Los Angeles herald., 1891-08-15

IHE HERALD has heretofore alluded
to determined effort on the part of
Wall street to create an artificial crisis
in New York, which, of course, would
embrace the whole country. The silver
question is being largely made use OF to
get up scare. Notwithstanding the
fact that the crops in the United States
are unprecedentedly good, the estimates
indicating that we shall have two hun
dred million bushels of wheat for ex-
port, and that the crops of France,
Germany and Russia are short, there is
labored attempt to get up a gloomy
view of the future. The kilograms ad-
wise us that France alone will require
81, 100000 bushels of wheat this year,
and the needs of England are enor-
nous. Russia has already prohibited
the expectation OF rye-a famine meas
ure-and the rye crop of Germany is
failure. The price of grain is already
steadily rising in Berlin. Yet Clews, in
his financial circular. says that there is
great anxiety as to whether Europe will
give us gold for grain. No fuller evidence
OF a conspiracy to wreck the prosperity
of the United States could be produced
than is embodied in the following pass
ages from the circular dated August Sth:
The resumption of the silver agitation
is also calculated to encourage this dis
trust and is actually amounting to a
pretty stubborn "bear" factor. The ap-
prehension on this account, however,
is perhaps more due to the seriousness
of the view taken of the situation that
would arise should free coinage law
be actually enacted, than it is to any
positive expectation that such meas.
ure will really find place in our stat
utes. Politics, however, are in an alb
normally confused condition. Parties
are willing to buy success through al
most any concessions to opopular clamor;
and however repugnant free coinage
may be to the common sense and the
it is not impossible that the fundamen-
be sacrificed to win small minority OF
misguided voters. There is, therefore,
uncertainty about the final outcome of
the silver agitation; and but small de-
gree of uncertainty about matter so
vital to investments and to the general
welfare of the country is quite sufficient
to depress the stock market.
These uncertainties have their natu,
raj effect upon the banks and upon
lenders generally. The reasons that
are inducing European banks to accu-
mulate cash and hold to it tenaciously
are causing our own banks to keep their
loanable resources within easy reach.
They will lend on call to any extent and
at almost any rates; but time loans can
be procured only with the utmost diff
Guilty and upon class of collaterals that
are very scarce. 1t is true that the last
bank statement showed an amount of
surplus reserve 118 per cent. higher
than that of the same date in 1890 and
1889; but it is also true that the west
will have wholly unprecedented SUR
plus of wheat to send east, which places
us in condition of very delicate de-
pendence on the problematical disposi-
tion of Europe to exchange its gold for
our grain. Under these circumstances
1t would be almost impossible to borrow
large amounts of money for long pur-
chases of stocks even did conditions
happen to encourage such purchases.
The conspirators are working under
great disadvantages. The conditions
both in the United States and Europe
are eminently favorable to the Ameri-
can farmer. This providential interpo
sition will 60 great ways toward coun-
tervailing the plans of the Wall street
marplots for merry wreckers' war.