Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-10-10
QUE AaRrCuLruRAL srAPLEs.


Business men may profit by studying the
agricultural staples of the country at this
time, especially wheat and corn, and theil
scarcity in Europe. In carefully consid-
cred article the London Saturday Reuietr
estimates the deficiency of wheat grown in
England this year such as viii require the
importation of 100000 quarters Of grain,
or the equivalent in -four. This is equal
to ninety-six million bushels of wheat. The
wheat crop in France is SO small as to ne
cessitate the importation of 100000 quar-
tiers, or forty-eight million bushels. 1t viii
be difficult to supply the large wants Of
these two nations, and the scarcity in Eu-
rope will affect the price of corn as well as
of wheat, in the United States. Ehe def
cheney in the potato crop in Great Britain
and Ireland it puts at 100000 bushels.
The Bank of England has taken the alarm
at the large expectation of specie to this
country to buy grain and other staples, in
Guiding cotton. Solvent banks cannot ask
for more favorable state of foreign ex-
change in which to resume specie payments.
1t will do more to restore general conf
denee, sound credit, and improve trade and
the movement of staple crops, than any
thing else whatever. ALI feel and know
that our currency is on false basis; and
all clutch what they have, as men cling fast
to ropes and spsrs in storm at sea, in .
panic. Confidence is the essential element
in all credits, and specie payment the basis
of all confidence. 70 delay specie payment
is to force the unnecessary contraction Of
confidence and real currency on the coun-
try. ..--....
An honest, industrious, self-reliant people
will never be satisfied with an exclusive pa
per medium of exchange whose value is as
variable as the wind. Bankers who get six
per cent. interest on their .untaxed Gov
eminent bonds, and from 10 to 20 per cent.
on their circulating notes based on these
bonds, have been peculiarly favored at the
expense of the laboring classes. Things are
likely to turn the other way soon, by a
natural reaction, and bankers will show
their foresight and wisdom by meeting the
public wishes half way. Popular feeling
Vibrates from one extreme to Its opposite.
The tendency now is to dispense with
banks, paper credits, and all middle men
who are apt to abuse the credit system.
A writer in the New York Times over
the signature of Knickerbocker, says:
Everything favors resumption now. Our
imports from the LIST of January to the 1st
of October, 1873, show falling off Of $27,-
100000 from those of the same period last
year, our exports and excess during the
same period of over S48,000,000, an i'm
provement in our favor, in exact figures, Of
S75,S71, 427 for the first three quarters of
the year 1873. OF specie the exports have
been "a, 523 oil in 1873, against SIS, 075,-
1854 in 1872, and SIS, 072, Ill in 1871. This
ratio of Improvement will be daily increas-
ing for the remaining quarter.
NOur cotton, tobacco, grain, meats, cheese,
butter and other provisions are in such
and foreign demand for our sur
plus, as greatly to favor speedy return to
payment OF honest debts, in
stead of following the war practice of re-
deeming one promise by making another.
A specie currency in France helped her in
dustrious and economical people to pay
their enormous war expenses much faster
than we have paid ours with our exclusive
paper, bank monepolies. Reform is indis-
pensable and cannot come too soon.