Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1893-08-11
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
TO tie Congress Of Mo Unitct1

The existence of an alarming and
extraordinary business situation, in
volying the welfare and prosperity of
all our people, has constrained me to
call together in eXtru session the poo.
pies representatives in Congress to
the end that through wise and pa
trlotic exercise OF tho legislative duty
with which they solely are charged,
present evils HAY be mitigated AZ 4
dangers threatening tho future may
be avertcd. Our unfortunate finan
cial plight is not the result OF unto
ward events nor OF conditions related
to our natural resources; not is it
traceable to any Of tho Affections
which frequently checl, national
growth and prosperity. With pleu
teons crops, with abundant promise
OF remunerative production and man.
ufacture, with unusual invitations to
safe investment and with satisfnct ory
assurance to business enterprise,
suddenly financial fear and tllstrust
have sprung up on every sido. Nu,
merous money institutions havo sus
pnnded because abundant assets were
not immediately available to meet tho
demand of frightened dopositors.
Surviving corporations and individu
ais arc contont to keep in hand the
money they arc usually anxious to
loan. and those engaged in legitimate
business arc surprised to find that
tho securities they offer for lonns,
though heretofore satisfactory. ure
no longer accepted. Values supposed
to be fixed are fast becoming conjcc
tural, and loss and failure have in
vaded every branch of business. *
Hero tho message goes OH to OK
plain the working of the law provid
ing for the purchase of silver, where,
by tho gold balance was disturbed
and faith i'll the worth of money and
securities destroyed, recommending
by implication the repeal of the Sher.
man law. The message thus con
cludos:
The people of tho United States
arc entitled to sound and Stable
currency aud to money recognized as
such on every exchange and in every
market of the world. Their govern.
ment has no right to injure them by
hnancial experiment. opposed to the
policy aud practice of other civilized
States, nor is it justified in permit
ting an exaggerated and unreasonn
bic reliance on our national strength,
and ability TO jeopardize the sound
ness of the peoples ,uoncy. This
matter rises above the plano of party
politics. 1t vitality concerns every
business and calling, and enters ev-
cry household in the land. There is
one important aspect Of tho subject
which. especially, should never he
overlooked. AT times lko the pres
ent, when the evils of nn,ound f.
nnnce threaten us, the speculator
may anticipate n harvest gathered
from the misfortunes of others: tho
capitalist mny protect himself by
boarding, or mny even find profit in
the fluctuntion of values; but the
wage earner-tbe first to DO Injured
by n deprecinted currency and the
last to receive tho benefits of its cor.
rection-is practically defenseless.
He relics for work upon The ventures
of confident and contented capital.
This failing him, his condition is
without nlleviation, for lie can neither
prey on the misfortunes of others nor
hoard his labor One of the grentest
statesmen our country has known,
speaking more than fifty years ago,
when arrangement of the currency
had caused commercial distress, snid:
''The very man of all others who has
the deepest interest in sound cur
rency and who suffers most by mis-
chievous legiaintion in money mat
ters, is tho nnn who earns his daily
bread by his daily toil.' These words
arc ns pertinent how rs on the day
they were uttered. and ought to i'm
pressively remind us that failure in
the discharge of our duty at this
time must especially injure those of
our countrymen who labor, and who
because OF their number and condi
ton are entitled to the most watchful
care Of the government.
1t is of the utmost Importance that
such relief as Congress can afford in
the existing situation be afforded Mt
once. The maxim, "He gives twice
who gives quickly" is directly appli
cable. 1t may be true that the EN-
barrassnont from which the business
of the country is now suffering arises
as much from evils approhended as
from those actually existing. We
may hope, too, that calm counsels
will prevail and that neither the capi.
talists nor tho wage earnors will give
way to nnrensoning panic, and sacli
lice their property or interests under
the influence of exaggerated fears
Nevertheless, every days delay in re-
moving one of the plain and princi
pal causes Of the present state of
things enlargcs tho mischief already
done and increases the resnone;h;l;,, =.