Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1875-08-13

spoken in SUPPORT OF it.
to specie payments, what do you mea4
by thau DO you mean that all existing debts Of
the country, thousands Of millions Of them. all
contracted upon basis deprecated fifteen eenta
on the dollar, are to be paid on certain day by Q
simply mean an impOssblllty, come when speeIa
payments may. The @ truth comes .s, iair and spau
The resumption OF spooie payments by a retro
spectve act that embraces all existing contracts
would he an outrage, an infamy and an absolute
impossibiltty, short OF revolution"
The question suggests itself how or when there
descent was easy, and there was no difficulty In
debts as we'll as new. That is settled. Now, when
! IL Ia proposed TO return, and the Government is
ready to make good ttS promises on the legal-ten-
der notes, Governor Allen says that the debtor
shall be released from so much of the debt as may
S the 20 e 81 f Oe
suppose then the Democratic plan should be
citation would increase. Debts would continue to
be contracted under the new as well as under tho
old greenDacRs an1 oy tn9 , I0vor9ors @ no tu1S t9S
more and more Of tho debt have not used
the word repudlation But ask. when on thls
plan, Is payment ever TO be madel OF one thing we
may all be well assured IL is not more certain THAI
water will run down stream than that, " you
issue more greenbacks and enlarge the volume OF
the currency, without providing for its payment,
it Will go on depreeiatlng. The Governor can not
so intend it, but the logical result OF his speech is
inevitable reputation. There is neither pay
nent nor resumption In It, There is no chance
for payment or resumption ever
Again, II the Governor shall look back upon the
history OF our greenback currency he VIII be SUR
prised that this truth came fair and spat into
his brain" now for the fTst time on the eve of
election which had never disturbed HIM in any OF
the previous much greater changes in the standard
of value by the appreciation of greenbacks. They
have stood sometimes more than fifty per cenr.
below the par OF gold, and men have al the time
done business and contracted debts and the green
backs have in the meantime appreciated, until
they nave risen wlthlh ten per cent OF
par. Whoever heard before of making
that circumstance lance defense against payment
OF an honest debit or a ground for reyolutionf
Besides, the Governor forRets that these old
greenbacks came into being under pledge that
they should be paid IN gold at the earliest period;
and every citizen Is chargeable with notice that
the currency is liable to the supposed change:
Both parties contracted with full notice of that
contingency, and when it happens neither of them
can complain. or hope 70 eyade his liability to pay
in lawful money ual that account.
There Is one point think we may fairly make
on our Democratic friends. They DO not like to
when any other word will answer as well. But
Contraction is a word which they roll under
their tongues as sweet and precious morscl
When, in extremity, Congress was about TO
issue greenbacks, the Democrats opposed the issue
there must inevitably be contraction" after it,
But now. when the time comes to return to specie
payments they blame for the contraction"
which they had long since declared to be neoes-
sity.
They say that we threatened further eontrac-
tion but have not done We do not say,
however, that some contraction may not result
from resumption II what they say Is true, that
there Is deficiency of currency there need be
contraction.
But can not suppose that the banks can resume
: without some contraction. For, although their
circulation Is absolutely secured by the deposit OF
Government bonds, yet the reserve of gold would
be more difficult to maintain than is the reserve
of greenbacks There seems to beHo inducement
sn or but little There % be- more e nor Sr
| tive to call for gold if Il should be wanted for
shipment abroad. But the banks will undoubted-
time is sufficient TO make ali nee;
as the people aud the Government must be willing
to make patriotic effort, and endure some self
denial by way of severer economy and prudence,
a for The purpose of accomplishing great, 80 good
, and so necessary an object
Let the time be regarded as unalterably fxed.
and we shall approach 1t safely and with conf
denee' France T. setting snn Us an eneoarag- cs.
!. with Prussia, in which she was ! over over,
Q powered and so heavily amerced, the
e she was compelled to suffer the Bank of France
for the time, to suspend. But January l. 1873
upon absolute certsinty, tnat that day
r specie payments VIII be resumed. The deprecia-
e tiOn Of the paper has already disappeared, SO
. nearly gone that the difference between 1t and
gold is not appreciable. Our time is but one year
Q gold shall approach each other in value will de-
: pend upon the confidence OF all parties in the
I the day fixed.
PANICs COME FROM OTHER CAUSES As WELL AS
q WANT OF CURRENCY.
The theory OF want of currency ls NOT made out
by pointing to the panic and the present quiet IN
trade. Depressions in business recur IL not peri
odically, at leasLns often as once in decade, and
e that in all enterprising countries. No Nation of
l. which have ever read has so far mastered in
= practice the true principles OF political economy
TO escape the fluctuations Of trade and the
a altations and depressons from prosperity and al
n England suffers from similar pauics five times
q to our three and Mt the present time England IL
IS experiencing depression in business a. severe
IT perhaps as our own. The failures OF business
houses in England are more frequent than in the
T. United States. II is not necessary TO stop now TO
VI inquire how 1t Ii that more failures occur in En-
n land and more frequent panios than ncre; bat il
We take General Cary rs an authority, it can not
), be for want OF currency For he says in Ills re-
t great deal more currency per capita than
naye t on GS 40 .rn mot oIs%pf % 70 & SGeeTnt cunt
v that neither the "grindng contraction" OF our
~ any want OF currency here, could create panie
~ IN England. We shall have TO look for some 9th
M would not attempt to dogmaiize on tins point
90 but sach Gibbs in the tide of business are
90 now experiencing are not unprecedented There
on probably several causes consprin@ TO produce
=, It, The stagnation, though general does not ex-
90 tend TO every kind of business,
N There is one cause which, venture to say. has
e. contributed far more TO the present depressiOn
X than the supposed want OF currency. Il Is the
"a Rlut in the market caused by overpruduetion. The
In great wars OF both Europe and this country call
10 ing foI all the products of the various uanuflc
lt turers in the shortest time al the largest profit
40 stimulated the building OF establishment Is
e. beyond all precedent both here and in Europe
After the wars had censed, these establishment Is
" and the capital which had been invested IN them
y continued TO produce. In lime OF peace, IN grcHi
= excess, the articles which had been in such
% demand in war. The consequences was that the
r. market Overstocked. This applies to every
n ant article oil iron. The devoured an that
,e could he produced Furnaces and rolling II,
M were multiplied beyond example. We are also Ia
ne consider what ia not perhaps OF less Importance
10 that the building OF railroads for this vast couRl
n has given employment TO men and iron manufac
tureTs beyond limit. But tue railroads having
. been completed and supplied with equipment, anc
u the war being over, the mannfaetures OF iron has
=, accumulated beyond tine demand.
Is The railroad Investments are also in excess, and
o' railroad competition, with the stagnatiOn In many
O kinds of manufacturing, have resulted Ia the EN-
barTassnent Of rallroad corporations SO that neat
W four hundred millions Of railroad bonds have beer
dshonored by the faiiure 10 meet their last semi
OF annual coupons. This OF itself - sncient 10 alice
Ut the financial market deeply.
10 Both labor aud capital have 20 seek other EN-
~ ployment, and large amount OF capital Is neeas
oi sarily lost in the change. Meantime the mar
10 kets gradually reeuperates the ac
cummuated production IL consumed by the nat
III uTal demand. The time required for such read
4 justments OF Investments and employments anC
s. for the consumption of accumulated products II
the market, can only be determined by eNpe
no rience.
10 The only wnnder Is, that greater embarrassment
y was not sooner experienced. But the onnse
ap