Civilian & telegraph. [volume] (Cumberland, Md.) 1859-1875, 1864-09-08
PRICES AND INVESTMENTS.

fhlCES AND IN ES MEN1S.
Everything is 10 high r laments ev-
erybody who has anything to buy
" Everything is SO highr' apologetically
everybody who has anything to SELL
-" Nothing is high" explain theoretical
6nancicrs, I" the trouble is that our Cur
rency is los, with gold dollar you can
buy as much rs ever you could "
The error Of these thcorists-so far as
they are not disloyally bent upon Grip
pling the Government by depreciating
the funds-lies in this, that they look
upon Gold as the one immovable thing
in the universe ns the great fixed sun
around which everything rcvolves. But
the sun. so far from being fixed, is itself
a moving body. The value Of gold, like
that of everything else, rises and falls in
accordance with memorable law of supply
and demand
Everything is high. as everybody
knows and as everybody but theorists as
scrts, simply because we are at war and
not in peace. War prices, always have
been. and always will be. high prices;
BECAUSE war increases the demand for cv-
erything, while it dlminishes the supply.
War takes the farmer from his plough,
and the price Of corn goes up. War
takes the shoemaker from his bench, and
the price of shoes goes UP. War takes
portion of every class of workmcn from
their usual work, and the price Of labor
Goes up. At this moment fully onc-third
of the producers of the loyal States are
directly or indirectly engaged in the war.
A large portion are in the field or on the
sea, as soldiers or sailors. Many are en-
gagged in producing implements Of war
or military supplies slips, guns, cloth
ing. equipments and the like. All these
men have been Withdrawn by the war
from their avocations. The products Of
their former industry have been d.
minished, and SO the price of these pro-
ducts has increased. ..
Again, war is wasteful. We do not
here speak of fraudulent waste; for the
amount wasted by fraud. great as it is,
nothing compared with the necessary
waste of war. 1t must always cost much
niUre to sustain million of men in the
field than To sustain the same at home.
A bushel of corn will feed no more men
in Virginia than in Illinois but its worth
when transported to the James River is
far greater than when 1t was harvested
on the prnirics. ....f
War is costly, and its cost must be paid
by those who wage it. The cost Of our
war made be fairly measured by the
amount of otir National Debt. This, on
the 14th of June. amounted in round
numbers 10 1920 millions of dollars
Making liberal allowance for the fol-
lowing t.eek, our deb. on the 1st Of Au-
gust may be stated at 5000 millions of
dollars. Great as this sum Is We assume
that the people consider it fairly contract
ed, well spcrt. and to be paid 1t is in
fact first mortgage upon every acre Ct
land, upon every house or ship; upon
every mile of railway, upon every mans
savings and earnings, upon everything
in short, which can be considered as pro-
perty. The debt is to be paid, and must
be paid from the accumulations Of past
years, and from the earnings of those that
are to come.
Great as the burden must be it will
not crush us. TIE people Of the loyal
States could pny it three times over from,
the accumulations of the ten years which
preceded the war, and yet leate every
man richer than he was iii 1850. The
census puts down the property Of the 10y
al States at fully 5000 millions of dollars
more m 1860 than it was in 1850. We
are charged by others. and we charge
ourselves with extravaganza but in ten
years we carried 600O millions more than
Nc spent. Apportioning this by head
among the whole population, every man
woman, and child in the loyal States wal
worth $50 dollars more in 1860 than ir
1850. Our debt, were it three times a,
great as it is, could be paid from the ac
cumulation Of the past ten years. Blu
as it takes the shape of loan to the peo
pie Of the United States, represented BY
the Government, payable hereafter, mos
of the t1oncy-cost will be betrayed from
the earnings of another generation. Thi
is right and just. We of this generation
have not undertaken this great war mere
ly for ourselves. We have undertaken
it mainly for those who shall come afte
us. The blood which it costs We our
selves pay. Our sons. and our sons
sons, can we'll afford to pay their share Q
the money.
Fortunately every dollar Of the deb
as yet contracted is due to ourselves
How shall it be apportioned among us s
that each man shall bear his fair portion
! As we have said, this debt i, really