The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-10-03
THE CAUSE OF THE HARD TIMES.
President Hayes Discusses the Condition
of the Country and the Finances.

fully 10000 people were assembled at
the Fri-State Agricultural Fair, Mr..
Hayes dwelt upon our financial troubles,
and said:
say, my friends, that in material
wealth we have all the essential ele-
ments. And yet, it ia in your thoughts
Il can almost read it in your faces
that for FIVE years past there has been
stagnation in business, and the depres-
sion still seems to exist. Now, the few
plain wores that desire to say On this
subject are, first, word or two as to the
cause. One simple and acknowledged
fact, or opinion, and known to most men,
is that the war was the cause of it. Now,
my friends, that is the cause of that ex-
traordinary and remarkable event which
happened in 1873. There is no mystery
in it; it was bound to be sooner or later
you could not escape it. This war made
the hard times, as war always does.
Why what is war? We know about it
now. When the war began we were
threatened with its results. 1 remember
brilliant writer in Cincinnati, where 1
resided in 1860, who said: "Why, this
country can't 60 to war. The people Of
Cincinnati live on the business in the
South. Let US go to war, aud in six
months the grass will grow in your by.
ways and streets" Did it2 Why, my
friends, the war had not been prosecuted
ninety days when every man saw what a
mistake it was, and that every street was
buster than before we had war.
A million of men in the South were
taken from the ranks of industry, and
instead of making property they became
the destroyers and consumers of proper
ty. So it was in the North but where
| it made difference from what was eX-
pected was this every man who had
wheat or corn, or coal, or labor, found
when war came he had better Gus
toner than ever before-a customer that
wanted all he got, and wanted it i'm
medistely-a customer who would not
haggle about the price. That customer
he had in the person of the United
States. Business instead of being de-
pressed, began to revive. Property
which had lain on the shelves of the
merchants for long time increased in
value day after day. The result of it
then was that we made money fast-we
made it easily. We could afford 10 bor-
row al higher rates of interest because
our investments were sure to be profta-
BILE. Over trading and fast living were
the results of the war, I need not enlarge
on it.
Finally the war ended men formerly
in the ranks returned to their homes,
and the material. needs of the govern
ment began to decrease. You lost your
best customer-the United States. It
didn't want to buy it wanted to sell.
Now, every wise man knew we should
have a day of settlement. Flush times
of war are to be followed by hard times
like these we have lately known, and
there is the cause. Now, my friends, it
i. sufficient to say that it is written in
the laws of political economy that wars
are followed by hard times and panics.
The only mystery in the whole thing is
that the hard times did not come before
they did.
Now we have got the cause, what is
the effects? The moment we began to
have hard times we began to retreuch-
every man to cut his expenses down and
to curtail his expenditures. Each man
in q little while began to find himself a
little better off than he was. 1t may be
a long time-one year, two years, five
years-but when it does get to the end
and the majority get their expenses less
than their receipts, then We are all bet
ter of. The government of the United
States is the people of the United States.
When you are all extravagant the gov
ernment will be extravagant. When you
are all getting to watch yourselves, to
watch each particular point, you set your
officers to watching more particularly.
When the war ended we had debt OF
lS2, 400, 100000 on our shoulders, upon
which we were praying 7.3 per cent. in
terest. Our taxes were raised to nearly
$500, 100000 in time of profound peace.
Our currency was worth so to 70 cents
on the dollar. In our foreign trade the
balance was against us nearly S100,000,-
900 year; and now how are we? The
idebt is reduced nearly third How
many wise man shook his head at the
close of the war and said, "The people
can never pay that debt" Why, we
have got third of it paid off already.
The interests that you paid--that is re-
duced from S14O,O00,000 to sos, 1000, 900.
We no longer pay 7.3 per cent. inter
est. We can get all the money we want
at per cent. What does that mean for
you and 1? Those who borrow money
know that when the government pays z
per cent. it will cost them II and Is per
cent, and when the government pays 6
and per cent. the rate of interest will
20 down for US; and SO as the credit Of
the government grows better your credit
and mine grows better.
| We are down to per cent. on inter-
ests, and now as to the currency. 1t was
currency worth go cents on the dollar
on one day, but did not stick at that price,
You never could tell on Monday what
it would be on Saturday. Who lose by a
| tickle standard of value? Always the Ia
borer and producer. Why? Simply
because the middleman, being business
man, understands that the standard of
value is likely to 60 up or 60 down to his
disadvantage. Therefore, when he sells
be does it having reference to the fact
that the standard of value may change,
and consequently he charges enough to
make himself safe, and the consumer
heals the loss. That is a tickle standard
of value. Applause. Now, my friends,
how do you see it to-day? The currency
has been going up, up, until it is 999; it
is as unchangeable as Lake Erie. 1t
does not 90 down at all. It is steady.
1t is no longer a yardstick that is one
foot in March, three feet in May and six
feet in July it is three feet all the time,
Tremendous applause. Now, my
friends, that is the currency.
As to our balance of trade before the
panic. That balance of trade was
against US $lO0,O00,000 year-that i.
to say, we bought abroad that much more
than We sold abroad. How is it to-day
We are selling more produce than ever
before in our history-more corn, more
wheat. We have even gone so far as to