Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1876-09-15
From the Chicago Tribune.
RmsIncss ProspeeIs.


been aouuus..i, aid cheap; uVr 70 ~ III
eonN ertIDle paper currency, Tor the salne
state Of Things has prevailed in England
ana Germany, where there Is coin Uasls.
Imitation no doubt laid the foundation for
the disturbanee-intation resulting from
paper currency and the war in this country,
anu by the enormous expenditures caused
by the German-kranco war in Europe.
England, although not engaged IN war, was
minated IN her business, having been aIfect-
ed by the fictitious prosperity IN tue Unit
ed states and Germany. Tnis LED, every
where, in commercial countries, 10 over
production, over-trding, and wild specula-
non. In this country, while the Govern-
ment was providing lOr the war expenses,
largely by Issuing paper money, the impress
sion was created that the country, WITH two
million men in the field, Withdrawn from
industrial pursuits, and in consuming and
destroying food and property, was increaS-
ing Ill wealth. The paper dollar, worth
only forty to fifty cents In real money, was
stlII called dollar, and in all departments
Of industry values were adjusted according
ly. Thus a scale of extravaganza was is
tabllshed, that no people on the face of the
earth could long endure, and measured by
the fictitious standard, it seemed as If the
country, while engaged in a destructive
war, had IN i've years made greater pro-
greSs IN material wealth than In any pre-
cedlng ten years of peace. This gave rise
TO over production, wild speculation, and
all attending evils, extending through eV'
cry branch Of trade and through all The
ramlhcatiOnS of society.
As a matter of course this bubble OF nctl
tious prosperity had to be punctured, anc
it was exploded in 1873. The failure OF
the Northern Pacific Railroad enterprise
was not the cause of the explosion, ou'
simply the occasion. If a superabundanct
Of paper money could have prevented the
panic it never could have occurred; and
paper money could have restored conn'
Genee, there never would have been any Sc,
Tious loss of confidence. Rain and wind
do not cause the thunder storm, but art
the result of the condition of the atmos'
phere, and the explosions that occur are
necessary to the removal of the cause. Sc
it is in business. The state of things pro-
duced by the war, and aggravated by the
war expenditures, could not last. A puri-
icatiOn became necessary, a readjustmenI
essential to a healthy state of business.
The process has not been agreeable, but il
had TO be endured. 1t could not have
been avoided. Legislation is not response
bic for II, nor is the absence of legislation.
Neither acts Of Congress, nor political plat
forms, nor financial theories could have
prevented the revulsiOn. The system was
IN an unwhoiesome and unnatural condition
and the depression that has prevailed has
been the result of the natural laws of trade
exerting themselves, The treatment has
been severe, but it has been effective. The
patient Is now convaleScent. The recov-
cry has not been sudden. nor will'it be rap
id, but looking at the condition of the
country as it is to-day, it is safe to con-
clude that it viii be steady and reliable.
While specie payments have not been re-
samed, steady progress has been made in
that direction, In point of fact the bust
ness Of the country is on specie basis,
taking it altogether, and between the paper
dollar and the gold dollar there is differ
ence Of only ten points. This difference
viii be further reduced and ultimately
wiped out, not by any spasmodio move
ment, or by any act of Congress, but by
the operation Of the laws of trade, and the
less these are hampered by legislation the
sooner and the more easily will the final
and much-to-be-desired result be reached.
1t only remains now for the country to
keep steadily on in the direction of specie
payments, and the paper currency will
gradually advance until it reaches par with
gold. This course will be in harmony with
the general course of trade, A different
one would be destructive Forced imitation
would be disastrous. War measures can
not be successfully repeated in times of
peace. Forced initiation now would not have
the effect many suppose. The infationists
imagine that because a food of paper mon
ey sent prices hting during the war, a
flood of paper money would have the same
effect now; but such course would de-
stroy confidence, and trade can never be
successfully set in motion on the ruins of
confidence. What is wanted now is not
more money, for that is plenty enough, but
a restoration of confidence. Convince the
capitalists. and the merchants and manufac-
turers, and all those who manage the ip-
dustries of the country, that the bottom
has been reached, and business will gFadu-
ally but surely revive.
We have an illustration Of this in the fl
nanees of the Government. By adhering
TO the letter and the spirit of the law, the
government credit has advanced, until to-
day it is not second to that OF any nation
in the world. This would not have been
the case had the imitation or semi-repudia-
ton theory prevailed. Hence we find it
possible to negotiate AZ per cent. loan,
and the probability that even per cent.
loan can be successfully placed. But how
does this effect the business interests of the
country? Much every way. The high
rate of interest paid by the Government
was, in itself, great evil, because it fixed
the value of money at a, high figure. This
besides, induced men of means to with
draw from active pursuits, because they
could place their money where it would be
absolutely safe, and realize 515@6 per cent.
interest, free from taxation. Not only the
interest on money, but house rents were adj
jgsted to this standard, and house rents af-
feet the price of living and the price of Ia
Dor. As matters are now progressing, the
$40 bonds that bear per cent. interest in
gold will be gradually called in, and cap
talists take 494115 per cent. for their mon
ey, or seek other investmens, than Govern
ment, non-taxable securities. This will
have an important bearing upon business,
and must aid largely in the restoration of
all branches of industry to healthy activ-
ity.
As already remarked, the great produe-
tive industries of the country-the pro-
ducts of the loom, the mine and the anvil,
are already down to, and in many cases be-
low, the producing point, measuring val
ues on the gold standard. This enormous
shrinkage has been disastrous in many
cases, and damaging in all, to those who
had their means invested, but the business
remains and viii be carried on. Already,
idle spindles in New England are being
started, and mills that had suspended are
being set in motion. New markets have
been found abroad for products, and the
shHnkage process has ceased. to operate.
The cost of production has also been largely
reduced. This affects the laboring classes,
bat these could not escape. fhe price of
living, however has also been reduced, and
people generally are adapting themselves
to the new order of things-the order of
things that existed prior to the imitation
that caused the disturbance. This rubs
hard. It was not an agreeable process,
but it was inevitable.
We begin this business year upon solid
basis; with the shrinkage taken out Of val
ues; with an increased export trade; with
paper money approaching par With coin /;
with the finances Of the Government great
ly improved; with stern public sentiment
against corruption and extravaganza; with
a demand for lower taxes that will not be
resisted; with economy in Government and
society made fashionable, and with coun-
try oyerfowing with the products of the
soil. Here are all the conditions for renew
ed prosperity, and for a prosperity that
viii last because it can not be fictitious, and
upon this basis we predict an improvement
- I,,,.;,,os. Abaf nil lo r.orlad av,1 r.,.o&