The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1876-11-06

lated 10 ipjure our public credit abroad, and
wnat the influence of such an event would be
Oh our business interests at home. We should
be glad to have you before leaving the city favor
us with an expression of your views upon this
question, which is one of great Importance to
all classes of our people.
With much resDect,
Elliot G. Cowden, III. Stursberg.
E D. Morgan & Co., Lewis Bros. & Co.,
John Jay, W. Stursberg,
Thos. Il. Thornell, Nj. ID. Lehman,
aud others.
Hon. Carl Schurz.
SEIZURES REPLY.
New YORK. Oct 81, 1876.
Gentemen:-In ponse TO your kind letter.
beg leave to say that did not deem it neces-
essary TO discuss in my public speeches the
question upon which you invite from me an
expression of opinion, believing that the natu-
raj instinct of business men would suggest to
them all that can be said about the effect of
Democratic victory upon our public credit
abroad and, correspondingly upon our business
affairs at home But since you desire it, L shall
give you, with pleasure, my views on that
matter
Some time ago saw it stated in the news
papers. apparently on good authority, that the
Secretary of the Treasury had Re ceived nfor-
nation from financial men in Europe to the
effect that Democratic victory would seri-
ously embarrass, il not altogether arrest, the
funding OF our national debt at lower rate of
interest, and generally depress the market
Vdiu6 Oh our ndUlOual SECURITIES. nllo can
we'll understand that such adviceS should have
come across the ocean, have no personal
knowledge OF them, and can only reason on the
general aspects of the Case and my owe expert
ence of the drift of European opinion.
Mr. August Belmont in his letter on the
same subject recently addressed to the Evening
Express, stated that "the safety and wisdom of
investment in The funded debt OF the govern
ment of the United States do not not depend
upon Presidential elections. in the opinion of
nI.Ctp a.,I
than the soundness of English consols depends
on whether the ministry is Tory or LIBERIA.
He reiterated the same statement in a speech
last night, The question is not why MIR. Bel
mont urges such views. but whether such
would be the current opinion among European
investors generally; for it is upon the conf
dence of investors, large and small, that the
value OF securities will ultimately depend.
This is an important point which Mr.. Belmont
has not seen tit to mention, aud in this respect
there is a striking difference between the re-
lations of political parties in England TO the
public debt OF that country, aud thu relations OF
political parties here to the national debt of the
United States. However much or little inter-
est Europeans may take in our political strug-
giles, that difference is well calculated to arrest
their attention, as it undoubtedly does The
English debt was for the most part created in
consequence of wars between England and
foreign powers, in which neither political party
was to any great extent identified or in strong
sympathy with the enemy. La the course Of
time all differences of opinion as to the ex-
pediency of such wars have been completely
neutralized, and the debt has, therefore
always rested upon the support of a strong
national feeling common to all English men,
aside from widely diffused pecuniary interest.
There is at present in England not single
public man OF character or influence in either
party the sincerity OF whose desire to all
national obligations faithfully discharged ac-
cording to law is in the least doubted by any,
body.
On the other hand, the world knows, and ev-
cry investor in United States securities, dow o
to the owner of single 800 bond, knows that
the war to which our national debt owes its orr
gin was not foreign war, in which all parts of
this country had an equally patriotic share, but
civil war, virtually carried OIL by Que part of
the country against the other; in other words,
that the debt was created by the national gov
ernment controlled by the people of the north
ern section of the country, for the purpose of
subduing great rebellion set on foot by the
we may employ to that end, it will be difficult
it not entirely impossible, to make the world
believe that the white people of the South,
whose ambition to set up an independent gov
eminent for themselves was defeated by mea rs
OF our national debt. will regard that very debt
as sacred obligation of honor and patriotism,
in the same measure as it certainly will always
be regarded by those who created it for the pur-
pose Of saving the integrity of the republic
This, think, is stating the case in its mildest
form. Nothing could be more unfortunate 10
this respect than that the Democratic party
should have impressed all observers of current
events with the fact that its success in the Pres
idental election is to be accomplished by the
votes of a united South, under the control of
the late Confederates, aided by small number
of Northern states 1t is to be expected if a
Democratic victory be achieved in that way,
that the world will regard the late Confederates
of the South as numerically the strongest ele-
ment in the victorious party; and the concu-
sion lies near, that this element, especially as
it will inevitably furnish the bulk of Demo-
cratic representatives in Congress. will WELD
organization. If that be so, those who have
invested, or might, under other circumstances
be induced to invest, in United States securi-
ties, will scarcely be inclined to give their con-
ndence TO party government in great meas
ure controlled by class of men who, when the
debt was created, regarded the national credit
tor as the ally of their enemies, and the natiou-
al debt itself as the engine of their discomit-
ure.
