The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-09-14
CONFEDERATE CREDIT AND DIS.
CREDIT.

From he Times
The financial affairs of the Confedoracy are
getting into a worse condition every day. The
new Secretary of the Treasury is at his wits end,
and has nothing better to offer by way of remedy
than the following SUGGESTION
"Our people are committing an act of great
folly 20 be buying property OF all kinds at ten
times what it will bring when the war is over,
while foreigners are buying their six, seyen and
eight per cent bonds and carrying them abroad"
This piece Of counsel can only have been die
tated by an exceedingly contemplate opinion OF
the Confederate public; for they know perfectly
well-and Mr.. Trenholm knows they know
that foreigners are buying Confederate cotton
bonds because those bonds are payable in cotton
at low rate in the COniederacy, which carried
through the blockade, sells at high rate abroad.
But Confederate notes are not payable in
cotton and are based imply on Confederate good
faith, and this stands so low in the estimation Of
the Confederate people that these notes are worth
now five cents on the dollar only. The press Is
making desperate efforts 10 put u good face on
the matter by drawing glowing pictures of Con-
federate resources and of the Confederate future,
and says sagely -" There is but one cure for the
agony which the multitude is now suffering from
this anomalous condition of atfdirs-the public
confidence in the currency must be restored"
This is like saying Of a dangerously sick man :
-"There is but one remedy for this mans case
He must be cured." "Mr. Plkns," said DIR.
Parker Peps, when called in to attend Mrs. OOA-
hey, 'is OF opinion with me, that nature must be
cal ed on 10 make vigorous effort in this In
stance, and that If our interesting friend Mrs.
Dombey should not be able TO make that effort
successfully, then crisis might arise which we
should all deplore." This is very much the con-
dtion of the Confederate credit. 1t has to make
an effort to be good and If 1t should not succeed,
something dsagreeable will happen.
By way of raising the public faith in il, or in
other words satisfying the Soathern public that
Nha Ral,a nul Ny M IA FD1 fhA
iner makes use of some choice arguments. The
first is that the South is composed of a naughty,
proud people, whose especial weakness of clarac-
ter is supposed TO be a quiXotic regard for their
personal honor" We do not thinkthis no gever,
Is likely to have much weight, iuasmuch as the
SoutheTners know as well as anybody that per-
sOnal pride does not make men pay their dents.
No capitalist ever lent money on any such
The prouder aristocracy is in every country,
the more it is apt to Owe and the less willing is
it 10 pay. If"persOnal pride" were considered a
good guarantee in the money market, we should
have proud gentlemen swarming on every eX-
change in the world, and easing the humble and
creduOus of all their spare cash. Moreover, It is
pretty well known that personal pride" has not
saved our Southern brethren trOm the commits
sion of one two very dirty tricks. Mississippi,
for instance, though the population is in the mat
ter Of personal PRIDE match for Luciter himself,
was not prevented thereby from repudiaung a
very small debt in a very bareiaced manner,
under the lead of no less parsonage than MI.
Jefferson Davis, who, on that interesting occa-
sion, laid down the doctrine that one generation
was not bound to discharge obligations contracted
by preceding one. In other words we suppose
that each generation has just pride enough to
nav debts OF its contracting, but not enough to
cancel those of its fathers. Suppose, therefore
the men of 1900 should find their stock running
low, under the pressure Of hard times what
would become Of the bills run up by the men OF
lS6li
The second argument is, that so many Of the
Confederate obligations have gone and are going
abroad, that the Confederacy would not ba
allowed TO repudiate even if il were disposed TO
do so. This may be true Of the Confederate cot,
ton bonds, but we have TO hear OF any demand