The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1891-01-02
MONEY IN THE COUNTRY.

There are times in the exper-
!: ience of every community when
money appears to be scarce and
lizard to get. Business men, as
we'll as private individuals, pass
through similar experiences. 1t is
not always the scarcity Of money
that forces these conditions upon
the people, though the want of it
lis just as keenly felt as if it were
in limited supply. 1t is known
that the volume of national bank
notes is not so large as formerly,
but few realize that other forms OF
money have come in more than
enough to fill the vacuum caused
by such retirements. A recent
compilation by the Treasury De-
partment at Washington shows
decrease of $21,OOO,OoO in these
notes during the past twelve
months, and yet in the same inter-
val the net increase in money in
the country, according to the same
authority, has been nearly $1O3,-
100000. The gross increase for
the wear is about 1924 900. 900. of
which $35,OoO,OoO has been in
gold and about S9,OOO,OOO in sill
yer. A country that is increasing
its volume of money at the rate of
$1OO,OOO,OOO per annum cannot be
said to be in a bad way. We
doubt if there be another country
that can show such an increase for
the past year. Any talk about
contraction of the currency in the
light of these facts is sheer non
sense.
The late reverses in stock and
business circles on the Atlantic
seaboard cannot be charged to any
shrinkage in the volume of money
in the country. If there had been
a net loss of $1OO,OOO,OOO in the
past year, instead of a net gain of
that amount, the shrinkage of val
ues incident to such loss would
easily account for the embarrass-
ments i'm business circles. But
when these reverses occur in spite
of such a liberal accumulation in
the money supply, we must look
elsewhere for the cause. The pri-
mary reason is easily traced to
stock speculations. These cannot
be kept up for any length of time
without settlements, else every
body who engaged in that line of
business would get rich. The very
prosperity of the country has
drawn many into the whirlpool of
stocks. Some engaged in leg1ti-
mate mercantile pursuits have be-
come embarrassed through the
troubles in Wall street because
they have been putting some of their
available assets there, or have
been on the paper of those who
have become thus involved. Mer-
chants who confine themselves
strictly to their line of business es-
cape these snares, and so maintain
their honor, and, eventually.
achieve success.
Few realize that the money of
all kinds in this country exceeds
$4,000, 100000. There is an aver
age of $34 per capita, calling the
population of the country 62,5O0,-
900. Most of this large amount
is money in the best sense of that
term, consisting Of gold and silver
coin, or certificates backed with
coin. If there be trouble in busi-
ness circles anywhere it is not be-
cause there is not enough money
in the country. The scarcity in
isolated cases is the result of ex-
ceptional causes. If the amount
of money in the country were as
large again as it is, these condi-
tions would occur quite as fire.
quently and be just as hard to bear.
Overtrading, like overeating, must
pay the penalty in some way. Of