Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1879-07-16
Hard Times and the Decline in Prices.

credit does not rest upon The power oil the
creditor TO enforce his claim upon the
debtor is given by the fact that you cannot
sue a state or nation, and yet public debts
constitute favorite form of investment
The value of such securities depends upon
the character of the debtor state, rather
than upon the rate of interest offered. No
such security is absolutely safe. More gov
ernments have, at one time or another, re-
paid them according to the strict terms of
their bonds. Such is the credit of the gov
eminent of the United States that its credit
ors depend upon it not even to stand upon
the terms or wording of its obligations,
where fair regard for the spirit of the ar
greement favors the creditor This is the
case with those bonds payable in "lawful
money" which are yet held by both parties
to the contract to be payable only in gold.
This is the chivalry of honesty, in which
the debtor bares his side for the removal of
the pound of fesh-and the creditor does not
hesitate about the carving. Yet it is good
policy, and in the long run will be no loss
to the people. The United States has not,
however, been strictly honest in all cases.
The French claims" (simlar in character
to the alabama claims'O were received
by the government from France; but though
after numerous failures, twice receiving an
appropriation by vote of Congress, they were
both times stopped by presidential vetoes.
And the present Congress has refused to APP
propriate money to pay awards to citizens
made by the court of claims. In small mat
tiers Uncle Sam is not particular; yet his
credit is good on his large debts, though he
cannot be sued.
The greatest present danger to the Ameri-
can people is the growth of corporate COM
panies, with special privileges and immu-
mites as compared with individual citizens.
THESE have sprung up during the past fifty
years, and have assumed vast proportions.
Charles Francis Adams, Jr., late railroad
commissioner of Massachusetts, in an article
published some years ago in the North
American Review says " In moral and po-
litical point of view there is nothing more
dangerous than this fostering of special
interests for the legislation which effects
it inevitably becomes precedent, to the APP
plication of which there is no limit. Our
own history is full of examples of this evil
History is not without its pre-
cedents. The Roman Catholic church was
ut one time the most enormous landed cor
tha boa ln
most disturbing social and political power.
The railroad system, bound together by a
sense Of common danger and of common
interest, will exercise all that influence which
the Roman church derived from its wealth.
So far as the influence on government is
concerned, it makes no difference whether
vast accumulated estates are held in the
names of individuals, churches or corpora
tions those held by individuals are in fact
the less dangerous of the two, as, in the
natural course of succession, they will inev-
itably pass into the hands of the incompe-
tent or the improvdent. This is not the
case with corporations. Our
political system cannot much longer sustain
the conflict with corporations. Modern civ
ilization has created class of powers which
are too strong for the control of our govern
ments. Once already has great corporate
interest (the slave states) grasped at the
control of our government, and it could
only be thrown off by the CONFUSION of civil
war. On another occasion the government
became involved in conflict with private
corporation Cthe United States Bank WELD
ing the power of only s35,OOO,OOO of CAPT
tai, and for years the country was disturbed.
What is the aspect of the present The
states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and
Maryland are respectively owned by corpo-
rations within their limits. New York is
governed by two corporations, acting in con.
cert with one corrupt political ring. The
United States is struggling painfully with
half dozen great combinations of pri.
vate and corporate interests, and no well.
informed man doubts that to-day it is in
the power of the national banking system
alone to dictate to the national government
any financial policy it may desire, and to
compel its adoption"
This, written in 1870, makes bad look.
out for freedom and for the people, but we
believe they are good for it. The farmers
brought the railroads to Limerick" five
or six years ago, and we have no doubt they
are capable of handling the banks and all
other corporations according as they may
think the occasion requires. But so long as
corporations exist under our present lega
credit system they constitute an ever-pres
emit and notwithstanding danger. 1t is tbs
legal credit system that gives them their ca
pacity for evil, because it enables them Il
put the hand of the deputy sheriff upon thu
shoulder Of every debtor in the country, di
rectly or indirectly. 1t gives them tn,
power to put up and put down prices, to in
flate or depress credit, and with it all values
thus to make any man a pauper who is t.
any great extent in debt, and to absorb tn,
entire balance of his assets. The abolition
of legal credit draws the teeth and pulls GU
the claws of all corporate oppression, Will
it in no way impairs the usefulness of col
porate activity. 1t simply extends the prin
ciple of "limited liability" to the Who'll
people, and thus breaks the monopoly b
diffusion of its peculiar characteristic
among all.
With the downfall Of legalized credit wi
60 the cost of maintaining our system Q
courts for civil causes, and the taxatio
they require. The greatest local burden i
Vermont to-day, upon the taxpayers, is tn
maintenance Of these courts. As betwee
ordinary individuals they cost more tina
they come to, in nearly every instance
while between the wealthy, either as ind
viduals or corporations, and the poor, the
are an arm Of oppression that withers il
dustry wherever it reaches. So long as tn
legal credit system remains, rich men an
moneyed corporations will find it far I'll
most profitable to loan their funds to FOOLS
people who think they can pay large il
terest out of business that will yield but
ANAL nrofit at the best So peneration aft,