The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1890-10-22

tepreciate. In the one case the holder
Of the governments note would know
that within short time gold or its equivalent
would pass into the treasury; in the other. he
would know thu: III Z was I commodity steadily
accommodating III TIL treasury. which, ty the very
law under which the note he held was issued was
scarcely any farther advanced towards cOnSump-
tion or distribution than 1t was when unmlned IN
| the western hills.
1t may be safely assumed that no paper cur
rencv i'm the world would be more stable. more
sound, or more certain TO pass Oh parity with
specie. than the treasury notes o! the United
States government based ur"n the great staple
crops, provided the method OF their issuance was
properly hedgtd about and protected
it is impossible to present all the arguments in
support Of this position IN an article neces-
sarily limited in space. but before passing from
this branch OF the subject under discussion there
Is one other point TO which attention should be
than s3iG,oO9ooo of treasury notes
now pass readily hat at par ar, WI WITH roxr s1ln
ment's promise to pay. Why then would not ad-
dtional notes of the same character. secured on
the gr"H; crops, representing their distribution
for con option, and issued only 10 those VINO ac-
ceptcu lur,n voluntarily on the gold basis, con-
tinue to pass readily on parity with gold: mat
eminent Georgian. Judge Crisp, who has so ably
represented the state In congress,
| in his letter to the farmers on the SUD
treasury plan. declared himself unquailhed!y
in favor OF an increase of treasury notes. TO TINS
position the democratic leaders have bee? COM
mitted for more than twenty yeas. how IS u
more conservative and more safe TO issue these
treasury notes arbitrarily, ami without any Sc
curity pledged for their payment. than II IS TO
issue them voluntarily on demand with the great
staple crops pledged for their payment?
FLEXIBLE CURRENCY DESIRED.
But it has lcen contended that leyibiiity in the
volume of currency would tend to DISTURB busl-
ness interests and render uncertain business oDl!-
cations There is an apparent p!auSibillty III this
argument. But il is based on miSconceptlon.
and evidences great ignorance. OF the real c"ndl,
| tonS surrounding commerce. N"tainG wnud
tend to render prices so stable or business oblga-
tons so sure, as the certainty that the supply OF
money would exactly correspond at all t.meS 10
| the volume and requirements OF trade II t
| were possible /" perfect system
| finance uncir: which this would be lie
case the cost pi money, interest, would always
remain the >aIi.e a.d TWO important elements OF
| uncertainty po->ihi" strin@cncy in the money
market and VARYING rates ot interest would lie
removed from commerce. Stability in prices,
therefore is promoted by Ella t.cty in the ro!ume
| of currency, and not by ri%idty,
thai allows ior no expansion and cuntractlons IN
accordance with the demand, ot trade | rec0S-
nize that it is Impossible t. adjust the delicate
| financial machinery of 4 great government that
it Will work ,iIS0m t:cy i'll exact relations To the
| requirements O; commerce. hut DO Insist tn2t II
Is the duty OF the government to perfect the ma
chincry 80 that it may at least approx
matclv approach the desired result To
attack the I!rXihility of the proposed
currency, Is 10 !!Op'SII!Oli tIIslI lhS
issuance OF paper currency should be regulated
10y the laws Of supply ami IL raMd. THIS IL to ny
III the face OF tie hest writer's on the SUBJECT and
the first principles of common sense. lie strong
est argument :hat has been made against paFer
money IS. .> >t.ted by JcvoAS. the inrossibilty
OF varying is amountin accordance with the re-
0uircment W trade. Specie. 1t has been argued,
could lie called from one portion OF the
world 10 IN ;tlcr III accordance with the demand
of tTdc hi. p:ler circulating only in one country
would not have any reserve >ulply in other por-
t:onS OF the word 10 draw np"n in periods OF ac-
tvi.v or iCrc.gn otlct iar Investment III periods
of depression. Inc i'cXihii!ty of the proposed
curr Iicy i the STRONGEST argument that can he
advanced III Jus favor The danger arises, not
