Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1885-01-08
When a Revival in Trade Will
Come.

When Revival in Trade Will
Come.
From recent member of the Cincin-
nate CommercIal-Gazette we make the
following extracts from an article on
some of the causes, for the present de-
preston in business. There may be
some who will contend that the reasons
named are not correct, but in our opinion
there are few who will not say that fast
living-living beyond ones means and
speculation has not been the primary
cause of the trouble. The &. G. says
That a businscs reviv al is bound to
come is believed by all, yet they may
have vague ideas of the manner of It's
coming. Some things may be set down
as certain. 1t will not come with a
boom in trade, nor IN prices, nor IN
stock speculation. They who think
that il they hold on to high prices the
revival will come up to them. will de-
ceive themselves. 1t will come when
all things are fairly readjusted upon the
scale OF low prices and real values.
The false values which have been
squeezed out will not soon be revived.
and ought never to be- Business will
have to revlye because the people are
still IN existence; they have to eat,
drlnK ana wear; III general they in-
dulge IN the comforts of life; the FORE
handed spend according to their III,
come; the great industries are going
on; consumption Is fast reducing the
plethora; the lower cost of production
will increase the consumption; as sure
ly as the Rev. JaSper's sun doth move,
business mustmove IN the former
and increasing voumn; but it will not
boom in prices, but on the plane of low
cost OF production, and low prices to
consumers.
Agriculture Is the great industry;
the prices of labor and the profits Of
commerce should be adjusted upon the
plane OF the low prices OF agricultural
products, Farmers complain that rail.
road rates were reckoned by what it
was Thought the grain could stand,
when prices were much higher, and
that these rates now take the major
part OF the price. They have the right
to demand an adjustment according
to present prices. Laborers are cons
bining and striking against any reduc-
tion 81 wages, as if they thought that
the wages of artisans could be kept
up while prices of farm products and
OF their own products have greatly fal.
len. No revival will uphold such ine>
quality.
The contraction OF values of railroad
properties was made inevitable and
necessary by their expansion. In what
are called good times the railroads
rates are fitted to what agricultural
pro o1ucts can stand, and upon this
forced basis their shares and bonds
are increased, not by new capital, but
upon the basis of earnings. Thus, the
greater the profits the more the debt
IN the form OF shares and bonds Is in
fitted. This so-called capital is false,
and it ought to be squeezed down, and
ought never to revive. The railroad
managers made this shrinking ne
cessity by their short sighted and false
policy. No revival Of that misty mis-
rage wanted, or would do any good to
business.
In good times credit offers great ta-
cilities tor abuse. When men who are
called capital lists can build an unnecce.
sary parallel railroad by issning
bonds, and can put millions IN their
pockets by letting the construction con-
tract to themselves at two prices, and
then can force the parallel company to
buy the new read loaded with debt re,
presenting twice Its cost, they can
abuse credit and railroad privileges to
build up false value IN what are con.
ventionally called securities" whose
collapse is a necessity, The fall Of
such properties" is the natural and
necessary end OF the fraud. People
talk OF one or two thousand millions Of
values OF railroad securities" extn.
gulshed as if it were so much capita
destroyed and must be restored tc
make business revival. Necessarily
its extinction makes destructive dis
turpancc, and ruins individuals ant
carries disaster into all kinds of bust
ness by its various money relations
and by the oistrust its creates. But
these values were fraudulent, and the,
ought to be eXtlngulshed.
After the credit panic Of 1873, while
he country was waiting In tear OF the
unknowable in the far way Resumption
OF coin payment, the industries OF the
county were adjusted 10 the basis of :
low prices OF living and ofmanafacturet
products, and then the business began
to move along in tull volume, but or
a low level of prices. At the time