The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-02-13
VIII Congress Give Heed to the
Legal Tender Question
THE MONETARY SITUATION
Gold Strong and Money Easy-More Cur
rency Than Is Wanted.
STOCKS DULL AND DOWN
Government and Railroad
Bonds Strong.
WALL STREET,

WALL STREET, I
THURSDAY Feb. i2-6 Z. Nj
In the peculiar course pursued BY the Treasury
Department In the manipulation Of the so-caed
legal tender reserve and In The dny- dailyng pol
Icy OF Congress with reference to the financial sit
nation, we have q reason not only for the stagna.
klon OF general trade, but oil the attitude OF the
htock market to-day. There is no confidence. On
Pho contrary. every businea man is in suspense.
He cannot tell twenty-four hours IN advance what
oscillations may be added to those which have al
READY taken place to undermine his plans. He
consequently dare not engage In new ventures,
enlarge hts capital, stir his machinery beyond the
absolute demands OF the moment, or take any
step whatever that may jeopardize his invested
capital and SO produce ruin. In tact the govern
ment itself L. standing in the way OF
NATIONAL PROSPERITY,
and were it not that the country Is inherently
strong, abundant in resources and promising IN It's
growth, we should see misfortune AZ the result or
khe instability Of prices and the unsteadiness Of
business caused by the very hand that should be
khe nrst raised to anord relief These legal tender
notes from the very nour OF their issue have done
more to demoralize the commerce OF the naton
khan all other things combined. They immensely
Increased the cost Of war; they have enhanced
khe expenses Of government since the restoration
hn judicious enterprises; driven specie from cir
culation and made 1t merchandise; sent to foreign
countries the product OF our mines; established
themselves as an incubus that grows in weight
from hour to hour, and to-day come up like Ban
Quos ghost unbidden to feast TO frighten the in
nustfies OF the land and threaten even greater
Evils than those which have preceded
GOLD
opened at 112H, and retained much Of its strength
nurng the greater part OF the day, but the market
MAS severely pounded toward the close, and we
have the result in close at ll2,1. The temper of
The operators II strongly favorable to higher
prices, and 1t bases itself on the symptoms thrown
out by Congress. More greenbacks means higher
gold. Every legal tender possesses speculative
value measured by the Wall street standard, and
she market evidently waits on the changes re-
ported from Washington. The rates paid for carry
Ing to-day were 8, 4, 3H, and per cent
OPERATIONS OF THE GOLD EXCHANGE BANK TO-DAY
Gold balances s., 225, 2o2
RIoSs C1eafhhCes. 4S,99S,0O0
h. CLEARING HOUSE STATEMENT.
Nuffency exchanges $72, 818, 500
Sulsency Oaiances.'. 24%S. 491
900 exchanges Observation-Disclosures. 9,760,932
NVlO uSISoCco. 17oU,487
MONEY
continues easy at 4 and per cent on call loans
and and per cent as exceptional rates to those
who IRE early or late in the market. The supply Of
mercantile paper Ii small and the price Of the
Same remains unaltered from our last quotations.
Foreign exchange was quiet and firm; the asking
Rates remain at 81 IS for prime bankers sixty
days sterling. and 81 ssH for demand, with bust
ness at 81 SAX and 81 SO. Commercial bills con-
tinue scarce. Continental exchange was firm for
Reichmarks at 90 96>s for long, 96X a 81 for de.
mand, and ok 97H for cables. Prime Paris
francs are quoted at S. l7H and IS 12H. Bankers
Sterling or all kinds Is offered sparingly.
THE FOREIGN MARKET.
Late cable advices state that the bullion in the
Bank Of England increased f2o5,oo during the
week. The rate of discount up to the present time
remains unchanged The London market for secu-
.kties is flrm. and street money on three months'
bills Ia at the same rate as charged at the
bank. Paris dispatches quote rentes at
HsE s2kc. The specie In the Bank Of
France has increased ACoO, 00oL during the
past week. In Amsterdam prices were
rs Central Pacific first mortgage bonds,
63H; Union Pacific first mortgage bonds, 73X;
Union Pacific shares, 3OX; Northwest preferred,
81; st. Paul preferred, 65; Erie shares 43H.
The proportion of the Bank of England reserve
70 liabilities, which was last week 4ex per cent,
Is now ASK per cent. The following are the late
london prices, American securities being reported
quiet and dull :-Consols Tor money, 81 1916 O 90;
DO. for account. 90 lilo 92h; hve-twenty bonds
OF 1865 old, 1921 l091 do. do, 1867, 1922; ten
forty bonds. 1867 a 1861; new nves, 1881 Erie
Railway shares, 44x Az; New York Central
phares, 96h The Bank rate is unchanged
THE UNITED STATES TREASURY.
The increase in legal tenders since yesterday Ii
364,912 The revenue receipts to-day were $296OOO.
The customs receipts we're $56l. 900. The Treasury
balances at the close Of business to-day were:-
Currency, $4,15s,2e5; special deposits OF legal
kand aNar NIT of AGO. nf
S4s, $4,000; coin, $79,224.O65, including coin Ger.
kincates, $44,s55,6Oo outstanding legal tenders,
1881 354,927. 1t will be observed that the specie
balance shows a large decrease. This IS doubtless
due to the peculiar bookkeeping Of the Treasury,
whereby, until to-day the fact has been concealed
shat the Secretary was 81, 500 900 Short conse.
quence OF his gold payments on the loan OF 1858,
which necessarily reduced his figures to some
$40, 2O0, 0C0. 1t is not remarkable that this public
institution should be run like an individual account
that awaits the visit OF sheriff. The customs re.
,ceipts for the week ending February 7, were
33Soo,O00.
SOUTHERN SECURITIES.
In State bonds the transactions were small.
Missouri SKIES sold at 931s; Missouri Hannibal and
st. Joseph issue, at 81 ask, and Tennessees at
S3H S3x. The latest bids were as follows:-
Missouri skies. %; do. DO, Asylum or University,
i69k; do. do, Hannibal and St. Joseph issue, 81:
Tennessee skies, old, So; do. do, old, ex-coupon,
e3X; do. do new. ex-coupon, e4'S; do do, new
series, e4H; virginia SKIES, old 3ss do. do, con-
solidated, sly; Georgia SKIES, rs; do. sevens,
endorsed, II; North Carolina skies, North Caro-
lima Railroad. January and July, IS; do. do, do,
April and October, IS; do. do, do. on January
and July, rs; do. do, do, Oh, April and Octo-
Der, rs; do, Funding act, 1885, "a; d., special
TAX, class No. 1, II; do, do, class No. 2, IL;
DO, DO, class No. g. 1OX: South Carolina skies,