Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1896-08-21
THE MONEY cLlRuEs.
Gcontinued from first page.l

| fiscal year 1875, the lIaue DdldhCe u
our favor was over slOO,000,000, bu
this excess of exports, over imports fel
short of oiTsetting the interest charge
accruing against us on account OF Ou
immense foreign debt. And beside
these interest charges, payment o
which we have TO provide for anC
which have aggregated for the pas
few years not less than $500, ,0OO,C pc
annum, we are called upon to make
provision for the expenses Of Ameri
cans abroad and for freightsearned by
foreign shipOwners.
For the payment Of all these charges
we must provide over and above the
amount Of the Indebtedness we incur
on account Of what we buy abroad.
And exports Of merchandise In excess
Of imports falling TO provide the
means for the payment Of this indebt-
e1ness, an Indebtedness incurred on
account OF interest charges, expenses
Of Americans abroad and freights
earned by foreign shipowners and ag-
gregating not less than SO 0,0'0,0O0 a
year the demand for the export Of gold
Is great. So during the last fiscal year
we exported over 500, 600 worth Of
merchandise In excess OF our imports
and our net imports OF gold aud silver
sulfced to settle Indebtedness OF $780,
900, 900 more. Yet still Il large amount
of indebtedness remain unpaid, calls
for the payment Of which made an inn
perative demand for gold for export.
This condition the exchange bank
ers we're called upon to face. They
had set themselves TO the task Of
checking gold exports, and TO do so
they were under the necessity Of pro-
ylding drafts, on London, to all those
under the necessity Of remlttlng abroad
and TO meet the drafts, drawn on Lon
don, they had TO provide the means OF
payment. They knew that drafts
drawn by American exporters against
exports of merchandise, and which
they could purchase and forward to
London for ther credit, would not
suffice, and they had barred them
selves against the export OF gold. So
but one course remained to them.
They must go abroad; they must pay
their drafts drawn on London and
which they could not cover with the
bills OF exchange drawn by American
exporters, with money drawn In Lon
don. True, such borrowing would
not settle our Indebtedness abroad; IL
would merely shift 1t TO other shoul-
ders and postpone the necessity OF ex-
porting gold; but, II the export of
gold could be,postponed until after the
presidential election, the purpose OF
the gold contractlonists would be
served.
So the exchange bankers undertook
the task of postponing the day OF
reckoning, hoping thereby TO blind the
American people to the terrible cost
Of the gold standard until, by their
votes, they had irretrievably shoul.
dered, on themselves, for four more
years, TO come, the grleyous yoke, OF
an appreclating standard, that is
grinding down our producing classes
TO poverty and building up, on theiI
lmpoverishment, an oligarchy OF
wealth.
With great gusto the money cliques
caused IL TO be announced through d
subseryient and subsidized press that
the exchange bankers had completed
arrangements To borrow $4,000, 900
or, II needs be, s76, ,OOO,O In London
against which they could drawIdurinl
the next two months, in place OF
shipping gold, 1t was then announced
that such action had restored conf
denoe Of European investors in Amer
lean securities; that Europeans would
thereafter appear as buyers, not a
sellers OF our securities, aud that The
fall In stock exchange quotations
would be checked.
But before three weeks had elapsed
prices OF securities on our stock ex
changes began TO melt away. British
investors sold; they did not buy
Their conhCence In American Invest