The Hawaiian gazette., 1885-02-18

EDIToR GAZETTE The attempt has been made
by the Government and certain parties in this city
to place the blame for the present muddle in the
currency affairs of this Kingdom upon the shoulders
of the bank of Bishop & Co. and the merchants,
the chief sinners among the latter being the Of
ncers OF q. Brewer d Co. (limited). By the same
course OF unfair treatment, shop keepers, artisans
and aborers are led to believe that all the confus-
ion, annoyance and loss created by the changes
that have followed the passage of the new curren.
cy law are dirertly chargeable TO that law, the
bank and the merchants.
One of the charges made is that the bank and
merchants drew the gold from ths treasury and
boarded 1t. So far as the corporation of G.
brewer d 20. IS concerned, must say that the
charge is unqualifedly false. As the treasurer OF
the corporation named, can say that drew in
three amounts the sum of twenty-five thousand
dollars in gold from the deposits against certif-
Gates, and that twenty-fou thousand nine hun.
dred dollars in gold have been sent to the estates
tor which that Corporation is the agent, for the
purpose of paying the wages of artisans and
laborers there employed. The instructions to the
managers Of estates have been to conform to the
currency law in making payments and to err upon
the side of paying too large proportion of gold
rather than too small a proportion.
This Corporation has also imported ten thous-
and dollars in gold coin and has arranged with
the bank to take its exchange at rate that will
justify the bank in making regular importations
of gold, and any thinking person can readily un.
derstand that this has only been done at a con
siderable loss to the Corporation.
cannot speak positively, but l believe other
merchants have been doing the same.
The prime cause of the annoyance and loss
which shop keepers, artisans and laborers have
experienced is unquestionabIy the casting upon
our community of tho million dollars of silver
coins. Any novice in finance and currency knows
that where silver and gold coins are used together
any excess of silver beyond the amount required
for making change will act to displace the gold
This was understood by the trainers of the new
currency law and it was expected that tho Govern.
ment would lessen the volume of silver and in
crease that of gold.
An appropriation of one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars was made by the Legislature for
the purpose of defraying the expenses of such
changes in the currency, and if this sum had been
wisely expended there can be no reasonable doubt
but that the law would have worked benehcially
to all classes of persons in this Kingdom.
That the law has not so worked can be and is
only the fault of the Government.
course of reckless extravaganza of expendi-
ture coupled with diminished revenues, of which
the Government was warned.has placed the public
treasury in a sorry condition, and unless a radical
change of policy is brought about it requires nc
gift of prophecy to predict that still worse con
dition of affairs awaits us.
1t is only to be hoped that in the reckless twist
ing and turning for eIpedients to ward off what
seems now inevitable the Government will moi
attempt to repeal the present currency law, for
such an act would bring upon US a worse train OF
evils than now prevail. J. o. CARTER.
Honolulu, Feb. 18th. 1885.