Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1865-11-30
RUTLAND HERALD.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 81, 1865.
The Finances.

The New York Herald OF SATURDAY
,rnlishes in full lecture delivered by
NAasM. Stillwell, ESQ., on the subject ol
ke Finances. This gentleman has had
b. and extensive experience in the
frsncial affairs in this country, and has
,ko made himself thoroughly acquaint-
d with the financial systems of nearly
a. the principal European governments.
ne following are some of the questions
mich he proposes to consider;
What is the cause of high prices 2 Is
nc price of gold ruled by the balance of
trade in foreign imports and exports, or
blythe volume of our soundly secured
bahking currency and legal tender or
Coined paper ?" In our great and ex-
wding country, tilling rapidly with an
imustrious intelligent and trading peo-
pk can We establish a fixed volume of
currency ; Shall the quantity be limi-
ted or governed, like the produce of the
MINER, merchant and manufacturer, by
II I'D price it will bring in the market
khthere any measure of value for money
1 ID our market but the rate of interest
csn money be high in price and still
i 1hundant Can money be cheap and
kt9e scarce Is the low price of money
N Europe evidence of abundance or
6rlrCity, or deprecated currency Z Are
low or high rates of interest beneficial
totrade and government loans Shall
Coz gress continue TO stultify itself by
maklng a monopoly out OF the Free
BMkng law ? Can the country be in
| Juni by allowing the people to deposit
gEernment bonds in the Treasury, for
wh Ch cash at par has been paid, and
mctve ninety per cent in notes which
| the bank must pay7 Can credits, bet
| |tersecured than any other, be too num-
|tuos
The lecturer proceeds to take cur
| sorry view of the state of the country
|preyious to the war. The commence
linen OF the war found the people of the
United States rich in all the products of
|indpstry.
lu this happy condition war came in
| Allits fearful reality. The demand for
soldiers, sailors and all the accessories
cl War produced drain upon the re-
fsS@sces of the North and South that
W8 never beIorr realizad on this conti-
|neat. Nearly two millions of the pro
ducing classes were withdrawn from
Weir daily pursuits and arrayed against
kh other in deadly strife. Powerful
hnes devastated the countrEuand des-
byed everything Of value for thou
krds OF miles, leaving great tracts un-
khabited. The North was drawn upon
brmen and means beyond any prece-
Lnt This devastating strife continued
m years, and suddenly terminated by
total exhaustion of the South. This
|&olbpse destroyed negro property, and
||AM actually annihilated two thousand
|EilliODs of personal property represent
Ia by State and Confederate bonds.
(lhese bonds represented actual personal
phr and property consumed In the war,
I'd the Southern States are left without
wnized labor or personal property,
rhi ile their population has been depleted
|)ythe loss of more than four hundred
konsand of the most active inhabitants,
md the surviving populations are in
kaIt Of all the necessaries and comforts
Ar pertain to civilized life. As the
f&nnfiCt was unprecedented in the mag
thde Of the armies engaged and the
- of life and limbs, so wa8 the ses-
uctiou of property and the disorgani-
nnOu OF labor without a parallel in
&iaOry, AS wonderful as was the con-
Hell of arms, 1t was entirely eclipsed by
be extraordinary circumstances that
lasc attended upon the termination of
be rebellion. 4 scene is presented to
Bof two great sections OF one nation,
skr d protracted and exhausting war,
Kkuding over a period of over four
yeess. and marked by bitterness of
3eshng during the contest that can
IRr1ly he parallelled, meeting again
pon the common ground of constitu-
loral rights, banishing angry feelings,
1o the victors in the struggle immedi-
zxy Offering and extending pecuniary
~ in every conceivable form to the van
SNlshed. This sudden return to peace,
1ber such circumstances, has within
~ last six months, created greater
Mn on the resources of the North than
Nhld have occurred by u prolongation
Ffhe war,
The drain Of manufactured goods,
MNres and merchandise, o. flour, grain,
aekf, pork and all the other necessaries
H. auired by the people under such cir
INSTANCES, upon northern supplies, and
A&thern capital, can be counted onl!
items of millions of dollars. Furth
bore, large proportion of the labor
~ North and South, that were with
Tu by the war, were either killed, o
hanently disabled, so that not NOR
r one fifth Of the two millions hav
arned to their former occupations a
Sucers. Here we see the operation
'he great law of supply and demand
south being exhausted in manne
cannot be realized by northern pee
Who have not visited there, and tn
noer of producers being about one
'h what 1t was before the war, the de
and is out Of all proportion to th
~ppiy, and as matter of course, th
1ce Of everything is greatly er
nced. For q similar reason tn
nount OF Foreign imports is yer