Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-05-07
QUE FINANCIaL wors

An esteemed friend in the lower sec
ton of the State writes us in kindly
tones some structures on the course of
the UNION AND AMERICAN as to
national finances, the pith of his argu-
ment being that ''a return at this time
to specie currency, or even a contrac-
ton, is generally regarded as equiva-
lent to confscation." Surprising that,
by specie currency, our friend means a
currency based on specie, as before the
war, there was in our opinion an epoch
of the September panic when the "con-
fiscation" involved had already been in
fiicted, and the whole machinery could
have been placed on a solid basis with
out further loss to any one. 1t was
golden opportunity, but Radi-
cal manipulators were too deep
in the present system to seize it. If, as
the infationists contend, there is not
enough currency for business, very few
notes would seek the redemption of
fered; for who would prefer gold dol
lar when a paper dollar became
of the same value? Strength
of confidence in the Government was
not wanting, even in the midst of the
panic, and greenbacks actually approx
mated closer to gold than ever before.
That opportunity has passed, only to
return sometime at the expense OF a
worse crash, to avert which latter the
UNION AND AMERICAN has, from the
assembling of Congress, urged that all
financial legislation should look steadi-
ly toward specie resumption at some
set date. We have never been con-
tractionist, nor do we believe there is
any squad of respectable numbers
in or out of Congress, who favor
contraction. The great and terrible
contraction was made shortly after the
war, doubling the dues of every debtor.
Thousands of men here in Tennessee
bought property and merchandise and
made contracts on the war volume of
currency. When payday came the
currency had shrunk one-half and they
had to pay in dollars worth double the
amount Of the dollars which they had
promised. That was coniscation. 1t
was to check and remedy this slaughter
of the debtor class, that the Pendle-
tonian scheme was suggested IN 1867
and 1868, but Northern debtors proved
too .'loyal" to know they were hurt.
Seven years of limitation have now
passed, and the country has adjusted
itself to another volume as best might.
The Pendleton proposition was an
expedient to meet a then pressing evil.
Congress is now devising other ex-
pedients to meet a panic which has
past. The unerring gold barometer
now ranges st about the same figures
as before September last, showing that
we have recovered all We can hope for
under the existing system. As we
believe there areno real contractionists,
so we believe there are no infiatiOnists
who really desire to see gold ruin up
into the twenties, or thirties, or forties.
Yet the barometer shows that any
further imitation viii inevitably do it.
Imitation does not offer even temporary
relief to an agricultural section like
ours. All we buy-sugar, coffee,
protected iron, corresponds IN
stantly to the gold pre-
MUM, while all We sell lags far be-
hind. How many times has not the
farmer been told that coffee had risen
two cents, three cents, even five cents a
pound, on account Of gold. But did he
get a similar advance on his own pro-
duce: The present national system of
finances is a centralized one, which
favors this discrepancy of results
against farmers distant from the Gen.
ter. Radicalism must be swept away
before we can begin the difficult work
of readjusting finances into healthy
equalized system. Meanwhile, the least
this Congress does, the least mischief
will be done.