The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1878-08-26

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mono GO ls '' ]
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T 81, troubles i, ., Of the DAY
The committee appointed ey gsnsressss g.
d,,stire into the. .canses Of sssa labor amp
m; m, c,s, sro,,bfes OF ahs country has hone
,uart 20 The @
tnssanf when Professor SUMNER, OF Yale
college, gave his statement. The Professor
has the department OF Political and Social
science Of Yale, and II Is his task 70
,asuJy inst such questions rs those now
aazitattng. the countrys he; has sceTsa,sl-
siys studied them 10 advantage ~ tor ne
Is the 6rss gentleman VINO has spread
Els views before The committee tnas
has spoken IKE q philosopher and 9 man o.
practical wisdom 1t the same time. Hls
views have attracted the general: attention
and the approval, almost witf,cut sxcep-
stion. 81 the country. There were no part+
san views and no elap.trap in what p the FRO
I 9essor said. he spoke IKE, q political econ
omtst as well SIS philosopher, at the same
l time showing that he had not failed to, OBJ
serve with critical attention the progress o.
events. fsg ~ a s'-. - .,.s,..ys.,
professor SUMNER stared truly and clearly
the causes OF the trouble Of the day: the
scarcity OF employment, the pressure for
money, and The prostrallon OF commerce.
Those causes were the war and the vast
losses of property il occas,onesd; the IN.
crease or transportation and reduction OF
its costs; the decrease Of the cost'of Spfoduc.-
: zion by improved machinery and the .co ,lss
oueut increase Of production. These causes
have; brought distress and suffering upon
society in this country. Loss OF properly Is
bad enough; but, besides, there is want OF
occupation because Of excess OF goods ana
produce above fhe. wants Of people and their
mesns to buy combined 93@ascA 7
Professor. SUMNER could see no way OF
remedying the evils that have grown up
from these causes, and the Irregular and
speculative order which they In part en-
rendered. In substance, he stated that we
were suffering from the. effects OF an ex-
haustiye war, which was paid for with bfls
OF credit, and we are also suffering from
sextrayagant living and exTavagant bust
ness transactions consequent to the war,
which produce an accumulation OF debt
which only close economy and exact
methods OF doing business can clear OF
SO that it will be possible to make fresh
ssart,under favorable auspices. he might
have included the immense devastation in the
abolition Of slavery and the social and COM
nercial revolution which resulted therefrom,
to the ruinous injury Of merchants, manu-
iacturers, and operatives OF the North. But
all OF these disasters which now entail, and
for years past have visited this whole coun-
try with suffering and sorrow, cannot bere-
lieyed by the Government The trouble
chiefly is that the people and the country
are in debt, and relief cannot come by going
deeper into debt. Every remedy that has
been proposed by the partisans Of easy viz
tue, who desire more to commend them
selves 10 the people than to do any real
good, propose more debt and plans Of in
,creaslng paper currency that could notfail
to impair the value OF that currency and to
reduce the compensation for industry. .,.s
The Philadelphia Times, in its analysis
Of Professor SUMMERS statement, gives this
startling view: ,s..<yi.z III i a1t,s, 4; ast
E.a IL people only would renem Der that in
the flush times of the war we were running
in debt, consuming and destroying thou
sands of millions OF property for which we
had not paid, but had only given our notes
and mortgagsa our possessions, they would
cease toIWonder that when the day. OF settle
ment came, as come it would, we should find
ourselves very poor indeed. IL Mr.. Hewitt's
committee were to examine ten thousand
witnesses, they could reach no other con-
clusion than this The South was COM
PEELED TO meet Its war, expenses out Of
It's own immediate resources, and it felt the
prostrating effects at once; the North had
better credit, and so could put of the evil
day but nc was Impoverished all the same,
and now 1t must undergo the suffering that
IN the natural order OF things we should
have passed through, years ago. The cure
isstee -songft. sby:Ieversing the process
which brought tusiDto apnserty, and stea-
Oily iaboring to repair the losses OF years
OF extravagant expenditure. Good govern
nent will make this easier, but flush times
will never be brought about by act Of Con-