Year: 1872

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ment and 70 what It Leads.


The Treasury Department has been for
some time past the most active and powerful
agent in fostering speculation. and, conse-
quently in disturbing values and demoralizing
the business community. Tampering with the
currency expanding or contracting it either
openly or secretly, directly or indirectly. at
the will or caprice of the Secretary, and the
selling of gold and buying Of bonds in the
same arbitrary way, have kept the market in
o feverish state continually-ina state at one
time ruinously depressed and at another dam
gerously excited. The effect upon regular and
legitimate business has been very injurious.
sometimes placing the merchants at the mercy
of capitalists, money brokers and usurers.
and bringing them to the verge Of bankruptcy,
and then at other times stimulating over
trading and speculation. The fluctuations
caused by the action Of the Treasury Depart
ment mainly have not only kept business in
this uncertain and feverish condition, but
have tempted many business men to gamble In
the gold and stock markets, and have had a
demoralizing tendency generally upon the
people.


| 1t is but fair to admit that this state OF
things primarily grew out of the war and the
financial measures of the government during
the war; The suspension of specie payments
the enormous loans and indebtedness of the
government the establishment of the national
banks and their hybrid currency. which is a
governmental and private bank currency at
the same time; the revenue system. with q
mixed currency taxation and specie imposts
that draws vast surplus revenue from the
country and keeps the Treasury gorged with
gold and the practice of purchasing bonds in
iquidating the debt and selling surplus gold
arbitrarily and without fixed rules, have. to
some extent, resulted from the necessities and
consequences of the war. A better financial
| policy could have been adopted at first one
that would not have involved such . large
debt nor have deprecated as much the credit
and currency Of the country. Unfortunately we
had no statesmen capable Of managing the
national finances properly in the extraordinary
and unprecedented circumstances OF the period
during and Immediately after the war. But it
is useless to grieve over the failures or mistakes
of the past. Upon the principle that sufficient
for the day is the evil thereof, we prefer to look
only at the recent and present management of
the national finances for the purpose Of show
ing the necessity of o radical change from the
crude policy that began with the war and has
been perpetuated since to that which is re-
quired in time of peace.


| While making due allowance for the legacy
Of the vicious financial system or policy which
the present Secretary of the Treasury inher-
tied, we insist that he is inexcusable for follow
ing in the old war rut seven years after peace
has been established, and for not bringing the
country out Of the mire. Looking at the
almost boundless resources of the country, at
the fact that the enormous floating war
debt, as well as . large amount of the
fixed debt had been liquidated four years
ago and before he came into power, and
also at the fact that he has had both
the time and influence to improve upon
the past and to establish o sound system of
finapce and currency, it is evident he is in
competent for the important position he holds.
Seven years of peace, plenty and surprising
growth in wealth, through the blessings of Prov
idence, fruitful country and the industry of
the people-a material prosperity unprece-
dented in the history of nations-yet the credit
Of the Republic is below that of many other
nations, Notwithstanding Mr. Boutwell, pal
pable misstatement to the contrary; and the
people are yet taxed almost as heavily as
in war times, and we are about as
far from specie payments or q sound
currency system as ever. Gold gambling and
speculation are as rampant as ever, from the
same causes that operated during the war
from the unsound principle upon which the
ational finances were conducted and the
mismanagement of them, and the want of o
good and we'll defined financial policy on the
part of the government. Mr.. Boutwell, is in
the habit of pointing to the material prosper
ity Of the country as an evidence of good man.
agement of the national finances, but that
prosperity is entirely Independent of his ac-
ton. Indeed, the country would have been
more prosperous and in better condition had
he shown more ability. He has been simply
drifting along in the irrepressible tide of the
nations industry, growth and wealth, and has
not had the capacity to initiate anything in
the way of improvement. He has, in fact
been drag upon the progress of the country.


The policy of the Secretary of the Treasury
or Of the administration, as we'll as that of the
dominant party in Congress, has been in favor
of certain classes or interests, and too often in
favor of rings or cliques of individuals, as dis
tinguished from and in opposition to the gen.
eral welfare. The government all through
might properly be called a ring govern
ment There is the well-known Treas
ury ring which profits by Mr.. Boutwelrs
gold, currency and bond operations in the
market; the Syndicate ring which manipu-
| lates the national securities and makes enor-