Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1864-01-06
THOUGHTS ON TIE Observation-Disclosures

To the Editor 81 Me Hhtgj
Your suggestion yesterday is strikipgly judicous.-
To withhold the debates may be- fos OBVIOUS reasons
adcious-but to make public the JlaDs before Congress
can be productive only of good. No Gong ess can a-
ford to shut out the light of public discussion The
placing il before the country might make better per-
haps the best scheme that any body Of men might pro-
pose-and il bad scheme, in the public Judgment
finally adopted the people would bs all the sooner re-
concled if II were not sprung suddenly and without
notice upon them hope Congress will act on the sHg-
geson and let the public Wha! is proposed Fatal
mistakes might be aVo6ed-Valuable hints from the
thousands whose fortunes as well as that OF the coun
y are involved in the that shall he adopted
might ba elected. A Congress that has allowed the
currency to fall into such dreul disorder scarcely
With proper modesy, claim 70 be independent OF the
aid of it
The great cause Of the prevailing high and ill rising
prices Is the excessive aud increasing quantity Of
Government noRey-sggrav4ted, in many localities, by
The njud cous and often illegal manner in which the
policy of Government impressm5nt and fixed prices has
been carried out 1t is not denied that de6oeh trans
potaton and de6c supplies also enter causes into
the existing high prlces--and, in some instances as
those of coffee and specie quite considerably; but to
stop to prove that the per cenges Of price added by
them to certain articles bears any proportion to the
currency Enhancement Of the prices Of every
thing Occasiontd by q seven.fod increase Of cur
reney, would be g mere waste Of time and argu-
ment While Government thus pours down from
the Treasury torrents Of money, filling aud swelling ali
the channels Of price, like the rain from the couds
which brought On the deuge the indignant Secretary
of War throws his schedule and his sword across the
rising food aud bids it DOWN. In vain Unless the
rains cease the streams will keep on rising and unless
the money shower holds up the Calutes of the Gov
eminent and the Press may idly thunder forth their
edo ard bind on their chains but prices like the
waters will still rise by natural laws which know no
respect Of persons mortal decrees but demand for
themselves the equal and implicit obedience OF all. The
attempt under circumstances 20 reduce prices as
absurd as to pour oil there with hand and try to
keep down the fame with the other You may burn your
hand but you will only nhame more and spread WIDER the
conhlgration. You must pouring on the oil il you
would not increase -you must reduce the fuel IT you
would lessen it. This is the sols road to relief All
others are illusory or will but aggrava,e the evil
An inflated and ever expanding currency is indeed,
grievous and lrghtlul evil, aud calls urgently for
remedy 1t is grevous as unsettlng all valu s-disor-
derng all trade and spreading alarm through the COM
munity-it is frightfu, because constantly advancing
with accelerated velocity il must II unchecked heva'
biy like Niagara dash itself, with all that floats on it,
over preoipce of ruin But the dangers and mischief
of it are not happily wholly irremediable and need not
be fatal
As the tabled Genie who escaping from his narrow
conGne and spreading into the dimensions Of huge
giant was still the same whether condensed or expand
ed and while terrible when not understood, was yet
by those who knew the secret OF his ma
tn the currency Of civilized States is but uit,
and approximately always of the same value whatever
may consist of and whatever its quantity. That unit Is
the value Of SO much of the worlds currency the pre-
cious metals needed for the of each particular
State Let the amount Of these be 100 millions for sny
part cular peopl then replace 1t by 200 millions, or 700
millions or 1000 millions, Of any substitute you may
employ for thema and each of these various, and va
ryng amounts always represent and equal to- that
Or mary 100 millions of the recognized currency, and
commoa measure Of value Of the civilized world which
such particular State entitled to.
If YOU have unWittingy destroyed the principle OF
limitation which is the seal of the vase the currency
like the Genie from the law of its nature, must expand
But do not be terrified Ifincreases in volume 1t essns
ia density Depreciation much decried ia the els r'edi-
catrir which, spread the currency may constantly
preserves the unity Of its nature and the uniformity oil
is value II the 100 millions become AGO. the proper
depreciation is TO l-if they expand to 1000 millions
Il should be as 10 to l, (hough if still expanding may
be more but tbs total real exchangeable value con-
aues always the same as the specie currency 1t suos
tutes Depreca Is the effort OF everything exchange
able 70 accommodate itself to the common msnsruum,
vary as that may. The producer, the laborer, the
mechanic all are adjusting prices as TO get pay in
proportion to the depreciation, and will do IL you
will keep off force /. takes place by the genueet
into every transaction OF exchange
aud is dused so equally and universally as to fall hardly
on none e1ceptthe few comparatively who are disabled
from asking for what they have or do the fair share
they are Justly entitled to demand, and whom proper
legislation ought to protect
Ia the end the 100 millions, the 900 millions ID
worth but the 100 in the sound currency, which
Placed and to which, like the genie to his vase it muf
return Ifredeemed according to its depreciation, no
holder Of it loses for all having it will have received tat
It's deprecated value. Even utterly sunk by the or
necessity ofrepudAon it is but the loss OF the loo mil
lions It's temporary evils, till resorsd would be tu;
email price for the Independence it would have secured
member that was such areved and deprecated cur
rency that sustained France agans. coaesced Europe
10 arms and carried successfully through our first
of Independence against the most powerful nation of
earth.