the standard or
mint price Of bullion aud the market price, "heh psiu
| in this currency.
Tested by those plain and sound principles the sou'
ton of the of present financial troubles Ii
easy. When this revolution commenced our currency
was in excess of the wants of society-the proof ID
| that nearly all of the banks within the Confederate
States had suspended cash payments and their notes
were depreciated therefore the first Treasury note
which was put in circulation added its nominal value TO
this excess each succeeding issue enlarged it, and in
creased the depreciation OF the whole mass This de-.
pyecaton soon began TO manifest itself in the rise OF
commodities; vet the Government has unwisey con-
tinuel daily by forced circulation TO add 10 this excess
inc1eSe the depreciation aud enhance the price oil all
the commodities which it s compelled to purchase, aud
thus e1hlustng he national resources III the ratio oil
| peometrical progression. THIS ruinous policy would
have long since run its but for the Ic that law
inmidat on and above all the ardeut, sincere honest,
but mistaken patriotism Of the people have been nVOk-
| I'd to uphold it. But the principle being radically
wrong Lo human power could uphold 1t long, ana III
spite Ut all these powerful proofs our national currency
is deprecated more than one thousand per cent below
gold and silver four hundred per cent below suspended
bank notes and prices and payments are rapidly ADJUST
ing themselves to to- memorable facts Many unsound
are given for this state OF things by the sup
porers apOlog'ts of this pernicious policy. Many
able and excellent persons affirm and honestly believe
that from the peculiar circumstances which surround US,
bullion is longer standard OF value or true mea-
sure OF the depreciation of currency. TINS error
has produced infinite mischief.
1t is true that gold and silver do rise and fall in value
| like but in a much less degree, than other commod-
tea aud il is mainly for this that they have been
adopted by mankind as the standards of value. and
however they may rise fall that in degree affects
their value 1s lest OF the depreciation Of inferior cur
rencies they certainly still remain, If not the nfabe
yet the most accurate measure of such depreciation,
which the wisdom of the world has yet been able to
discover his is pleasant picture for us to behold,
yet this is better than the sl more gloomy one
which continuance in the paths Of error will speedily
pre- to visions The consequences are fg5tul;
let us pursue them little further. Let US suppose that
we have five hundred mil ions of currency now in cir
culation wolth fifty millions Of standard bullion, the
issue Of an additional five hundred millions OF ouch
rency will add single dollar to its value. The thou
sand millions will be worth no than the five hun
bred millions were before the last is.ue TO wit fty
millions of bullion. The addition has only deprecated
the whole currency by one-hs and this depreciation
will invariably: itself in the rise of the commod-
ties for which may be exchanged. The Government,
therefore, il it e1peuds the additional issue in connie
dities loses first the whole amount Of depreciation
istpg the beginning of the issue, also all the add
tonal depr, citation produced by its daily expenditure,
and the notehoders lose onehaf of the value of their