The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1866-01-30
Financial AFFAIR. i'm England.

land:
AS regards the probability of lnrge
credits having been granted America,
it would be difficult, in any other
way, to account for the cessation
during the past two months of gold
arrivals from that country. Our ex-
portations thither have been on an
extraordinary scale, and in return she
has had little produce to transmit to
us, the cotton shipments being still
limited, while in the grain trade the
high cost of transportation and of all
the necessalies of life consequent
upon excessive taxation, combined
with protective tariff, have caused
Russia, Germany and France almost
entirely to drive her from competi-
ton. During the whole Of this year
she has sent only 1858, O57 cwt of
wheat and flour, against 9,573, 437 in
1864, and 1882, 525 in 1868. Even
of petroleum, her new source of
wealth, the quantity shipped hitler
this year has been but $3.50 tons,
against Is, 455 in 1864, and 1922 in
1868. Among the Continental colln-
tries at the same time there has been
a furor for purchasing United States
bonds, SO that all the riches they have
derived from the great increase of
their grain traffic have disappeared
from Europe to be represented
simply by these or analogous securi-
ties. So long as the causes thus de-
scrlbed continue, so long must the
gradual rise in the rate of discount
continue, and there is at present every
indication that they will greatly in
crease during the new year. The
railway projects to be introduced into
Parliament are most vast than on any
previous occasion within the last
twenty years, and the arrangements
on the part of American spectators
to attract funds from this side for the
restoration of their country have as
yet assumed but little of their con-
templated proportions. If we are to
persist in employing large portion
of our population ut high wages in
works which withdraw them from the
manufacture of eXportable articles
that would bring us back cash or its
equivalent, and at. the same time i'm
sending constantly increasing
amounts of cash to America, we can
not expect to have the ordinary sup
ply at home. The rate of interest
must rise to the point, whatever it
may be, that will stay the rage both
for plunging capital into bricks and
mortar, an for shipping it off to the
United States. To q large class the
prospect is disagreeable, and these
persons would like the Bank Charter
A0t tN u
instead of being compelled to put up
its rate for money i'll precise accord
ance with the demand, might supply
it to New York on the one hand, and
our large contractors on the other, at
terms that would seem more pleasant,
until notes, being no longer synony-
nous with gold, we might fraternize
with America in Il mutual currency of
greenbacks. Happily, the time is
long past when the real commercial
public Of England could be deluded
by the follies of these people; but
there is danger that they may fail to
estimate the extent of the corrective
that will be one day required to arrest
the headlong commitments of the
speculative multitude. During the
pe"'o WV VI tliiC y Gals CllcSc OI)c-
rators have become used to rates of
discount, the very approach Of which
would previously have sufficed to
create a general contraction of COM
mitments; and having seen that after
clearing off Il few of the unsound
concerns most ready for dissolution,
the movement has led to q reaction,
they have learned to look ut the
warning merely as that of little
pressure soon destined to pass away,
although extremely annoying for the
moment. Henccforth, therefore,
when q great crisis is at hand, it will
not be concurrent with Il rate of dis
count of only eight or nine per cent.
More likely twelve, fifteen or twenty
per cent. will have to be endured;
and although it would be idle to CON
lecture whether the trial is to come
this year, OF the next, or the year
following, it will be well for all per-
sons pledging themselves to future
liabilities to frame their calculations
on the possibility that the storm may
overtake them at any instant
The following is an abstract of the
gross produce of the revenue of
Great Britain during the year 1865
compared with the receipts in 1o54:
1864 1865.
Customs. go. ..... f22. So, 600 col, ,7O7, 600
Excise. ........... 19, ,343 00G 1868, 900
Stamps. ......... 9,463, 900 9G36. 900
Taxes. ...... 3,261 900 1864, 900
Property Tax. -. 1890 1908, 900
Post Office ....... 1860, 900 1850 900