Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-05-15

that of any other daily paper published In
washington. and eoual To that of all the
Seher daily papers here added together.
r NO very serious panic tnterrupts business. IL
vii be largely because a disturbance OF the sort
has been long foreseen, and those whose interests
1e involved have had time and the means TO pre-
pare fer IT. For two years, certainly and possibly
longer, there has been q steady shrfnkage from the
hgh-water mark OF speculation. Little spurts have
broken the downward course, but these have been
but the drainage cuts on the long. steep hill
which made the descent safe. Business men have
had abundant warning, and. as rule. have availed
themselves OF 1t TO shorten SALE Goods have been
bought only as needed, and stock has been cleared
out at q sacrifice rather than held on q venture
Investors have had ample notice of coming Storm
and have gradually disposed Of their more specula-
dive holdings, leaving the brokers TO feed on one
another instead Of confiding outside public. The
banks have appreciated the situation. and. except
where they were intimately bound up with broker
interests, have pursued q conservative policy.
For these reasons the country Is In much better
financial condition than when former panics struck
r. The chief danger at present lies In the lack of
confidence in the personal integrity OF those who
bold responsible business trusts. Repeated revela-
tons OF fraud have shaken faith In corporations
and great capitalists The Wall street kings have
t1fied with the public until the buying Glasses will
not believe what they say attach credit to what
they apparently do The ''iambs" have been shorn
TOO often Again and again OF late have desperate
attempts been made TO tempt the general public
back TO Wall street, but in vain. Those who had
the money had no inclination. and those who had
the inclination soon had no money. The tainted
stocks were refused at home, and could not be sold
abroad; the game was up, and street panic at
loast was inevitable
While the government Is not called on to help
Wall street out OF Scrape, both the Treasury and
Congress can do much to ease the strain on busi-
ness and protect innocent persons from loss. Sec
rotary Folger, who is in New York, has already done
much to keep the market steady. The House should
now, after its long delay take up the banking bills
and deal with them their merits. II relief sever
TO be extended TO the banks, now Is the time
Members should recall the legal adage that justice
delayed is often justice denied, and do what they
% quickly.
And now the ignomini0uS cry goes up, "PaSS the
appropriation bills and go home" That such q
view OF the functions of Congress is popular, we
admit, but ii springs either from ignorance or dis
trust OF our political institutions. To vote the
money bills necessary to the routine administra-
ton OF the government is by no means the most
important duty OF Congress. The legislature, as
its name implies, is the law-aking branch OF gov
eminent, not board OF audit of accounts
II Congress does at this time simply "pass the
appropriation bills and go homer 1t win have made
a record OF absolute failure anG Will deserve uni
verSal contempt The salaries of government ser
wants, from the President to the scrub-women, the
expenses Of federal courts, the payments for mail
service, the interest on the public debt the obl-
cations TO the pensioners and other wards of the
LatiOn;--these must all be met, as matter of
course. But IL Is not the principal duty OF Congress
to see that these debts are paid promptly honestly
and economically.
Is IL enough, for instance, for Congress to vote
the money required to run the government, and
ignore utterly the question on what principle and
how the revenue, confessedly too large, shall be
collected? Is there TO be attention given to the
vital questions concerned in the banking and cur
rency policy OF the government: Are we to devote
ourselves to settling the number and compensation
OF clerks TO the exclusion OF such questions as the
electoral count the protection Of the public domain
against incorporated robbery. the postal telegraph
the reief OF the supreme Court the civilization OF
the Indian. the creation OF national militia sys
TEN, the revival OF American shipping the estab-
nshment OF court Tor the adjudic lion OF private
claims, and dozen other measures Of equal i'm
portance that might be named? II So let us hence
forth do away with the mOckery OF 'bill day;"let
there be no more Mondays devoted TO making
waste paper; abolish the calendars; disband the
standing committees except that on appropria-
tons, and hereafter elect men to Congress on the
single issue of their capacity for calculating how
many clerks are needed TO each bureau and how
much these employees should be paid. Then we
shall have "shOrt. business sessions" and "busi-
ness interests will have nothing fear from that
unrest which accompanies liberty.
>>
The worst Of the panic in New York has passed,
and there is every reason 70 believe that her nan-
cial disturbance will not extend to other parts of
the country where the same causes which brought
about the trouble there do not exist. These are:
Isl, extravaganza in living; 3D. operating In specu-
lative stocks with other peoples money; 3D. certi-
flying checks when there was no money to meet
them. and then suddenly stopping the practice,
thus throwing operators on their beam-ends for
want Of credit The country is In good condition.
generally, and those who get possession OF what
they buy and are able to deliver what they sell
have no occasion for worry. What becomes of the
fellows who bet on the probable prices OF stocks,
grain and provisions, gamblers do on the turn of
a card or the result of a horse race makes little
difference TO the people who honestly earn their
living in legitimate business and live within their
means
The New York city s'Arab" may be trusted to