Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-04-04
The secretary of the Treasury and the Currency

The Secretary of the Treasury and the Currency.
Chldrea cry for the moon, and stretch out their
hands to drag It down from the tky; apPeaIieg very
much surprised at 6rst and then very much enrageo
when thew End themselves unable to seize it, 1t is
REGULARITY of the infAne intellec. to imagine large
things to be small thus to bring them within the scope
of ia own comprehenssn AGsF while chill lren cease
10 CRY for the moon aud discover that t s too far for
them to reasS And big for them to grasp Bu:the
tendency Of naturally small minds to convert the great
mo the little sticks 10 them generally through life. 10
fact with them, nothing is ever great; nothing IS ever
daculs The lass they know the more they assum' to
know, and consequently, they undertake to solve the
most cut problems in metaphysics, in science or 10
political economy, With easy cent ienee TO which
Plato, or Newton, Adam Smith, never thought oil
aspiring In fact, a. Turgot says; When men are
ignorant it Is easy for them to know everything We
don't know whether Mr.. Nemminger imsgnes the moon
20 be piece of green cheese; and We would no. assert
that be tries 10 grasp t with his francal hngers he
has probably found out by this time that be cannot
quite reach the neon. But be certainly has not dis
covered what perfectly clear TO everybody else-thst
the currency question lie just far beyond the reach
Of his mind as the is bsyond the reach OF biz
hands If Mr.. Aemminger were q private citizen Of
the Conederaey, his hSllucinatOns on this subject
would be harmless enough; but it becomes serious
matter when the Secretary Of the Treasury Is person
Who brr e TO the solution of that most difficult and re
oOndite problem, on which depends perhaps, the sal
walton of the country, than the presumption OF
man, and less than the capacity of a child.
Mr.. Memminger appears to think that the whole
duty Of Secretary OF the Treasury consists in the
manufacture of money and to imagine thas he makes
the country rich BY simply flooding il with his paper
promises to pay. Iwss very easy matter to put OUT
Treasury notes at the Of fifty millions month. TIE
Immense aggregate represented by the annual issue lad
no sort of errOrs for mind which is entirely incapable
of apprecatng greatness either Of quantity or of num-
ber and seems TO es. the vastness of hundreds Of
thtusands Of Millions, BY the facility with which
CIPHER can be added or suOssraeed. The Confederate
Congress very wisely took entirely different view Of
the subject IL MAS evident TO that body that under
the manipulations OF Mr.. Memminger, our finances
we're rapidly getting into almost nextricab confusion
aud our currency depreeiatiug with rspidity VII eh
Threatened reGucs il to value no greater than ths
Of the paper Of which il ia composed And this indeed,
had become clear to the whole country, eXceps, per-
haps the Secretary OF the Treasury. Hence Congress
found itsei compelled to adopt the Law 80 reduce the
Currency, and 20 authorize new issue Of Bonds sed
Notes"-a Law which met the appreciation OF almost
everybody, txesp. Mr.. Aemmlnger. II would per-
haps be supsrhuOus to inform that gentleman, that tire
object Of this law vas its title indicates really 10
reduce the currency. We know, from various sources
that the extent Of lie reduction supposed to be attain
able under the act would leave in circulation not msch
more than $500 600 900 Of Treasury notes certainly
not more than sSOO,OOO,OO0.
II was supposed as We learn from the e1pOstOns AID
explanations made by various intelligent members Of
Congress- that there would be taken up by taxation
der the general law and under the provisions Of the
Currency act taxing the existing issue of Treasury
notes amount equal to about $500 900 ,OOO which
amount would be farther increased by the compulsory
funding Of about sl2O 100000 of interest," bearing
notes. The people have shown extraordinary cheer
fitness in coming the aid Of the Government in the
eOnsummAlion Of this stupendous financial project
They knew, even il Ne. AemmiOger did not know it,
that the high prices eonseq uent the irAl
tOn of the currency would rot aud could not, in the
long run DO compensated by the abundance Of money.
They perfectly well that this fictitious abundance Of
money merely a measure Of the indebtedness OF
the Government and that is nfable result would be
Reputation, from sheer inability TO pay, or an eIses-
lively onerous and, perhaps, unavoidable taxation
They therefore, heartily approved the Congressional
effort 20 reduce the currency within reasonable limits
and still heartily approved the clause Of the act
which declares that after the fist Of April all au-
thorIy heretofore vsa she Secretary OF the Trea
sorry TO issue Treasury notes shall be and is hereby
Voked"-bIOAuse 10 was clear that, in the absence of
this lutary restriction, Mr.. Memmingsrs uncomfortable
passion for the manufacture of money would render
nugatory and fact than usesss al the projects
of Congress for the reduction OF lie currency Bnt it
seems that the Secretary of the Treasury does To-
tend to be guided By the known spirit and int nton of
the law On the contrary he las assiduously employed
bis small stock Of ingenuity in the discovery of
erpedient which might enable him to defeat the de-
signs Of Congress and the just expectations Of the cOun
try. The child must have bis paything. To be sure
Congress thought the currency too big thing for him
to amuss himself with any longer; but this only
ragged him the more when be thought it removed from
his reach. How to get it baekS That was the ques-
ton; and he seems to lave solved il to his sAtaeton,
quite careless whether he nac detrmeat the conn
Try, and defeas the known objects Of the law. We
showed. few dAys ago, how, BY seeming negligence
Ia the wording Of certain clause in Currency ae
the Secretary Of the Treasury might assume himself TO
be AnshoriEsi to issue Totes, in excess Of the
amount exchanged for old issues. We thought
then that be had just enough aeuteuess to en-
able him to this unfortunate defect. and
Quiss enough stupidity to avail himself of il for the
purpose Of doing exactly What COagrsss and the cOun