Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1864-10-27

'GTON, n. c., THURSDAY MORN
TEaE CUeRsz y, CREDIT AND REsCUUCss OF
TEzS GOVEREMEET.
IRE Comm ssicuers for the ssessment OF Prices for
the States Of SOnth Carolina, Georgia, Alabama,
Florida Missiesppi apd Tennessee, have been in cor
sultaiioG a. Montgomery, Ala, at the request of the
Secretary Of Wcr with view of establishing az uni
form and reduced scale Of prices for those States
They Rave published address, in which they state
that they had agreed in reducing The average prices
heretofore about third Or perhaps slightly more"-
They make an urgent appeal to the people to lend
cheerful assistance 10 this ort to reduce the expenses
OF the Government and thus render its taxes less its
currency valuable and its credit sounder. They
accompany their address by the following important
letter from Secretary Trenholm:
TREASURY DEPARTMENT c. s. AMERICA,
Richmopd September 3, 1864 {
To the Commissioners of Prices 70. the several States
assembled an Convention al Montgomery. Ala:
The Secretary of War baving requested general
convention OF tie Commissioners OF the several States
to corsder TIE praccabiy and expedency of uni
form schedules OF prices avail myself of the occasion
to offer you, with great respect and deference
marks upon The important subj ct that is TO engage
your attention.
The condition Of the currency, and the embarrass-
ments resulting from It's arrangement, we'll known
10 all. When gold eelis at twenty fer compared
currency is deprecieted, and when it said that the
government supplies are purchased with this deprecia-
ted currency all understand we'll that the expen-
ditures must necessarily be heavy But these evils
should not be allowed 60 further. The ability of
the government to conduct the war to a successful
ssue and the happiness and welfare OF people after
the shall have terminated too deeply involved.
and in the functions conferred upon you by Congress
to reside under existing laws the onIy power
pabe Of in,erposing check 10 the progress cf deereca
tion.
Looking then. to tie dgoity of your eff: e. and the
momenous results depending upon your action, have
thought it my du 10 communicate 10 you every III
o- -maetn possessed by this depar ment that may aid
your judgment IN the discharge OF your important du
ties.
One active cause Of the depreciation is dsrust of the
government Securities and l will endeavor to show that
this distrust is without reasonable foundation.
Tt entire public deht funded and unuoded the
The exp 1ses from lst July to alst Dscem.
ber estimated at about. 1926, 900 900
Making aggregate of. 81 $50 900 600
Ia this amount is included $3.50 100000 of per
cent. bon6s to be issued in place of like amoupt OF
old currency funded under the act OF February 17th
1864; hut col siderable portion of this will be re
turned Into tie Treasury uuder the tax act-or in
other words. the whole produced by the taxation
of The present year, will be applicable to the reduction
Of this aggregate Of 81 575OOOO00. Let liberal al
owance however, bs made for opposite contingent
cies ard let the debt the first January 1865 be set
down in round numbers ut 81 5000O0O0O. Let the
war be supposed to continue, and ts progress add
$500 100000 to the pa,onal debt making the aggre-
gate finally So 100000 900 This would entail upon US
al annual interest OF $l4OOO0OOO
Why SHOULD our ability to bear this burthen be
doubted? Before this War it alleged lard, in my
opinion with great trub) that fully great as
this was annually paid IN tribute to the Northern
States Why should 1t not be paid with equal ease to
own Government, by whom 1t will be returned to
us ia the payment Of interest?
1t may be supposed by some that the magnitude of
the debt, in proportion 10 our property, may lead to
general Insolvency and bankruptcy. Let examine
The grounds Of this possible apprehension If planter
whose property before the war worth 100000,
SELL during lis progress, wheat, etc. to the value
OF 100000, and take Government BONDS for the
amount how does be incur the risk of being ruined p
And what is of citz.n in this respect, of
one class, s equally true OF the whole community.
The alarm must arise from ina5tentiOn 10 the i'm
portaut consideration that selling to the Gov
ernment year by year, only the surplus Of Our annual
productions.
There is one way, however, in which the debt may
be made oppressive as the following transactions will
show The government paid on occasion, $500 900
for certain supplies; and the party who received this
sum- boug,t with it from foreigner, SIS 900 in gold,
deliverable in Eagland. With the $500, 900 thus OBJ
ained the foreigner then boOgat equal amount Of
government boads, bearing Z per cent. PER annum
interest,".
1t follows that at the end of this war; for SIS, 600
thus acquired by the citizen, the government will owe
a debt OF 100000.
The citizen will receive, ANNUALLY, SlC50 interest
the government will pay, annually S2l 900. lad he
on contrary, bought tie boEds himself the $2l 900
annually paid by the government would have been
received by OF its cizens and the country
whole, would have been neither richer poorer.
WCuId earnestly impress upon your consideration that
When traced through all ther various ramfcations,
this is last the uniform result OF every in which
supplies sold to the goVrnment, and property of
any description is bought with the money, TO the tx
clusion OF government securlties
1t should be borne in mind that have now no
commercial class in ths county that the banks have
limited capital OF about $50 100000, and beyond this
sum have no power purchaser government bonds -
The great of our ctlz91s, tLen, of every Glass;
must combine, and take government securities, and
nothing ese n exchange for Treasury notes, the pub
tic debt must intably 60 abroad. here is no single
class o cur citizens VINO hav5 the power to pur
chase an hold 81 ,5000 100000 o bonds. The question:
b. i, Is bet tie public debt b-ing taken by en-
mann-r and on the terms already indicated. Judging
from present indications, h ere will be difficulty IN
fudDg purchasers for our bOtds among those who
sending them abroad. Slall they be allowed to 60
abroad? here Can be No escape from the ultimate
payment of debt i held by foreigners, We coud
not yade it if We would if held by own people,
we would not if We could and uGder no crcumstan-
cea trust would G suggestion, 50 dlshonoIabe, be
gravey entertained.
In the consideration of this question: therefore, such
an apprehension tLls should be allowed 40 weight
whatever Evsry man must take home to himself the
conviction that proportion to his property ne ls the
debtor for his share of the national debt and the
QUESTION for him to determine is whether he will hold
- 11ion