The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-03-19

the future is one of doubt and specula
ton. No one will presume to cOntrovert
these facts. We then have to look for the
cause of these sore evils. Maury county
owes every foot of land she owed in more
prosperous days, and her lands for the
last five years have been improved in fer
tility The lands are under better fenc,
and in a finer state of cultivation than
they have beea since 1861. Valuable i'm
provements in the way of dwell ing house,,
barns, stables and oUt-hOuses have been
put upon the lands; large quantities Of
machinery and farming implements of the
best quality and OF modern and improved
style. have been added to the agri cultural
wealth of our country. We have on hand
or being careful and econOmiCal) enough
| o corn. hay and other provender to make
a crop the present J ear aud there is meat
and bread stuff eaCugh, if economical y
managed, 10 feed our population, while
the next crop is being raised yet with all
| these advantages we are more heavily
pressed than We were in lS65-66. The
cry on every hand is money, money,
money. Ali eyes have been turned 10
Washington City, ard our Senators and
Representatives in Congress have been
instructed TO provide some means where
| By the country should be furnished with
! currency enough 10 meet the pressing de-
nauds Of the people. But all IN vain.
| The bond and bank mOnopOHcs of the
North have prevailed, and we can expect
| no assistance or relief from that quarter,
| at least for some time to come. he
Legislature Of our State, now in session,
have the subject under consideration, and
may or may not give relief. In this statS
Of things the real estate of our country
has deprecated at least twenty-five per
cent. Upon the other hand all classes OF
stocks, money and convertible securities
have risen in a corresponding ratio. The
demand for real estate Is constantly GO
ing down, and the demand for money and
bonds is constantly goingup. The rents
Of land and the profits of real estate are
every day growing less and less while
money and bonds bring their owners ten
per cent. The effect Of all this is to de-
press the farmers, and to hold the great
agricultural interest Of the country sub
servient 20 mon, y ceuteTs, not in Iennes
see, but in our more fortunate nOI thern
sister States 1t is a notorious fact that
money has not been easier in ten years IN
New York than it is to-day. The cues
| ton then naturally arises, why IS the de-
mand for money here III the South so
great? The answer is, the people are in
! de5t and must pay, If execution sales
! are pressed under the present strmgency
| of the money market property, both real
! and personal. vii! go at n rulnOus saCrI-
! fee, and bankruptcy must be the inevlta-
| ole result to hundreds OF our best citI
zens.
ln this state Of things is there no relict?
insist there Is; and il we are but true to
ourselves and our noble order, six months
will not pass by before the people Of
Msury county will be independent and
PROSPEROUS. Upon this branch of the
subject, | desire your thoughtful atten-
ton The great body Of our Indebtedness
is at home Outside Of merchants, the
people owe but few debts out Of the couu-
", or at least the proportion Will be small
Maury county, am reliably informed, Is
out Of debt, and her credit Is good st
home and abroad, her resources are i'm
mcnse, aud her geographical advantages
are probably unrNaled by any county IN
the State.
Now what ] propose is to build up tie
system of turnpike roads Gin which tic
county Is deeply Interested and at the
same time supply our pcOuIe with home
currency that will meet almost the entire
local demand for money. Let the county
issue say two hundred thousand dollars O
county bonds, running twenty years, IL
denominations Of from five to fifty dol
lars. bearing interest at the rate of SIX
per cent. per auuum, and receivable IL
payment Of county taxes Let the bonds
be issued to a company properly organ
lied under existing laws, with good Sc
curity, that the bonds shall be Iightfu!y
and iudicially expended in building tht
road, and as soon as any section OF road
is completed, put up gate on the same
and appropriate the proceeds to the pay
men OF the iuterls st on the bonds used il
It's construction The little five ten, fiji
teen, twenty or fifty dollar bond, after il
has run few months, would be better
han "a greenbaCk bill of the same demon
nation because it would all the time be
growing larger. They would circulate
from house to house, and would pay the
gNat body Of the Indebtedness OF the cOun-
", and thus give Us a currency better than
Tennessee Warrants, and as good, or bet
ter than grceubackS We thus accom-
pllsh that great systcm of turnplkes III
which We have heretofore felt so much
interest and at the same time furnish ia
the country q circulating medium sufii-
cicut to meet the local demands of our
people Where is the man that would
not as soon have nicely executed FIVE
dollar bond on Maury county, drawing SIX
per cent interest as to have a five dol
lar Treasury nute2 But some, no doubt,
are ready to object, bdcaJse it will be
Creating a large county debt, and the
people would have to be taxed to pay the
the interest on the bonds Well, let 5
s,c if that Is SO. Ii is believed by good
men aud men Of Judgment and expert
eu,e, that the pike from the williamson
county line To Columbia can be repaired
for one thousand dollars per mile; but
suppose you put it to twelve hundred dol
lars per mile, the distance is eleven miles;
then the whole amount of cost to repair
the road, would be thirteen thousand two
hundred dollars. The interest o. that
sum at SIN per cent. per annum would be
S792G 90. Now put two gates on that sec
! ton of road aud can there be any doubt
that tho, two gates will pay the 1872 co
per auuum2 | think not Then if so,
/ yoI get the use o'SI3, geo for twenty years
for nothing. Ifthe motley is judicially
/ expended, there is not pike in the cOun-
! ~ but what would pay the interest on the
money used in its construction. But sup
| pose they did not pay the interest on the
! bonds. We will have saved the country
/ frou ruin by giving the people the use Of
| two hundred thousand dollars at time
when If they do not get 1t the loss they
will sust ain in the sacrifice of property,
and the depreciation of real estate will
more than double the sum, and in addi-
ZION to this the country gets the use and
benefit Of good roads something the
country Is almost destitute Of, and which
the country needs and must have in order
TO facilitate the people on the road to
prosperity and happiness.
have merely glanced at the subject in
the foregoing suggestions, hoping they
may induce our uob.e Order to take hold
Of the sE Hicct aud try to see if something
can ba done for the relief CT our people
before many as of viii be forced into bank
ruptty. It's estimated that these bonds
shall not be disposed Of for less than
their face value. PATRON.
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