293 



FINANCES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



and the cotton and grain growing regions of the 

 country, or lessens the cost of frights, adds some- 

 thing to our capacity to compete successfully in the 

 markets of the world. Finally, those measures 

 which encourage American manufactures, especially 

 of iron, wool, and cotton, and discourage the impor- 

 tation of like products, affect favorably the balance 

 of trade and help us toward the end we seek. This 

 statement in three parts is a general statement of 

 a policy that, in my opinion, wm aid the country in 

 reaching a condition when it will be practicable to 

 resume and maintain specie payments. Anticipat- 

 ing that day. I anticipate also that the burden of re- 

 sumption will rest upon the Government. There are 

 now more than 1,900 banks in the country, and I 



cannot imagine a condition of things so favorable for 

 a period of years as to enable them at all times to 

 redeem their notes in specie only. Without pro- 



ceeding to the discussion of the subject in detail, I 

 think that all will have been gained that is of value 

 when the Treasury shall be prepared to pay the de- 

 mand notes of the Government in coin, and the 

 banks shall be prepared to pay their notes either hi 

 coin or in legal-tender notes, and then our good for- 

 tune will clearly appear in this, that our paper cur- 

 rency is not exclusively of national bank notes, nor 

 exclusively of United States notes. 



The following tables were compiled at the 

 office of the Financial and Commercial Chron- 

 icle, New York, and show the monthly range 

 of Government securities, and the comparative 

 prices of leading articles of produce in the 

 New York market, the prices of gold, stocks, 

 etc. 



MONTHLY RANGE OF GOVERNMENT SECURITIES, AS REPRESENTED BY ACTUAL SALES AT 

 THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE BOARD DURING THE YEAR 1872. 