from its ticxihi!;tc, but because it may not be
i!exibe enough 70 meet the demands OF trcde in
the spring When the great stan!e crops
have Lecr largc'y con umed. But when
it is remembered that there Is
an enormous demand upon the entire currency oi
the country dining the fall months when the
crops are being ted that 4 greater volume
oi Lus. ness is necessarily c"nWcted at that time
than any other III the yt:r, and that the money
of the country is enormously supplemented under
present business methods by drafts, bills of eN-
,har"e and every form of commercial credit, 1t
will lie seen AZ once that the increase OF currency
during this period OF activity would take the
D!acn of ;l: existing forms or credit which now
supplement ihc "nu:ns o; money, and that, Il
the increase of currency could DC made to bear IN
aDnroXinatc relation TO the increased volume OF
trade every interest in the whole country
would he benefited. Perhaps the most
important advantage to the coun,
try would arise from the greater cheapness with
which tue crops great articles of merchandise -
were distributed Ior consumption. This advan-
ta"e would principally manifest itself in lesSenlng
the rate OF interest and IN enhancing the price OF
the crops hut it woaid he great error to suppose
that all business Interests would not also reap
corresponding benefit.
DEPRESSING THE MARKETS.
The financial report in THE ATLANTA CoSsTI-
| N,,I, S,l.t I,N
tainiv not intended as al argument in favor OF
the farmers s1hrreasury p;;'n. lays II dl-cuSsing
the financial siru tiOn IL NV York: The bears
have hrcn louit... iorw I'D 40 The time WHEN crops
will make such demands upon the financial re-
sources of the country that there will
be nothing left in New York hanks with
which to carry on huli speculation. In other
seize upon the tightuess Of the money
mar:et incident I" marketing the crops, to de-
press their prices and the prices OF all other Sc
rurities. How well they have succeeded has been
demonstrated !y Tie decline in prices OF nearly all
securities and the advance OF interest to the rate
OF lSS per cent per annuln.
The contraction under the proposed plan during
the sprjng months tro:a the gradual consumption
OF tic staple crops would tc much less stringent
than the contraction incident TO the fail months
under existing cuGi;Ii!unS. 1t would about equal
the lesSeniDg demands. AT the worst, 1t would
| transfer the per OH of contraction compared
with volume oi trade from the fall to the spring.
| Every business man would know that strngency
| of money during tine ia would he impossible:
and be would a>n know. even if there some
contraction during ~. >nrng. compared with the
voiume OF currency that came into Use Ill the lail.
that it woud tax" place 1t / time when the de-
mands OF business are less than they are IN the
fall.
BEST METHOD OF PERFEcTING BILL.
The proposition having been established that I
safe sound and stable currency that will pass on
4 parity with gold. can be issued on the great
staple crops md that teNiEiity or elasticity in
the volume OF the currency oi the country will
tend to promote the stability Of prices and
keep down the rates of interest. we pass next TO the
consideration o. the les. method Of accolHpi ish-
ing this much desired result. Itwould not he dif
icult to devise 4 system based on the line suS-
rested hv the Farmers Alliance that
would require no large expenditure OF
roytrn,.l.Et funds and no great change In
the present methods of conducting business.
II would bc easy enough to permit any response
hle company to establish warehouse, and to give
bond to the government that it would issue no re-
ceipt without having the product represented by
1t actually in It's possession. The
government could appoint an inspector,
lust as it now appoints government
I-:u"er Tor the bonded warehouses for wblskey,
whose business it would be to verify the state
,uent, made on the face of the warehouse receipt.
The improper issuance OF any receipt by the Of
ticers of this bonded warehouse could be made d
criminal offense. In fact, without any
radical change in the conduct OF business,
with a far less number of federal officials
rl.:,n are now employed in the collection Of the
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