The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-10-04

Wall Street Affairs and the Financial
Condition of the Country-A Comparison.
To judge from the state Of things in Wall
stree.-trom the price and rise and fall of gold
and particularly within the last fort
night, people might suppose the country and
national finances are in very uncertain, fuc-
tuating and precarious condition. A superficial
observer, unacquainted with the cause of such
disturbances and changes, and not knowing
the domestic and foreign relations of the
country, would conclude that we had been
plunged into some terrible war or financial
crisis; that the crops had failed, or that uni
versal bankruptcy had come upon us. Yet no
nation in the world was ever so prosperous, no
national treasury was ever more replete with
money, no country ever had such abundant
and varied resources, and all this while we
have peace both at home and abroad, with no
signs of disturbance to our happy condition.
Yes the Secretary of the Treasury has nearly
all the time in his hands surplus funds to the
amount of hundred and twenty to
hundred and fifty millions of dol
lars, reckoned in currency. He has
now and has had for long time almost
as much gold in the Treasury vaults as the
Bank of England holds as the basis of the
currency circulation and financial operations
of Great Britain. He holds this hundred mil
lions or so of gold, besides large amount of
currency, at the same time he is paying off
from six to ten millions of the debt month.
The revenue comes in so much faster than the
expenditures that he is embarrassed to know
what to do with the plethora of public money.
At the rate the debt is being paid off an esti-
mate is made that 1t will be reduced at least
hundred millions during the first year of
General Grants administration. If he were to
use all the surplus money in the Treasury for
that purpose it could be reduced more than
two hundred millions in that time. Looking
at our national finances, there is no reason,
then, for monetary or gold crisis, nor for the
present premium on gold.
| And what Of the condition of the
| country? The cotton crop of this year
! will be worth three hundred millions, or
nearly so. This is a production, too, from
| only one section of the country-a pro-
duction by people who have raised, in
| addition, almost all the necessaries of
| life for their own consumption. Then we
have large amount of breadstuGs, more than
| the country needs for its own use and for expor-
/ tation Gold and silver still come in abun-
dance from the mines of California and the
| other States and Territories west of the Rocky
Puf va irbf on nd
rate other productions, as our tobacco and
sugar crops and other resources all showing
the superfuity Of wealth and prosperous con-
| dition Of the country. Does not financial
crisis, then, seem an anomaly or absurdity under
such circumstances? There is not the least
reason for it, and had the Secretary of the
| Treasury understood the duties and power of
| his position there would have been no such
trouble and excitement as we have lately wit
messed at this financial centre
1t was impossible, however, for the evil of
the gold excitement to last long or spread far.
The condition of the country and national
Treasury, as was said, would prevent that.
Those who have suffered chiefly are the few gold
and stock gamblers of Wall street, who brought
the trouble upon themselves few of those
have become a sacrifice to their own gambling
operations, and it is possible few
more may meet the same fate when
the balances are struck and accounts
settled. But the smoke Of the excitement is
clearing away, and the events Of the last ten
or twelve days will soon be thought of no
more by the mass Of the community. The
tradesmen and merchants who have not
stepped aside from their legitimate business to
speculate in gold or stocks-and we suppose
few have-are unscathed. The great CONNER
cial interests of the country remain steady.
The momentary whirlwind that swept along
might have startled those engaged In them
for an instant, but has caused no serious and
lasting disturbance. Still 1t must be admitted
that il the situation Of the country hat
been di0erent-if the crops had failed and W.
were suffering season Of general adversely
instead of enjoying universal prosperty-suct
an event might have proved very disastrous
beyond the limits of Wall street or New York
The government, with this lesson before It,
should at once take into consideration the
I question as to how the public and commercial