New-York tribune., 1874-05-22
A SH1NEEIL STATE OF THINGS

The Bank of France, having decided to get
gold and resume specie payments, Is now
drawing gold from this country at the rate OF
two OF three million dollars week. For
several months the Bank of France has been
drawing gold from London, and to fill the
vacuum the Bank of England is now drawing
gold from NewYork. There is no mistake
about the facts, and there is no difficulty
about explaining them. BY the last detailed
statement received by mail the note circulation
of the Bank of France was five hundred and
eleven million dollars. On the 30th of OctO-
Der. 1873. it was six hundred and two million
dollars The decrease is ninety one million dol
lars in twenty-seven weeks. On the other side
of the account the Bank held in specie on the
3Oth of October. 1878, S1450OO,OO0, and on the
eth of May, 1874, S219,OOO,OOO. The increase is
s74OOO,000. Putting the two movements to-
gether, the Bank may be said to be Sl65, 100000
nearer specie payments than it was six and a
half months ago. During the same period the
United States have added over twenty million
dollars to their deprecated paper and are now
sending the produce of their gold and silver
mines to supply France with an honest cur
rency. Why cannot we have an honest cur
rency as well as Francei
The Bank of France has unquestionably
been enabled to contract the paper money Of
that country ninety million dollars, and to put
in its vaults seventy-fve millions of specie,
mainly drawn from other countries, by reason
Of the great dullness and prostratiOn of busi-
ness which prevails in Europe as well as in
America. 1t is little remarkable that the
prostratOn of business, of which the French
bank has made such judiciOus use to restore
the specie standard, should in the United
States be made the excuse for further infla-
that our paper circulation could have been con-
tracted fifty million dollars, and perhaps more,
within the last six months without the least
harm to the trade and industry of the coun-
try. There is at this hour that amount of
idle currency in the banks which could be
drawn from them in exchange for United
States bonds without any bad consequences at
all comparable to the benefits which would
result. AS it is, that currency remains to
stimulate the next initiation, which will begin
with the return of breath to spectators and
credulity to their destined victims. No sooner
will the flush of health appear on the cheek
of industry than the poison will begin its work
in the blood.
We cannot close without again calling at
tention to the singularly direct refutation
which the present movements of gold give to
the balance of trade theories of Mr.. Boutwell,.
The balance of trade has been enormously in
our favor ever since the end of October, the
excess of exports of merchandise over imports
having averaged about twenty million dollars
month. The very opposite has been the
case with France. For the first three months
of the current year the French imports have
been S1s5,O00000, or $30,0OO0OO more than for
the same period in 1872. The exports have
been $17l,OOO0O0, or $23,OOOOOO less than
in 1872. Here is loss on "cash
"balance" of s53,0O0Y0Oo as compared with
last year. What is the explanation Of