see. therefore, strong reasons to apprehend,
as know that apprehension to exist in the
minds OF many financial men of influence, that
the market value of national securities de-
ponds in much greater measure upon the re-
suit OF our Presidential election than "the
soundness of English consols depends GU wheth-
er the ministry is tory or liberal" The differ
ence OF the two cases is evident 1t should not
be forgotten that public opinion abroad is apt
to believe the policy of republican governments
atoms. and that this belief, however unjust IN
some cases, predisposes the public mind to un.
favorable Impressions. Moreover, owing to
past events, the idea of reputation is, in the
European mind, unfortunately associated with
Southern state, and it is still remembered that
the Democratic party IN 1868 pronounced in IA
vor OF paying off part of our bonded debt in
deprecated greenbacks-a policy of partial re-
pudiation. Neither will the credit which is at
tached to Mr.. Tilden's financial views and in
tentions be sufficient to counterbalance the dis.
quoting apprehenslOus created by the character
and antecedents of the party behind him, espe-
clally as the succession to the Presidency of Mr..
H!esn5drcks, in case of accident, would open
still more alarming prospect. Considering the
tlmidity OF capital and the sensitiveness of cred
1t, all these things combined would seem to me
well calculated, should the Democratic party
triumph, to have an unfavorable effect upon
markets of the world.
How far that effect would 60, it is certainly
difficult to estimate 1t may be small. but il
may be great At any rate, it seems to me
tnat tnose VINO tninK IL of little consequence
to US whether the bondholders lose certain
percentage OF the value of their bonds" take
very superficial view of the matter 1t
would require only a comparatively slight dis
turDance OF our national credit to stop the
funding OF our securities at a lower rate of in
terest, and thus to prevent the annual saving
TO our national treasury of a considerable
amount of money. And it is scarcely neces-
sdry 10 Tell business men that heavy decline
in the market valLe of our securities would
bring on consequences of a very serious ma
ture to them. In the city of New York
alone about $136, 900, 900 of our national bonds
are held by banks, savings institutions trust
companies and life, fire and marine insurance
companies. These bonds form, aside from the
ready cash, their most reliable aud most avail
aele assets that can be used in case of emer-
gency. The effect of heavy fall in the gold
value of those assets would scarcely be nen-
tralized by an accompanying rise in gold, for
it would be calculated to create wde-spread
dlstrust as TO the safety of those institutions
OF credit and, where such a disrust, when
once started, will stop, nobody can foretell.
Such effects would be all the more dangerous,
as the number of persons directly interested
in those institutions is immense, especially in
the northern part of the Union. According
to the census of 1870, the savings banks of only
nine states-the SIX New England States, New
York. New Jersey and California-haye 3 200 =
600 depositors, and the amount of their depos-
its is about $1,20000000O In the life insur-
ance companies doing business in New York,
no less than 100000 persons are interested and
tnelr policies run up to an aggregate of about
$l.9Oc,O 100000 All these and lsimilar interests
OF equal magnitude, which L need not enumer-
ate, depend to very great extent upon the
value OF our national securities, our public
credit That which md A.