The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1864-07-22
Hold On and Hold Fast.

! An influential metropolitan press asks tn,
North if 1t is ready to emulate the rebe
style of carrying on the War, without fnan
ces, with absolute despotism in the leader,
and object submission OF the people anC
intimates that by any other method there is
10 prospect of success. But il is not 50; il
is the folly of unreasonable panic following
unreasonable confidence. Let US be calm,
and hold on. The situation is not desperate
and requires no desperate expedients.
The present rebel invasion, and the eonse-
quent panic, come from shameful neglect and
blundering somewhere. But il is not likely
to turn out anything worse than plunder-
ing raid. The capital is not in serious dan
ger. It is ve1ation to feel that We are still
blundering into ali sorts of needless perils
aid losses, with s1ch abundant means''as TIE
government has at command, and such heavy
sacrifices as the people are continually max
ing. Bnt We cannot stop where We are
We must hold on and put the thing through
or do worse. If anybody thinks change OF
men ct tha head of affairs will improve mat
ters, let him 60 for the change at the proper
time. For tine present We can only go on
as We are, and fight il out on this line
A bungling dentist is better than no dentist
at all, when one has a tormenting tooth
The rebel raiders must be expelled without
breaking up the siege of Richmond. We
must stick TO this at any cost, or loose the
campaign altogether.
So in business matters, the gold gamblers
must not be allowed TO create panic and
bring prices up the starvation point. If the
government is not broken do@n and ruined
by the rebellion it will pay its debts, and
every dollar in greenbaeks then will event
ually be worth dollar il gold. Even now
II is worth more than the gold rates indicate.
Hold on, then, against mercantile panics and
extravegant prices. The proper increase up
on most articles ought not to be more than
30 per cent, except when high taxes are lev
led. The manufacturers and merchants are
pocketing half the present prices of cotton
goods as extra profits. The increased cost
of raw material and labor accounts for only
small portion of the increase in price. Hold
on here; huy no cotton goods, or as few as
may be. till the speculative excitement is !
over, and they will certainly fail again. The \
same process should be applied to all other
articles the prices of which are ar,iie:ally in
hated. The consumers can in great meas
ure protect themselves by limiting their pur-
chases TO the most urgent needs TIL the equi-
librium is restored 1t is true that We shall
have war prices in war. but let US pay them
for the benefit of the government and not Of
gamblers and eN:or,ioners. If We hold on,
economise, and yield nothing to the specula-
tors, except upon oompulsicn, We can bring
prices to fair standard, however wildly the
gold figures may run up among the hun
dreds.
In such teverish times the great thing is
to keep cool--to form q deliberate purpose /.
and stick TO il; to know what We are about
and hold fast till We can see the end. The
real peril of the present moment is that the
cowardiy and treacherous will be able to dis
courage and demOralize thh people, and that
the final victory will be relinquished just as
II IS within Our grasp. No-let US steadfast
ly fgh; and work. and hold on. " till We see
the salvation of God. "-Springfeld Repub-
lican. /