Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 February 1878 — Non-ResumptIon in France—Interesting Faets. [ARTICLE]

Non-ResumptIon in France—Interesting Faets.

Mr. Henry Carey Baird writes as follows to the Philadelphia Times : “ The Ist of January, 1878, having come and gone, and the debt due by the French Government to the Bank of France having been reduced to 300,000,000 francs, and when ‘the forced circulation of notes should cease in conformity with the law on the matter,’ it is an interesting fact, to learn from the correspondent of the London Economist that on the 8d inst. ‘no notice of the legal resumption of specie payments had been issued. ’ It is true that for several years past the bank lias been paying specie to the amount of 1,000 francs at a single payment, but it has held in jig owp hands pptire and

complete control over the matter, and all such payments are purely optional. Now, not only has the bank not formally and legally ‘resumed,’ but it had during the week ending Jan. 3, increased its circulation of notes $20,000,000, and that circulation then stood at $520,000,. 000, being $51,000,000 more than it was in September, 1875. The ‘cremation theory of finance.’ evidently does not obtain in France, where the trade, commerce and industries of the people are not subordinated to any arbitrary fixed amount of money, but the latter is subordinated to the former. In a word, the circulation of the bank is a purely automatic affair, and varies from day to day, and week to week, according to the demands of business. This is is sensible as it is just. “It is equally worthy of note that the bank held, Jan. 3, but $105,000,000 in specie, against $455,000,000 on June 28, 1877. The Government and the bank evidently see and appreciate the perils of resumption, while, notwithstanding the facts that their country is creditor with the rest of the world, and is steadily importing specie, the bank has lost $50,000,000 within six months. All such unimportant and trifling considerations as these are, however, overlooked and disregarded by the great statesmen at Hie head of our affairs, who fail to think or care what kind of a chance our poor debtor country and its industries would stand it our treasury resumed on a paltry $100,000,000 of specie, while liable to have foreign calls for $1,000,000,000 within a year if any great convulsion should occur in Europe. ‘ Verily do fools rush in where angels fear to tread.’”